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San Juan, PR, January 27, 2021 | The Puerto Rico Community Foundation (FCPR) announced today the second opening of the call for the Benito Massó Scholarship Fund for Loíza Youths,The program is aimed at students between 16 and 25 years of age, Afro-descendants and residents of this town. The financial support is made possible thanks to a philanthropic investment from Amgen Foundation, Peter Alfond Foundation y W.K. Kellogg Foundation, as well as contributions from the Circle of Friends of Benny Massó.
“This is the first philanthropic fund to be established on the island to benefit Afro-descendant students. We are excited to announce this second call that seeks to develop the human capital of Afro-descendant youth in Loíza, a historically marginalized and vulnerable community. We thank the donors who have echoed this social justice strategy and we extend an invitation to others to join us in order to guarantee the continuity of this scholarship fund,” said the president of the Puerto Rico Community Foundation, Dr. Nelson I. Colón Tarrats.
To participate, new students must be in their first year of post-secondary studies, leading to associate, technical, vocational, certification or baccalaureate degrees. Youth must submit their application on or before Friday, February 12, 2021. To access the application, visit www.fcpr.org, and in the main menu press REQUEST. The first scholarship awards from the fund benefited ten young people from Loíza in 2019: eight women and two men.
The Benito Massó Scholarship Fund for Loíza Youths is part of a racial and social justice strategy that FCPR has been developing since 2015 to contribute to the integral wellbeing of children, youth and families of this village. This was established with an initial contribution of the FCPR Board of Directors, and initially received additional contributions from the following companies Marguerite Casey FoundationthroughHispanic in Philanthropy. Its continuity has been made possible thanks to the contribution of the Circle of Friends of Benny Massó, Peter Alfond Foundation y Amgen Foundation; The latter also made a philanthropic investment in another of Loiza's key projects: the Alliance for Peace: For a New Loíza, focused on reducing violence in this municipality and providing educational and employment alternatives to individuals between the ages of 15 and 30. Since 2019, the Alliance has achieved 71 conflict mediations, 14 youth received a high school diploma, and five at-risk youth started a new job. Amgen's philanthropic investment for both projects totals $150,000.
“For the past 28 years, Amgen has been part of Puerto Rico's economic growth and development, while strengthening initiatives that support community life and education. The scholarship fund and the Alliance for Peace align with these philanthropic priorities, which facilitates the execution of Amgen's mission to support the development and economic growth of Puerto Rico. Amgen Foundation. Both projects have us very excited and hopeful because they develop strategies that transform the reality of life of their participants and support the social justice strategy that our entity promotes,” said Aixa Caballer, senior manager of corporate affairs at Amgen and leader of Amgen Foundation in P.R.
For her part, Kinyta Smalls, executive director of Peter Alfond Foundation, He noted that Benito Massó's “legacy is one of being a lifelong learner, and of believing in oneself, one's talents and ability to develop new skills throughout one's life. This legacy is one that the Peter Alfond Foundation is proud to support this year. Peter Alfond was someone who recognized the importance of investing in the next generation through education. The scholarships offered by the Puerto Rico Community Foundation provide possibilities for Puerto Rican youth and we are proud to participate in this work.”.
The community development strategy for Loíza also counts with the support of W.K. Kellogg Foundation, Obama Foundation, NBPA Foundation, Enterprise, among others.. To donate to the scholarship fund, please visit www.fcpr.org, and in the main menu press DONATE. Once there, follow the instructions and choose Benito Massó Scholarship Fund for Loíza Youths at the time of your donation.
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About the Puerto Rico Community Foundation |The Community Foundation is a philanthropic organization with a 35-year history of collaboration with donors and communities. It is the first of its kind in the Caribbean and Latin America and the only one of its kind in Puerto Rico. It is recognized as an organization 1101.1 of the Puerto Rico Internal Revenue Code and as a 501 c3 organization of the Federal Internal Revenue Code, so depending on your tax status you will be able to claim a deduction on your contribution.