What a group! Many special thanks to our generous sponsor, City Arts and Lectures, without whom the scholarships would not be possible, and to Books Inc. for sponsoring the awards ceremony for the past two years. We are pleased to introduce:

Brianda A. Castro is the winner of this year's Young Author's Scholarship. She was born in Mexico and traveled to the United States to reconnect with her mother when she was nine years old. Brianda is involved with Youth Speaks and has performed some of her spoken word pieces at the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) Annual Youth Conference. She participated in 826’s Young Authors’ Book project this year, and her piece will be published in the collection, Seeing Through the Fog, in the early summer. Brianda has been a member of Young Artists at Work program at Yerba Buena Center. She attends Gateway High School in San Francisco, and will be the first in her family to attend college.

Terence Li was born and raised in Hunters Point in San Francisco. He participated in the CORO Exploring Leadership program, was a camp counselor for middle school students, started the Mission Recycling Committee (a successful recycling program at Mission High) and has been recognized by California Assemblyman Mark Leno with a “Youth In Action” award. Terence is also active in multiple varsity sports, is Student Body President—the list goes on. Terence’s leadership skills are formidable, as is his energy level. He is committed to returning to his community after college.

Ge’Anna Mohamed works as a youth advocate at Literacy for Environmental Justice, a nonprofit organization in Hunters Point. She is a youth advocate for LEJ working to educate her community about environmental injustice and presenting at statewide environmental justice conferences. Ge’Anna will be the first person in her family to attend college. She currently attends Mission High.

Andrea Torres came to the United States from Mexico two years ago. In that short time, she learned to speak, read, and write English, and last summer was invited to attend the University of Virginia’s Young Writers Workshop as the 2007 Virginia Quarterly Review Poetry Scholar. She also is writing for the Magic Theater’s Young California Writing Project. Andrea will be the first in her family to attend college. She currently attends Mission High.