http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5jxOeZT2kscqytFh-O-Sb4r9nVIJwD8SUM3NO0
The debate ended with the 2007 version of the infamous “boxers or briefs” questions put to President Clinton in 1994.
“Do you prefer diamonds or pearls?” UNLV student Maria Parra Sandoval asked Clinton.
She happily hedged.
“I prefer both.”
http://foundation.unlv.edu/casestudies/scholarships.html
Honors College Student Strives to Create Positive Change
Maria Parra-Sandoval didn’t take it lightly when her mother told her at the age of six that she and her family were leaving their small Mexican village to live in the most powerful and privileged country in the world.
I knew it must be very important, she recalls, remembering their month-long journey across the Mexican-American border.
She understood quickly that to succeed in this country as an immigrant wouldn’t come easy. So, in third grade she bought her first dictionary and resolved to learn English.
It was hard adjusting to a second language, said Parra-Sandoval. I knew that I would have to work twice as hard.
She took that lesson to heart and is still working twice as hard at everything she does.
Along with her siblings, she was the first in her family to get a high school diploma, graduating third in her class at Valley High School with a 4.6 GPA.
Her success in high-school paved the way for several private and public college scholarships sending her off to UNLV as a student in the privileged Honors College. Today, she is one of about 700 students who participate in this prestigious program and is one of the 1,700 students who rely on private scholarship support from UNLV each year.
Scholarships provide financial relief to students who need it if they apply they have decided that they can do it, she said.
In February 2005, Parra-Sandoval was one of 50 students selected nationally to attend the Public Policy and Leadership Conference at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. This spring, she will serve as the political communications intern for Sen. Harry Reid in our nation’s capitol.
Her drive and dedication to succeed for herself and for her family is matched by her strong desire to create positive change through community service.
A cause is fought in a way that you show others through actions, she says.
And so, staying true to her word, Parra-Sandoval helped establish Kappa Delta Chi, the first Latina Sorority in the state of Nevada whose main emphasis is to help the local Latina community.
Parra-Sandoval is an immigrant on a lifelong quest to become a U.S. citizen, a dream that will soon become a reality. Although the process has been a long one, the experience has piqued her interest in our country’s legal system and influenced her career choice.
Dreams beyond UNLV include both a law degree and a master’s in public policy from Harvard so that she can someday practice immigration law.
My parents have always said that I am the American dream, but I believe that above that, I am their dream come true.
http://www.lasvegasnevada.gov/files/2005_CLA_Yearbook.pdf
Maria Parra-Sandoval was born on June 25, 1985 in Nayarit, Mexico. She has lived in
Las Vegas, Nevada for thirteen years and has attended the valleys public schools. She
graduated from the prestigious International Baccalaureate Program at Valley High School.
Marias leadership experiences have been primarily gained in service projects. She has
been a recruiter, mentor and facilitator for the Annual Latino Youth Leadership Conference.
She volunteered in the America Reads Program and helped establish Kappa Delta Chi
Sorority Inc., the first Latina community-service based sorority in Nevada. She has held
several leadership positions within this organization. Maria has also received a Leadership
Scholarship from the UNLV Student Government.
Maria has experience in the political field as well. In high school, she was active in
voter registration, volunteered in a congressional campaign, and interned for Clark County.
In college, she was selected to attend the Fifth Annual Public Policy and Leadership
Conference at Harvard. She is also a Fellow of the National Latina Leadership Institute
Summer Program in Washington, D.C. and was selected to intern in the office of the
Honorable Harry Reid in Spring 2006.
Maria is a dedicated community leader and has come to understand that part of her
role in higher education is to lift others. She believes it is a social responsibility of educated
adults, involved community leaders, and professionals to give back to their community.
LOL... says it all