Lola Scholarship Fund

LEAD Filipino is building the Mama Verang and Lola Remi Scholarship Fund (Lola Scholarship Fund) to provide scholarships for current and incoming Filipino American college students.

LEAD Filipino organizer Daniel Lazo is leading the board to this scholarship fund and chose the name of the fund in memory and dedication of his two grandmothers.

“This scholarship honors two of my very different lolas, both teachers in their own way,” said Lazo, “Mama Verang raised nine children as a single mother. She was also a high school teacher in the Philippines and brought her entire family to the states for a better life. On the other hand, Lola Remi never finished high school and worked hard as a tailor and farmer. With her kind-heartedness and ambition, she put all of her seven children through college in order for them to build a better life. Both were advocates of higher education and this fund is in their legacy.”

According to a recent San José Spotlight article on high school dropout rates in Santa Clara County due to the pandemic, “Filipino students saw the highest increase in dropout rates among high school students in Santa Clara County schools. In 2019-20, an additional 160 Filipino students left school without a degree compared with the previous school year, Massaro said. That increase, from 37 to 197 dropouts out of the nearly 1,000 Filipino high school students in the county, represented a jump in their dropout rate to nearly 20% from about 4%.”

Mikhail (Mikey) Roshan Hernandez Tupaz

2nd Year at Stanford University
Majoring in International Relations with a minor in Linguistics

Excerpt from Mikey’s essay:
“I earnestly and sincerely believe that one of the reasons why I am here on this Earth is to fight for my cherished and beloved native language, no matter the cost. This passion is what keeps me going during times of hardship, pain, and suffering. It is what drives me to study well, to try my best at whatever I do, and to live to fight. Dahil kung hindi ako ang magmamahal sa sariling wika, sino? (Because if I don’t love my own language, who will?)”

Mellanie Kristelle Roxas De Guzman

4th Year at University of San Francisco
School of Nursing & Health Professionals’ Clinical Psychology PsyD Program

Excerpt from Mellanie’s essay:
“Through my privilege of higher education as a first-generation college graduate and doctoral student, I have learned that silence does not equate to survival; rather, it can result in tarnishing joy and lead to distress. Moreover, when an individual or collective unit does experience joy, it does not diminish the harsh realities of ongoing oppression. My identity and experiences as a Filipina American have been pivotal to my growth as a social justice-oriented clinician. Engaging with my communities as an anak, tita, Pinayista scholar, mentorship co-coordinator, Students of Color board member, and peer supervisor has helped me develop a voice that is not afraid to challenge barriers to equitable mental and behavioral health care.”

Allyson Infante

3rd Year at Ohlone College
Double Majoring in Early Childhood Education & English Literature

Excerpt from Mikey’s essay:
“My grandma, my Nanay, had been my first, and my favorite, conversationalist; she helped me shape my mouth around the soft letters and hard endings of Tagalog. My first language was warm in this way, the way that we begin each morning with tsaa and kape, a comforting familiarity.“

Donations are accepted year-round to expand the fund and ensure its longevity for years to come. Please consider giving a gift to our organization today.

For any questions or concerns about the scholarship or donating, please use the contact information below.

Daniel Lazo
Scholarship Director
scholarship@leadfilipino.org