Monte Vista Student Wins Prestigious Gates Millennium Scholarship

A local Spring Valley high school student has won the prestigious Gates Millennium Scholarship, which will pay for her college tuition all the way through master's and post doctorate programs.

Diana Lazo, a senior, said when she was notified that she won the scholarship she was overjoyed.

“My first reaction when I found the big envelope in my mail was to cry,” Lazo said. “It was an amazing feeling, and I knew in that moment my future would soon change direction. It still feels like a dream come true.”   

The Gates Millennium Scholarship is awarded each year to 1,000 qualified Asian/Pacific Islander American, African-American, American Indian/Alaska Native or Hispanic American students to help them achieve their educational dreams. The scholarship program was started in 1999 and is funded by a grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

Each awardee receives funding to pay for their entire undergraduate degree at any school and discipline they are accepted into. Continuing scholars are also allowed to request additional funds to pursue graduate programs as well.

AVID Program

The Advanced Via Individual Determination (AVID) course aims to help those who would be the first generation in their family to attend college. Mark Campillo, the AVID coordinator at Monte Vista, said the program was developed in 1980 by San Diego English teacher Mary Catherine Swanson. For students to enter the program and take the specialized courses, students must maintain at least a 2.5 grade point average and fulfill a number of required college classes before they graduate from high school, Campillo said.

“Our goal is that 100 percent of our AVID students take the most rigorous courses and required tests to prepare themselves for college so that they ALL are accepted to a four-year university,” Campillo said. “AVID targets students who have traditionally fallen through the cracks and provides them with a rich curriculum filled with proven teaching strategies and success skills as well as trained college tutors who visit their AVID classes twice per week for tutorials.”

And Lazo is certainly deserving of the award. Lazo has been a part of the rigorous AVID program at Monte Vista since she first started high school there.

“I joined the AVID program my freshman year, and I have been in it all my four years at Monte Vista,” Lazo said. “I believe that taking the initiative to take the class was one of the best decisions I have ever made.”

Lazo’s Challenges

Lazo said she suffered from painful shyness but didn’t run from her challenge. She launched the Make a Wish Club, a new club at Monte Vista that aimed to raise awareness for the Make a Wish Foundation, which works to enrich the lives of children suffering from life-threatening illness and medical conditions.

Lazo’s AVID teacher and adviser of the Make a Wish Club, Michael Johnson, acknowledges all the hard work that Lazo has done in addition to her AVID courses to overcome her struggles with shyness and achieve success.

“Driven by her passion to help even more people, Diana chose to work on her shyness,” Johnson said. “AVID tutorials allowed her to practice speaking in front of and leading small groups.  By the end of her sophomore year she had determined to challenge herself by founding a club on campus. She fought through her anxieties to define and communicate goals, organize fundraisers, delegate responsibilities, process paperwork, and raise morale during setbacks. She did all this while taking a full slate of honors and Advanced Placement courses, serving as a tutor to freshmen during lunch.”

In addition to dealing with her acute shyness, Lazo said she comes from a family of six and knew that paying for college would be a challenge for her parents. She spent her entire Christmas break and her birthday filling out scholarship applications and writing essays.

“It was a long process, but it was worth it,” Lazo said. “I had to write eight essays and get letters of recommendation on top of doing all my schoolwork. I tried my best because I knew that if I did win it I could change my future.”

And Lazo’s future has changed. She was accepted to an impressive eight colleges and universities, but decided to attend UCLA to study biology.

Lazo said she hopes to become a pediatrician and continue her efforts to help others.

“I feel that the experiences I have had have really encouraged me to pursue a medical career,” Lazo said. “I want to continue supporting my community, and I feel that by becoming a doctor I will greatly support my community and do what I enjoy.”

Success

Lazo has only kind things to say about her Monte Vista professors and AVID teachers, and the feeling is mutual.

“With everything she has overcome to achieve all that she has, I'm not the least bit surprised that she won,” Campillo said. “She's not only an excellent student, but I have no doubt she will use her education to help others and make a big difference in our society.”

Lazo noted, “Mr. Johnson guided me through everything, and thanks to him I got over my shyness. Now I am a more optimistic person and it has always been because of his support. In AVID we have various tutors and since freshman year they have supported me immensely. My teachers at Monte Vista have also been really supportive. I have maintained my performance with their support.”

In addition to winning the Gates Millennium Scholarship, Lazo has completed 10 AP college classes, maintained a 4.2 GPA, is president of the Interact Club at Monte Vista and founder of the Make a Wish Club.

And even after all of her accomplishments, Lazo is humble.

“I am not the brightest student at my school but I have always worked hard and been responsible and dedicated and that has gotten me far,” Lazo said.

And the dedication of her teachers and support system at Monte Vista High School helped make it all possible.

“I am very happy for her,” Johnson said. “Diana is very humble, respectful and hard working. She is the epitome of the American success story. This validates a lot of hard work by a lot of good people.”