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Soledad

‘Top 40’ Soledad scholars honored by Rotary Club

SOLEDAD — More than 40 students from Soledad High School were honored by the Soledad Rotary Club at the fifth annual “Top 40 Scholars” banquet in the multipurpose room on May 24.

Ten seniors, 10 juniors, 10 sophomores and 16 freshmen made up the top 46 scholars that were recognized and honored during the Rotary and Soledad High School event, which is limited to just students, school administration and Rotary Club members.

Giving the inspirational speech for the evening was Monterey County Office of Education Deputy Superintendent Deneen Guss.

“I cannot tell you how proud I am of all of you,” Guss said. “Looking around the room I’m actually seeing former students. Congratulations to all of you for being the top of your class, which is really quite amazing.”

Guss gave the top scholars encouragement to continue their education and attend college because they will have a greater annual income than their counterparts who receive a high school diploma and do not continue their education. According to Guss, the average lifetime income of a college graduate versus a high school graduate is approximately $1 million more.

“Millennials with a college degree have lower unemployment rates and poverty rates than those without degrees,” Guss said. “College educated millennials are more likely to be married and less likely to be living in their parent’s home.”

Among the “Top 10 Senior Scholars” about to embark on their continued education is Maria Zuniga, who was chosen as “Most Inspirational.”

“Education is very important to me because my family has always taught me to always do better and to go with your gut,” Zuniga said. “Never let anyone be an obstacle in your life. It’s really important to me because I want to be a leader in my community, get a college degree and come back and give it everything I can.”

Zuniga will be attending the University of California, Davis, next year and major in biology. She was also a returning scholar student.

Alyssa Plascencia said she pushed her friends, family and herself toward education so she could go to college. Plascencia felt that the main reason she is pushing to become more educated is because all the problems in the world are due to ignorance. To combat that is to gain more knowledge. She will be attending the University of California Berkeley in the fall, majoring in biological sciences.

Senior Adrian Gutierrez was experiencing his first “Top 40 Scholars” banquet. Gutierrez came to Soledad from Mexico for a better life.

“The only thing that could make them more proud is just for me to have a good education,” Gutierrez said. “This is my first year as top 10, so it even made them a little more proud. It was just a really happy thing for me and my parents.”

Gutierrez will be joining Zuniga next year at the University of California, Davis, and will major in animal science.

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