Idalia
Molina
NACA's 2007
Scholarship
Winner
Lanier senior
Idalia Molina
with NACA President Anthony Williams
Idalia was born in Monterrey, Mexico, and came to the US with her mother when she was 14. When her mother went back to Mexico Idalia came to Austin to live with her aunt and uncle, and entered Lanier in the spring of her freshman year. Despite knowing no English when she arrived in the US, Idalia graduated from Lanier in the top 10% of her class and was inducted into Valhalla, Lanier's acknowledgement of distinctive achievement.
During her studies at Lanier, she discovered that she enjoyed working with and helping people. She began tutoring international students and younger ESL students, helping them prepare for the TAKS test. Idalia recruited other students to join her and is happy that the group will continue after her graduation.
If that weren't enough, Idalia has worked through her high school years as a cashier in restaurants and has used her earnings not only to help her own family with expenses, but also to sponsor children in India and Chile. She also has helped raise money with car washes and other projects, and received an award from Principe de Paz Church for 34.5 hours of tutoring in the after-school program and mentoring pre-school and elementary school children.
In addition to the $500 scholarship for community service from NACA, Idalia has also earned a $10,000 UT President's Scholarship. In the fall, she will be a freshman at UT, majoring in social work. If helping other people is to be her life's work, she's off to a flying start.
