NCLR's final scholarship recipient is Isabella Giraldo. Isabella will be attending Lenoir-Rhyne University where she intends to major in International Business.
Q: Who has been the most influential person in helping you get to where you are today?
A: My mom—she has always pushed me to try my best and she is a great mentor.
Q: What impact does winning this scholarship have on you? How about your family? What about others?
A: It motivates me to keep getting involved in the Latino community and my parents to keep supporting and teaching me about the Colombian culture.
Q: What has been the most challenging aspect of being a leader? Describe a situation where your leadership skills came in handy.
A: The most challenging aspect of being a leader is not letting people down and always motivating the community to do their best to succeed in life. When I do speeches or when I am in charge of a project, the skills I have learned have helped me to be confident and get the work done.
Q: If you could go back in time, which time period would you choose and why?
A: The ’60s: anti-war movements, Martin Luther King, Jr., The Beatles, the first man on the moon, the rise of women’s rights and liberation.
Q: If you could invite three people to dinner (living, dead, or fictional), who would you invite and why?
A: Juanes, Kathryn Bigelow, and Michelle Obama.
Q: If you could have an endless supply of any food, what would you get?
A: Milk and oatmeal raisin cookies.
Q: If they made a movie of your life, what would it be about and which actor would you want to play you?
A: The movie would be about my journey of moving back and forth from the U.S. to Colombia. Natalie Portman would play me because she is a great actress and she understands what it feels to adjust to different cultures.