North Shore Community College (NSCC) graduate Vanessa Molina, from Revere, has been awarded a full, two-year scholarship to UMass Boston through the 2020 Foster Furculo Scholarship Program.
Established to honor former Massachusetts Governor Foster Furculo, who was instrumental in the creation of the system of public community colleges in the Commonwealth, the Foster Furculo scholarship is awarded annually to one graduate of each public community college in Massachusetts.
Criteria for the Foster Furculo Scholarship award includes exemplifying the success of the community college system, earning an associate degree with a cumulative GPA of at least 3.5 and applicants must be a first time, full-time student enrolled for the fall semester at UMass Boston immediately following graduation from community college.
Despite having to independently support herself, balancing a full-time job with a full college course load, Molina still found time to volunteer at various organizations, working mostly with the elderly. “What I love doing more than anything is helping individuals. That is why I have been driven to the medical field, especially given the current situation in our country,†she stated.
Molina, a member of NSCC’s Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society and the Commonwealth Commitment Program, was recently named to Phi Theta Kappa’s All-Massachusetts Academic Team, which honors some of the highest academic achievers of the state’s 15-member community college system. Molina will graduate this May from NSCC’s Liberal Arts program with a 3.71 GPA. She will enter UMass Boston this fall to pursue a biology degree with hopes to eventually earn a Ph.D.
