GONZALES — Gonzales High School seniors received awards for academics, leadership, Seal of Biliteracy and more on May 31 during the Annual Senior Awards Night.
Over 50 students were recognized over the course of the evening and received certificates and scholarships from approximately 37 local organizations and businesses.
During the Senior Awards night, the Valedictorian and Salutatorian were announced as Cecilia Trujillo and Alondra Urena, respectively.
“Each year Gonzales High School picks two people to represent them as their best,” Assistant Principal Julius Purnsley said. “This year, they’re probably the best I’ve seen in the 20-something years I’ve been here.”
According to Purnsley, he met Trujillo and Urena over the past two years when they came into his office to take advanced tests in subjects such as physics. Urena is going to attend the University of California Los Angeles in the fall and Trujillo will be attending Harvard.
The evening began with the awarding of the Francisco M. Cabrera Scholarship that was presented by Carolina Cabrera.
“These students amaze me,” Carolina said. “In not only your scholastic performance but your drive to succeed and make our world a better place.”
Francisco was Carolina’s husband who passed away, and Carolina gives the scholarship in his honor because of his drive to succeed. The scholarship is supported by 1966 Gonzales High School graduates.
The scholarship was awarded to Miguel Amador, who will be attending the University of California Los Angeles in the fall. Amador is part of the National Honor Society, football and Special Education program.
This year’s Senior Awards Night was also the first time that Gonzales High School seniors received the Seal of Biliteracy from Zandra Galvan and Laura Cortez.
“This seal is very important because it signifies that there are students in our district that are clearly articulate in two languages, Spanish and English,” Galvan said.
Seven seniors received the Seal of Biliteracy from the state of California on May 31. The Seal of Biliteracy is awarded in 25 states and one province. According to Galvan, California was the first state to approve such a seal.
The students who were given the certificate and Seal of Biliteracy are Araceli Arreola-Camacho, Sandi Cervantes-Morales, Alejandro Estrada-Esparza, Paola Guido, Daniel Hernandez-Tovar, Gisset Rico-Valdez and Alondra Urena.
