36 young people from Girón and Santa Isabel receive scholarships to study at university

There are 36 young people from Girón and Santa Isabel who obtained scholarships at the UDA and the “American College” Institute.

“My life changed last August 29.” Thus, Laura Yunga, mother of two children, remembers the date on which she agreed to a university scholarship to study a degree in Agroecology.

The 26-year-old woman is one of the 36 young people from the cantons of Girón and Santa Isabel who, with the support of local municipalities, applied for scholarships to enter the University of Azuay (UDA) and the “American College” Institute. respectively.

Laura, who lives in the Las Nieves community, in the La Asunción parish (Girón), does not want to waste this new opportunity after not having accessed the public university in 2018. At that time she did poorly in the entrance exam promoted by the Secretariat of Higher Education, Science, Technology and Innovation (Senescyt).

The lack of resources to pay for a private university made me choose to work; In addition, he married and fathered his two children, who are currently 2 and 7 years old. The young woman has worked as a fuel dispenser at a service station.  

Your university degree will last two years that are divided into four semesters, most of the classes are virtual. Her dream is to obtain a third-level degree to open an agroecological store in her community with the purpose of supporting her husband who works as a day laborer.

Management

In the Girón canton, eight young people have benefited from the scholarship program. The Municipality arranged with the Catholic University of Cuenca and the UDA a visit to the canton to present the academic project.

Lorena Guillén, director of International Cooperation of the Municipality, explained that the UDA provided the so-called “Equity” scholarships that cover the entire tuition throughout the university career. “The City Council provided the young people with all the assistance to meet the requirements of said university,” she stated.

Likewise, they are working on a proposed ordinance for the Municipality to allocate resources from its budget to pay for university for the best students in the canton. The intention is that, until the end of this year, this regulation will be submitted to the Cantonal Council for analysis and approval. 

While, in Santa Isabel, there are 28 beneficiaries of the scholarships known as “Tec”, made available by Senescyt. With this, young people enter the “American College” University Institute to achieve a third-level degree. According to Anabel Lalvay, mayor, each scholarship is valued at around five thousand dollars, which adds up to a total of 140 thousand dollars to cover all expenses.

He assured that in his jurisdiction there are young people with the will and ability to study, but the limited economic resources of their parents cut short their dreams. “Now they will have a great opportunity that will also generate development at the local level,” she concluded. Region Editorial. 

Details

– 2 institutions receive young people from these cantons. Classes are given mainly virtually to avoid transportation problems to Cuenca.

– The beneficiaries reside in cantons of the Jubones River basin (west of Azuay). There are no universities in the area for academic preparation.