18 Talentosos Estudiantes son Honrados por su Liderazgo!

Dallas, TX—The Hispanic Heritage Foundation (HHF) honored 18 local high school seniors winners of the Dallas Regional Hispanic Heritage Youth Awards for their leadership in the classroom and community and promoted as role models for their peers during a ceremony in the Hughes-Trigg Center the last May 18, 2006.

The 2006 Dallas Youth Award recipients each will receive educational grants in the amounts of $3,000 for the Gold Medallion Awardees and $2,000 for Silver Medallion Awardees for a total of $45,000. Across the country, 216 Youth Awardees from 12 regions will receive more than $600,000 in total grants after being selected from more than 13,000 applications. The Dallas recipients are:

Arts and Culture (sponsored by Smithsonian Latino Center): Victor Manuel Alvarez, Gold Medallion; Arturo Aguero, Silver Medallion

Academic Excellence (sponsored by Chase and MasterCard International): David Tomas Escamilla, Gold Medallion; Vanessa Nielsen, Silver Medallion

Community Service (sponsored by Dr Pepper): Victoria Lynn Rhodes, Gold Medallion; Teresa Magaly Espino, Silver Medallion

Education (sponsored by Southwest Airlines): Juan Carlos Guevara of Dallas, TX-, Gold Medallion; Sam Muñoz, Silver Medallion.

Engineering and Mathematics (sponsored by ExxonMobil): Nathaniel Hugo Mejias, Gold Medallion; Emily MichellePerez, Silver Medallion.

Healthcare (sponsored by GlaxoSmithKline): Stephanie Marilyn Martinez, Gold Medallion; Yesica Loreli Rocha, Silver Medallion.

Leadership (sponsored by Kellogg Company): Melissa Amaya, Gold Medallion; David Alejandro Silva, Silver Medallion.

Journalism (sponsored by NBC Universal and Telemundo): Rachel Lynn Thomas, Gold Medallion; Christopher Daniel Montes, Silver Medallion.

Sports (sponsored by SUBWAY® Restaurants): Celenne Nuñez, Gold Medallion; Christopher David Olivares, Silver Medallion.

“The dedication demonstrated by these young people in the classroom and throughout their community are proof positive that our future is in very capable hands,” said HHF President and CEO José Antonio Tijerino. “Through our youth leadership program, the Hispanic Heritage Foundation and its sponsors are committed to redefining the image of Latinos as productive, hardworking and visionary. There is no doubt that the Dallas regional recipients will help us accomplish that goal and set a positive example for younger Latinos going forward.”

Of the 216 Regional Youth Awards recipients, one National Youth Award recipient per category will be chosen. The nine National Youth Award recipients will receive an additional $5,000 educational grant and a laptop computer. Southwest Airlines, the Official Airline Sponsor of the Hispanic Heritage Youth Awards, will fly each of the national award recipients to the National Youth Awards presentation in Miami on June 21, and to the star-studded 20th Annual Hispanic Heritage Awards ceremony in Washington, DC, on September 7 at the John F. Kennedy Center for Performing Arts.

The Hispanic Heritage Youth Awards are backed by a dedicated list of corporate sponsors, including: Chase and MasterCard International; Dr Pepper; ExxonMobil; GlaxoSmithKline; NBC Universal and Telemundo; SUBWAY® Restaurants; Southwest Airlines; Fannie Mae; and Allianz Life, the Official Insurance Company of the Youth Awards. The Youth Awards are pleased to welcome Southwest Airlines as a new Category Sponsor (Education), Kellogg Company (Leadership) and the Smithsonian Latino Center (Arts and Culture). The success of the Youth Awards program is predicated by the support of thousands of high schools, community organizations, and business partners.