May 21, 2004

(Dallas) - Mountain View College student Raul Magdaleno thought he had hit the jackpot when he received the Erin Tierney Kramp Encouragement Scholarship from the Dallas County Community College District. The award - which honors an outstanding DCCCD student who has demonstrated perseverance in the face of extreme diversity - guaranteed that the Dallas resident would receive full tuition as he pursued an associate's degree.

Magdaleno, who plans to transfer to Southern Methodist University in fall 2004, now is one of 27 community college students nationally who will receive the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation Scholarship, which potentially can total up to $30,000 annually; he was selected from a pool of 860 applicants from across the United States. "The greatest weapon we have to combat poverty is education", said the MVC student. "I am honored to receive the Cooke Foundation scholarship, which will enable me to lift up others."

In addition, Magdaleno will receive the Congressional Award Gold Medal on June 23 in Washington, D.C., which honors young Americans who excel in achievement, initiative and service; it is the highest honor bestowed on young people by Congress. He has volunteered for more than 10 years to help victims of domestic violence at Reconciliation Outreach, an east Dallas ministry that operates a halfway house for former prisoners; a shelter for battered women and children; and an after-school tutoring program

The youngest of 10 children, Magdaleno grew up in an impoverished home in south Dallas. He overcame a tumultuous childhood; witnessed his stepfather frequently beating his mother; and saw two older brothers go to prison. He became the only member of his family to graduate from high school and has transformed negative family experiences into a positive vocation aimed at helping others.

Magdaleno has a 3.9 grade point average at MVC; graduated this May with an associate's degree in arts and sciences; became a U.S. citizen last year; and will attend SMU on the Cooke Foundation scholarship. He also was named MVC's Outstanding Student in 2003.