By Antonia Rivera, Hola America News
From farmworker to farmworker advocate, Mayra Hernandez is a dream come true. Hernandez was once a worker at an egg and poultry processing plant. Today, she is a paralegal who supports farmworker rights, an idea she dreamed about during her tedious plant shifts. But that did not happen without the support of her community.
It started with her parents. From a young age, they realized that education was important to her. She was naturally smart and talented. They knew that as an undocumented student, Hernandez was not going to qualify for federal student aid. They set up an education fund. Despite that, she knew that as an undocumented student, getting a college education was going to be challenging, and all Hernandez could envision after high school was a two-year degree.
Then, she learned about the True Potential Scholarship. It was 2016, and Hernandez had just qualified for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), a policy that allowed her to get a work permit and have legal presence in the United States. While DACA students do not qualify for federal financial aid, the True Potential Scholarship helps DACA and TPS recipients cover the cost of a two-year degree. To meet the requirements, Hernandez had to have good grades, get a letter of recommendation, and answer why the scholarship would help her.
She wrote about how, as an undocumented student, she needed encouragement and support to attain her goals and dreams. If awarded the scholarship, Hernandez had to maintain a high grade point average (GPA), be enrolled for the whole academic year, and reapply at the end of each academic year.
The scholarship gave Hernandez the push she needed to envision an education beyond a two-year degree. With the scholarship’s support, she was able to pay for classes at Iowa Central Community College and graduate with an Associate’s in Digital Mass Communications. This motivated Hernandez to transfer to the University of Iowa, where she received a Bachelor’s of Arts in Political Science.
After college, Hernandez was able to follow her dreams of working in communications, housing and immigrant rights. She went on to work at the Center for Workers Justice of Eastern Iowa in Iowa City (CWJ) as a Community Organizer. At CWJ, she helped connect people with COVID-19 resources. She worked on wage theft and workers’ rights. Eventually, she made her way to Director at Quad Cities Interfaith (QCI).
Of all her accomplishments, one of her fondest memories was sharing her testimony at the steps of the United States Supreme Court. Another proud moment was when she helped eight workers from Texas recover unpaid wages. These workers had been hired to come to Iowa to help clean up after the 2020 derecho.
For Hernandez, the True Potential Scholarship was a launching point. It enabled her to reach goals she never thought possible. Now, as a permanent legal resident, Hernandez has even loftier goals: becoming a lawyer.
For students in a similar situation, Hernandez advises, “Have a good work ethic and patience. Keep on going without knowing if it will work out. Remember, there are support systems to reach your goals.”
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