Scholarship helps DACC students reach their goal line

In 2017, Ike Ledesma realized there was a significant need among some Doña Ana Community College students.

Every semester, DACC coordinates a graduation campaign, an effort to help students prepare for the last stages of their certificate or degree and the launch to their careers. Ledesma, vice president for Student Services, saw that many students nearing the end of their degrees were finding themselves out of financial aid. Seeing an opportunity to address that, he and Eddie Binder ’12, vice president of External Relations, got to work. The Goal Line Scholarship was born.

Binder, who passed away in April 2020, was a major part of moving the scholarship forward. He identified donors who would contribute to the Goal Line Scholarship.

“Eddie played an integral part of this process by ensuring funds would be available to students who met the criteria,” Ledesma says.

For those students, applying is easy. Students have to be enrolled at DACC with a minimum of six credit hours. They need to have a GPA of at least 2.0, demonstrate a great financial need, and complete a personal statement as part of the application. If awarded, they also are eligible for matching funds from the Jon Wynne Scholarship at the Community Foundation of Southern New Mexico.

Ledesma says the scholarship is critical to helping students complete their higher education goals. Many are just a few credits short of graduating, but don’t have funds to pay the rest of the way. Even though many of these same students work jobs while attending school, they do not have the luxury of finishing their education without a little assistance. Many have commitments at home caring for children or other family members. That’s where the Goal Line Scholarship helps. It removes one of the largest obstacles the student faces and allows them to focus on their studies.

The Goal Line Scholarship is only one of many scholarships offered at DACC. It is the only one focused on helping students complete their college journey, and crossing that goal line is important. A college credential can clear the path for another degree, a new career or the next promotion.

To make a donation to the Goal Line Scholarship, go to advancing.nmsu.edu/givenow. Click on the fund tab and select Doña Ana Community College.