Jaedyn Arellano has a younger brother with special needs. “I have seen the services he has been provided, and I want to become a physical therapist and offer similar help to others,” she said.
Arellano is a senior in both the kinesiology and rehabilitation services programs at Western New Mexico University. “I chose to attend WNMU because it’s affordable and close by my family,” said the Bayard native.
Receiving the Opportunity Scholarship is a relief for Arellano, who said she didn’t know about it until being awarded the support, which she uses to supplement what she earns at her on-campus student-worker job and to buy extra course materials.
“I’m taking labs so my lab fees were high, and the books I needed were expensive. I probably wouldn’t have bought my books. I have gone without books. It’s terrible. It’s like being lost in the class,” she said. “This scholarship has given me the opportunity to pursue my dreams, because it covers costs I might not be able to afford on my own.”