Introducing our 2026 Scholarship Recipients!

---

Valentina Hueck
Mamá Lola

Gabriela, a Venezuelan American girl consumed by insecurity about her nose, lives in a small U.S. town with her aunt Tita. When her radiant cousin Maria Alejandra arrives from Venezuela, Gabriela’s jealousy and cultural shame intensify. A failed attempt at comfort—complete with loud Latin music, dancing, and Tita jokingly calling her “Gringa”—pushes Gabriela into a spiral, seeing a distorted version of herself in the mirror.

That night, Maria Alejandra casts a love spell meant to help, summoning the spirit of their great‑grandmother Mamá Lola. The ancestral figure urges Gabriela to stop rejecting where she comes from. When the magic fades, Maria Alejandra reveals her own pain—being rejected by family for being queer—and Gabriela finally steps outside her self‑absorption to offer love and acceptance.

Together they return to Tita, who guides Gabriela to the mirror. Surrounded by the spirits of her ancestors, Gabriela touches her face and, at last, sees a pretty girl.

Nicole Cates

Border Lines

Taylor Wilson, on break from her first year at college, joins her family for a BBQ at the home of longtime family friends, the Chambers. She seizes upon this opportunity to discuss with her mother, Sharon, a recent change of heart since entering school. Though their relationship has been strained in the past, Taylor makes every effort to connect with her mother despite her mother’s inattentiveness. Little does Sharon know, Taylor is delving into something far deeper than her newfound desire to leap into the unknown.

Nina Rosette Baeza

Cultured Baking 

Estrella, an ambitious Afro‑Latina teen in East L.A., longs to prove herself worthy of inheriting her family panadería. After a clash with her traditional grandmother, Abuela Mary challenges her to complete a demanding catering order for Anthony, a young man desperate to recreate the hot chocolate and pan dulce of his hometown. As Estrella experiments and chases ingredients across local cultural landmarks, she grows attached—only to learn Anthony is an undocumented immigrant.

When Anthony is taken in an ICE sweep before the order can be delivered, Estrella turns the food into a communal offering for grieving neighbors. Seeing her granddaughter lead with compassion and cultural fluency, Abuela Mary recognizes that Estrella’s blended approach isn’t a break from tradition but its evolution—allowing the bakery to honor memory while rising into something new.