“When I first visited A&M, I fell in love with the campus,” remembers Elsa Rivera, a biomedical engineering major who graduated as Salutatorian of her high school class in Zapata, Texas. “It was so friendly and felt more welcoming than other campuses.” Elsa was only 14 when she got her first glimpse of A&M as a summer participant in the Texas Pre-Freshman Engineering Program (TexPREP). The program identifies outstanding middle and high school students who have the potential to become scientists and engineers.

“The courses I took through TexPREP—like advanced math, logic and technical writing—were so exciting. I knew then I wanted to pursue a career in the sciences, and that I wanted to pursue my degree at A&M,” Elsa said. After entering A&M as a biology/pre-med major, Elsa switched to biomedical engineering because she missed the math and engineering courses. “It sounds nerdy,” she smiled, “but I’ve always loved math and science, even since first grade. While the other kids played ball or watched TV after school, my sisters and I went to the library and had contests like, ‘who can read the most books in the shortest time?’”

Elsa is one of hundreds of undergraduates now benefiting from Foundation Excellence Awards (FEA) at Texas A&M. The Texas A&M Foundation established the scholarship program in 1998 to help the university increase diversity within its student body. The awards are available to outstanding students from under-represented groups, including minorities and students from economically disadvantaged areas and educationally disadvantaged backgrounds. Elsa’s FEA is funded by a gift from the H.E.B. Grocery Company.

Elsa, who also receives financial support from a Texas A&M Academic Achievement Award, said, “Having these scholarships helps me work harder so I can keep them.” Elsa also participates in community service projects and student panels through the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers (SHPE), Mexican American Engineers and Scientists (MAES) and Biomedical Engineering Society (BMES). “It’s a great way to meet others in my field,” she said.

Like many FEA scholars, Elsa is an outstanding, well-rounded student from a family that had limited educational opportunities. Her mother has a college education and is a schoolteacher, but her father, who is a ranch manager, withdrew from school in the fifth grade to help support his family. “My father wants me to have all the opportunities he didn’t have,” Elsa said.