SALINAS VALLEY — Salinas Valley resident Fatima Abed was recently awarded the 2024 Dream of Flight $1,000 Scholarship from MPI Jet for her essay detailing her challenging journey to learn English and pursue higher education.
Her inspiring story of determination and perseverance stood out among many applicants.
According to Abed, “This scholarship is helping me reach my aspirations of pursuing higher education, like a jet that’s taking me closer to my dreams. Thank you to MPI Jet for this incredible opportunity and support. Your team’s kindness will never be forgotten.”
In 2007, Abed’s family moved to New York from Iraq. Her father later took a job at the Defense Language Institute (DLI) in Monterey and the family moved to Salinas in 2019.
Abed began working with the Boys and Girls Club in Salinas helping youth there, just as she had helped to raise her own siblings. After facing many challenges to learn English, she read comic books on the bus to school and back and had teachers who helped her overcome her language barrier.
Abed’s dedication paid off, allowing her to master English, communicate more easily with her peers and gain confidence and strength as a student. She achieved a 4.0 GPA in high school and was placed in an AP (Advanced Placement) Language Course.
Abed is now looking forward to attending UC Berkeley in the fall with plans to major in public health.
The 2024 Dream of Flight Scholarship was open to graduating seniors participating in the Seaside and Salinas chapters of the Boys and Girls Clubs of Monterey County whose goals are to pursue a level of higher education, including trade school, culinary school, apprenticeship, college and the military, not restrained to the $28 billion aviation industry.
This unique scholarship, in its second year, was awarded to Abed on May 10.
“We’re excited to partner once more with MPI Jet and appreciate their continued support in helping our youth realize their dreams,” said Ron Johnson, president/CEO of the Boys and Girls Clubs of Monterey County. “We’re thrilled to learn that Fatima Abed is an MPI Jet scholarship recipient. She has worked hard to build a pathway to her dream college. Her story is a testament to the bright futures our club members can achieve with dedication and opportunity.”
While this year’s scholarship was focused on the Boys and Girls Clubs of Monterey County, it has potential to expand to other schools within the Monterey County school district in 2025.
MPI Jet plans to fundraise for upcoming scholarships throughout the coming year and invites donations and contributions from other companies and local community members for their 2025 scholarship opportunity.
“The future belongs to those who believe in their dreams,” said James (Jeb) Garamendi, president of MPI Jet. “While dreams are not fragile, they sometimes require a little help. That’s why we created the Dream of Flight Scholarship, aiming to alleviate financial obstacles hindering education beyond high school. Our goal is to sustain and expand this scholarship in the future, empowering more dreams to take flight.”
MPI Jet 2024 Scholarship Recipient
Essay from Fatima Abed
Describe a valuable lesson you learned from a setback or failure. What actions did you take to recover and move forward?
I tried every trick in the book to prove I could speak English. I dreaded the hour when my Second Language teacher would take me out of class. My shame of walking out of class, separating myself from the “Americans” and joining the rest of the English Language Learners (ELL’s). It was overwhelming. It reminded me of the stories my parents told when they first came here to America from Iraq in 2007; we were foreign outcasts.
I spent long hours in K-7th grade ELD classes. Each year, I took the ELPAC test in hopes of reclassification, and I failed. Slowly my EL friends reclassified and moved on; I was stuck. It didn’t make sense to me. I could clearly read, speak, and write in English; I maintained a passing grade in English. I truly felt stupid. In eighth grade, I moved states and the EL label followed. My hate for English grew.
Finally, in sophomore year, I found passion and pleasure in reading comic books. Any spare moments I had, I read. I downloaded reading apps and researched websites to find more books to expand my love of reading. Encouraged by my sophomore English teacher, with whom I was anxious and scared of regarding my reading and writing insecurities, I enrolled in AP Language and Composition.
Thankfully I had a great English teacher who instead of bombarding me with repeated lengthy lessons, taught me the value of reading, rhetorical writing, and how to appeal to targeted audiences. I participated and discussed real-world problems. I felt strong and confident. Lessons from English Class inspired me to start blogging during my busiest and toughest school year. I blogged about my journey with writing, body dysphoria, leadership, xenophobia, inspiration from Shackleton, and more.
I ripped off the labels that followed me around; I now wear the term EL in my soul. I discovered how to achieve higher, rebel, and proudly represent my journey. I continue to climb and challenge myself with rigorous classes. I dealt with the restrictive constraints of the American Education System by becoming a scholar in retaliation.
Imagine that your dreams take flight after high school. Describe what that would look like/how it would help you become the best version of you.
We are the “Second least educated city in America”(according to Forbes magazine). In a valley of potential young leaders, we are constantly shadowed by drugs and violence.
My high school, Rancho San Juan, is five years old and lacks stability; in two years, we had 32 new teachers. There was no stable backbone for students to rely on. My favorite subject, History, had no teacher for the first semester. The lack of consistent staff made finding wise mentors a difficult task.
We deserved better futures, but it seemed like there was no route. Helping ourselves, fighting from being left behind, we took a chance where adults seemed too busy or nonexistent, we became THE mentors. The American Education system left us drowning. I am fortunate that my English teacher, who made me fall in love with English, also made me fall in love with going to college. I wasn’t the only one who found love with the idea of higher education; a great group of my peers followed suit.
We call ourselves the “Young Scholars of Salinas.” A club of students who weren’t part of AVID or Puente hungry to find knowledge regarding higher education, empowering ourselves to succeed. As the Co-Vice President, my focus was recruiting students at school who have dreams of going to college but have no clue where to start. Only 20% of our students go to a four-year college, thus my purpose is to disregard stereotypes and prejudiced thinking and educate students regarding the college research process, A-G requirements, application process, etc.
My ultimate goal: creating a legacy. Ultimately, breaking down the mindset of many students who think college isn’t accessible. It’s also personal to me to see students who don’t believe they can do more. To help them see working a blue-collar job isn’t the only thing they are expected to have but to obtain a degree in hopes of coming back to Salinas to “pay it forward” and create citywide change—the legacy of making true scholars and lifelong learners, never backing down guiding others to find self-actualization and persevering endeavor.
