Office of Merit Scholarships, Fellowships & Awards (OMSFA)

Eduardo Ortiz Eufracio

My name is Eduardo Ortiz Eufracio; I am a junior at UW Tacoma majoring in Education studying to become an English Language Learners teacher. Throughout my educational journey, I have attended schools with a diverse student population. However, I rarely saw teachers who shared the same cultural background, practiced the same traditions, or spoke the same language as me. I believe that as our communities continue to become more diverse our teachers need to reflect our communities. Having teachers that reflect our communities and share similar backgrounds as students can provide them with a sense of connection and belonging. They can see themselves in their teacher and know that an education is attainable. Outside of my studies, I work for a nonprofit at a high school where I help Latino students throughout the college application process from beginning to end. Through this work and my past experiences, I have seen the impact and importance that mentorship and representation can have on a student’s educational journey and goals. This is why I am committed to increasing representation in education and supporting students from all backgrounds. What motivated me to apply for this scholarship is that receiving this scholarship will allow me to focus entirely on my studies. Additionally, this scholarship will help bring me closer to my goal of working with students, helping them see their potential and inspiring them to succeed. Showing them that they can get a higher education as well.

Goals

Recently, I found out about the many opportunities there are to teach English abroad, so I plan on applying to those and hopefully I will be somewhere around the world teaching English right after graduation! My long-term goal is to work in a high school as an English Language Learners teacher or as a College and Career counselor continuing the work I currently do. I also plan on getting my master’s degree or doctorate in higher education at UW Seattle and hopefully one day work with the College of Education or the Study Abroad Office.

Tips

Obviously start early! I think for any writing task, especially a scholarship prompt, you may not know where to start or get stuck along the way, so starting early is a must. Additionally, what really helped me answer the prompts was reflecting on how my past experiences have shaped and impacted my future goals. By doing so I realized how far I have come and I felt even more motivated to turn the application in!

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