Media Contact: Laurie Mellas-Ramirez, 277-5915

Oct. 16, 2002 UNM STUDENTS RECEIVE FORD/AMERICAN INDIAN COLLEGE FUND SCHOLARSHIPS University of New Mexico undergraduates Ron Denny, Genevieve Eros and Julian Lucero-Emmons have received Ford Motor Company/American Indian College Fund Corporate scholarship awards of approximately $5,000 for fall semester. Only 12 scholarships were awarded nationally to students attending non-tribal colleges. Recipients have a 3.0 grade point average (GPA) or above and have demonstrated leadership and commitment to their community. Scholarships are renewable for spring semester if requirements are met. "This scholarship is a unique program that is helping American Indian students to realize their dreams," said Rick Williams, College Fund executive director. "We are pleased to be a part of this process and are proud of the students and their achievements." The college fund also announced that UNM student Sandy Marcelline Hensley received a David and Lucille Packard Foundation grant of $10,000, one of only 10 awarded nationally. It is renewable for next year. Denny, Eros and Lucero-Emmons transferred to UNM from Southwestern Indian Polytechnic Institute after earning associate degrees in June. Eros is a junior majoring in management information systems. A graduate of Gallup High School, she was recently accepted to the Anderson Schools of Management. She has a 3.66 GPA. Lucero-Emmons, a junior majoring in computer engineering, is a graduate of Cibola High School. A member of the UNM General Honors Program, French Club and Kiva Club, he maintains a 4.0 GPA and is chair of the UNM Homecoming Pep Rally, set for Friday, Oct. 25, at the UNM Duck Pond. Denny, a junior majoring in computer science, is from Fairbanks, Alaska. At UNM, he is a member of the American Indian Science and Engineering Society and Campus Entrepreneur Organization. He has a 4. 0 GPA. Marcelline Hensley, a junior in the Environmental Science Program, is from Anadarko, Oklahoma. She recently earned an associate degree in tribal environmental and natural resource management from Northwest Indian College in Bellingham, Wash. She had a 3.9 GPA. Established in 1989, the American Indian College Fund has existed for more than a decade to help increase educational opportunities for Native students. The Denver-based non-profit is the largest provider of privately-funded Indian college scholarships in the country assisting more than 5,000 students in achieving their college education each year. ###

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