Five students with promising academic futures were recently awarded scholarships by a local nonprofit, and The Dallas Express would like to take a moment to showcase each of these exceptional scholars and their hard work.
As The Dallas Express previously reported, five recent Dallas ISD graduates received a $5,000 scholarship from Dallas Bright Futures on behalf of DX publisher Monty Bennett and his wife Sarah. To demonstrate their suitability for the scholarship, candidates had to compose essays showcasing their academic achievements, enthusiasm for learning, commitment to community service, and leadership capabilities.
A selection committee interviewed 20 semifinalists from the pool of nearly 60 applicants who met or exceeded the level of excellence required. Eventually, five students were chosen based on their demonstration of Dallas Bright Futures’ purpose. The winners can use the scholarship award to cover tuition, books, living costs, and other college-related expenses.
Oluwakemi Tytler, Tsion Aredo, Alaiza Segovia, Eva Anderson, and Jeffrey Baker were the five recipients of the inaugural Monty J. and Sarah Z. Bennett Dallas ISD Scholarship.
At a reception held in their honor, The Dallas Express spoke to several of the recipients, including Miss Segovia, who is attending the University of Texas in Arlington in the fall to major in architecture.
When asked why she chose architecture, Segovia said, “My inspiration is my dad. He owns a remodeling business.”
Segovia’s dad wanted to be an architect but set that aspiration aside when he relocated to the U.S. from Mexico. Now, Segovia hopes to fulfill this dream herself. She often helps her dad in his business, Sevogia Remodeling LLC.
“I want to design buildings,” she shared.
However, Segovia wasn’t always so confident about what career path she wanted to pursue. While at Trinidad Garza Early College High School, the bright young student struggled with envisioning her future.
“The hardest part is trying to decide who you want to be in the future. There is a lot of pressure to have a career in mind and have a whole life laid out,” said Segovia.
“It is a very scary thing to try to decide what you want to be for the rest of your life at my age,” explained Segovia. “For quite some time, I was very indecisive, but I knew that I liked math and I am creative, so I combined them into architecture,” said Segovia.
Segovia excelled not only in math and creative endeavors but also had plenty of other accolades and extracurricular interests that kept her driven in high school. She received the AP Scholar Award, was in the National Honor Society and Yearbook Club, worked at Whataburger, and was a teacher’s assistant, among other activities.
When asked what advice she would give those coming into their senior year of high school and facing similar pressures, Segovia stressed the importance of having a strong support system.
“I reached out to my parents a lot. They are very hard working people and set a good example. They gave me guidance and were who I could lean on. It is really important to have a support system in this process. No one should have to do this alone,” Segovia said.
Thanks to Segovia’s supportive foundations, academic drive, and pursuit of excellence both professionally and personally, she the Monty J. and Sarah Z. Bennett Dallas ISD Scholarship, an added form of assistance that encourages her onward and upward.
“When there are outstanding students like the ones we selected, it’s great to be able to help a little bit with their expenses to college, which is too expensive, in my opinion,” Monty Bennett told The Dallas Express.
Bennett’s viewpoint reflects the feelings of many, as the cost of attending college, such as tuition, fees, housing, books, and supplies, has been consistently rising over the past 20 years. In 2024, the price of a college degree in the U.S. has reached unprecedented levels. Many colleges now require students to pay nearly $100,000 annually to cover educational and living expenses, reported Fox Money.
Pair that with the fact that 85.1% of students in Dallas ISD were classified as economically disadvantaged in the 2021-2022 school year, according to an accountability report from the Texas Education Agency.
Not only do many Dallas ISD students face economic challenges, but the district does not reliably set them up for academic success.
Across all subjects, only 41% of students in Dallas ISD schools performed at grade level or above on their STAAR tests. Just 18% of students exhibited mastery. Meanwhile, the dropout rate was 4.5%, compared to the state average of 2.4%.
Yet the recipients of the Dallas Bright Futures scholarship are proof that there are diamonds within the district who are ready to shine.
“Your applications didn’t even come close to who you are as people,” said Drew Robinson, a member of the scholarship committee that selected Segovia. “The determination that you have is inspiring.”