Michelle Vásquez: Pell Grants Make A Difference
“Because of my Pell Grants, I have unlimited options for choosing a fulfilling career path and paving a more dignified and safer future for my immigrant, hard-working family.”
February 7, 2022, Washington, D.C.: Trinity senior Michelle Vásquez delivered a powerful and passionate speech about the importance of Pell grants in making college dreams a reality, as she spoke before college and university presidents from across the country, gathered in Washington, D.C., for a special event celebrating the 50th anniversary of the federal Pell Grant program hosted by NAICU, the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities.
She shared with the audience that her dream of college was clouded by concerns of how to afford her degree. “What took the weight off my shoulders my senior year was the certainty that I would receive a federal Pell Grant to support my attendance to any college,” said Vásquez. “My Pell Grants have been instrumental to my attendance at Trinity since 2019 – and now I am honored to share that because of the Pell Grant support and my financial aid package at Trinity, I will be graduating as Student Government Council President, as an honors student, and with a secured position to work as a consultant at Accenture upon graduation.”
“I stand here today to tell you that the federal Pell Grants influence whether many students can attain a degree or not,” said Vásquez. “Investing in someone’s education is the best investment you can ever make, because the knowledge and training that we acquire in higher education can never be taken away and opens up a world of possibilities. I’d like to thank everyone who has supported the mission of the federal Pell Grant program. At a time when the American dream can seem so unattainable, the federal Pell Grants make it possible for me to be the first in my entire Latino family to go to college.”
Michelle Vásquez is a first-generation scholar who was born and raised in Washington, D.C., and is a graduate of D.C Public Schools – Duke Ellington High School. At Trinity, she is an honors student majoring in political science with a double minor in business administration and data analytics, and is the president of the Trinity Student Government Council. She is passionate about the intersection between government, politics, and business. When Vásquez graduates from Trinity in May 2022, she will begin a full-time position as a consultant with the global consulting firm Accenture. She completed two internships with Accenture, virtually, while a student at Trinity.
Watch the video of her compelling speech and read her full remarks below.
The event, during the NAICU annual meeting, was co-hosted by Commander Clay Pell, the grandson of Senator Claiborne Pell, who created the transformative federal student grant program, and NAICU’s president, Barbara Mistick. During the event, Ambassador Susan Rice accepted an award in honor of her mother, Lois Rice, who played a key role in the creation of the Pell grant program.
Michelle Vásquez, the only college student who spoke during the program, represented the 7 million current Pell grant recipients who are able to achieve their college dreams with the support of the federal grant. Since the program was created, more than 80 million college students have benefitted from Pell Grants.
Remarks of Senior Michelle Vasquez ’22
NAICU Dinner Celebrating the 50th Anniversary of Pell Grants, February 7, 2022
Thank you and good evening, everyone. My name is Michelle Vasquez, and I am a proud undergraduate student at Trinity Washington University. I was born and raised in Washington, D.C., and I am a proud graduate of D.C. Public Schools.
When I first heard the word “college” it wasn’t at a young age. Neither was it from my parents. One day, when I was a sophomore in the hallways of my high school a group of upperclassmen approached me and asked, “What college do you want to go to?” and I responded, “What’s college?”. What I received in return from them was not the definition of “college.” Instead, they laughed and made it seem like I should have known what college was. But more important, I received a solid piece of advice that stuck with me. They told me, “Your grades matter for you to get into college.”
Michelle Vasquez ’22 speaking at NAICU dinner.
I was startled to learn that I could continue to go to school after I graduated from high school. A reality that seemed so far away, that a future beyond it hadn’t even crossed my mind. I heeded the advice from those students who laughed at me and yet inspired me – I worked hard in high school resolved that I would be able to take the next step in my higher education.
I raised the idea of college with my family, and I am thankful to have received their full support and continuous prayers for me until this day. However, unresolved was how would I pay for college. Senior year, I began to apply to colleges, and I also applied to some scholarships. Actually, A LOT of scholarships. In fact, a little over 130 scholarships – I was very motivated! I kept applying to scholarships since, unlike many, I had no college savings plan. I was inspired by the idea that I would be the first in my entire Latino family to go to college and I would be the main role model for my younger brother who would be next in this journey.
Since then, I understood why my mother would always tell me, “Study hard, if you don’t, you’ll end up cleaning houses with me.” And not that there was anything wrong with that, but I knew that continuing to live on a low income, continuing to experience discrimination from our landlords, continuing to live in a dangerous neighborhood, and not affording many basic necessities, was not the ideal American Dream that my family had intended for me and my brother. I knew my family’s future depended on me, and an education would equip me to address these disparities for myself and other families.
But you see, education in America is incredibly expensive, and a college degree is unattainable to most underprivileged, first-generation students. Since my parents were not in a position to help me at all financially, the financial burden would be entirely my own. Graduating with an enormous debt was absolutely terrifying. I, however, was determined since I believed wholeheartedly that a rigorous education was the best gateway to personal and intellectual growth, and would provide me with effective tools to contribute in a larger scale to address the complex dilemmas that haunt our interconnected world.
Michelle Vasquez with Trinity President Pat McGuire.
What took the weight off my shoulders my senior year was the certainty that I would receive a federal Pell Grant to support my attendance to any college. My Pell Grants have been instrumental to my attendance at Trinity since 2019 – and now I am honored to share that because of the Pell Grant support and my financial aid package at Trinity, I will be graduating as Student Government Council President, as an honors student, and with a secured position to work as a consultant at Accenture upon graduation.
Had it not been for my federal Pell Grants, my chances of going to college would have deteriorated significantly. Because of my Pell Grants, I have unlimited options for choosing a fulfilling career path and paving a more dignified and safer future for my immigrant, hard-working family that would have been unimaginable to that sophomore high school Michelle.
I stand here today to tell you that the federal Pell Grants influence whether many students can attain a degree or not. Investing in someone’s education is the best investment you can ever make, because the knowledge and training that we acquire in higher education can never be taken away and opens up a world of possibilities. I’d like to thank everyone who has supported the mission of the federal Pell Grant program. At a time when the American dream can seem so unattainable, the federal Pell Grants make it possible for me to be the first in my entire Latino family to go to college. From the bottom of my heart, thank you.
Trinity Media Relations Contact: Ann Pauley, pauleya@trinitydc.edu, 202-884-9725
