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Marta Lily
First Upward Scholars alum to obtain a Master’s degree
Upward Scholars student Marta Lily remembers the day English changed her life.
A mother of two, Marta Lily started volunteering at her daughter's school soon after she and her family arrived in the U.S. from El Salvador. Knowing how much she liked kids, a friend told her about an opening for a preschool assistant teacher. Marta Lily applied for the job.
"I was so scared," she recalls. "The interview was in English, and my English was not good." However, Marta Lily nailed the interview and landed the job, a victory she attributes to the ESL classes she took at Sequoia Adult School and Cañada College, as well as the support she received from Upward Scholars.
In 2020, at the height of the pandemic, Marta Lily graduated from Cañada College with an associate degree in Early Childhood Education and transferred to San Francisco State University to continue her education. A year later, with Upward Scholars walking her through the entire process, Marta Lily proudly opened a family home daycare in Redwood City, providing local families with affordable and quality childcare.
Although running a business and attending university, especially during a pandemic, was a considerable challenge, Marta Lily juggled her responsibilities remarkably well. She graduated with a bachelor's degree in Child Development and a minor in Special Education in 2022.
In Spring 2025, Marta Lily became the first Upward Scholars alum to earn a master’s degree! She graduated from SFSU with a master’s in Special Education and is using her degree and knowledge to better serve her clientele.
You can watch Marta Lily tell her story here. You can also watch Marta Lily and her eldest daughter, Violeta, discuss the multi-generational impact of Upward Scholars’ work here.
Moisés
First Upward Scholars student to earn a Bachelor's degree
In December 2017, Moisés graduated from Cal Poly with a Bachelor of Science in industrial engineering. He is the first Upward Scholars student to earn a four-year degree.
Moisés came to the U.S. from Mexico when he was 18 and attended Cañada College for seven years. It took him that long because he worked full-time, so he had limited time to devote to studying. In addition, he knew very little math, so he had to start with the basics (pre-algebra) and work his way up to the advanced math required for transfer to an engineering program.
"At Cañada I learned about life," he says. "And Upward Scholars showed me that there are a lot of people in this community who want to help."
Moisés is currently an account manager at Oracle.
You can watch Moisés tell his story here.
Katherine
First Upward Scholars student to graduate from UC Berkeley
At 16, Katherine faced a tough choice: stay in Peru without support or move to the US for better opportunities. With her mother's backing, she chose the latter, settling in Redwood City.
She enrolled in ESL classes at Sequoia Adult School and discovered Upward Scholars, receiving a laptop, book vouchers, and valuable information on scholarships and resources.
With the help of professors, advisers, Phi Theta Kappa, and the ESL and Upward Scholars communities, Katherine pursued a Bachelor's degree in economics.
To finance her studies and support her mother in Peru, Katherine worked various jobs, including an internship with Senator Jerry Hill and a position at Ennube Solutions.
Now a full-time FinTech Consultant at FactSet, Katherine is encouraging her mother to continue to community college and join the Upward Scholars family. “I’m so happy Upward Scholars has grown so much and is now able to provide so much more support for students,” Katherine says.
Amado
Civil Engineer, Project Manager, College Graduate, & Board Member
"When I came to the U.S. from Mexico in 2011, I couldn’t communicate in English. I didn’t have a job. I didn’t have any experience in this country,” explains Upward Scholars alum Amado.
Soon after arriving, Amado got a job in a restaurant that paid $8 an hour. He also enrolled in Sequoia Adult School and then transferred to Cañada College, graduating three years later with an associate degree in engineering. That Fall, he enrolled in Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, majoring in civil engineering.
In June 2019, Amado graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in civil engineering from Cal Poly SLO. Two months later, he was hired as a project engineer at WebCor Builders, a San Francisco-based general contractor, and is now an application engineer at Dayton Superior in Livermore.
Upward Scholars paid for Amado's books during his time at Cañada, along with the bus pass he needed before he could afford a car.
“What is amazing to me about this country is that there are people here who are willing to help people they don’t know, without judging them, without saying, ‘Oh, you are undocumented. Oh, you are Mexican. Oh, you are too old to go to school.” Amado says, “Thanks to these people, I have been able to achieve what I didn’t believe I could achieve.”
Amado currently holds the alumni seat on the Upward Scholars Board of Directors, providing critical insight and guidance to the organization.
Carmina
Food truck entrepreneur and Upward Scholars' resident chef
If you’ve attended an Upward Scholars event, there’s a good chance you’ve delighted in the cooking of chef extraordinaire Carmina. But what you may not know is that Carmina, now a successful entrepreneur, was once an Upward Scholars student.
Carmina came here to escape violence in Mexico and knew no English when she arrived. She took ESL classes, first at Sequoia Adult School and then at Cañada College, to learn enough English to start her business. Upwards Scholars paid for her books and transportation to college.
Before coming to the U.S., Carmina owned a small restaurant in Acapulco. Wanting to capitalize on her passion for cooking, she opened a food truck in San José, specializing in traditional Mexican fare such as chile verde, chicken tinga, and barbacoa.
Carmina had planned to return to school after her business got going, but success got in her way. “My goal was to take math and business classes,” Carmina says. “But now I have no time.”
If you’re interested in talking to Carmina about catering an event, with or without her food truck, you can contact her at cielitolindomsk@outlook.com.
Viridiana
When kids are your passion…
Even though she was only 16 when she arrived in the U.S. from Mexico, Upward Scholars alumna Viridiana didn't consider attending high school; instead, she went straight to work.
After working minimum-wage jobs for a few years, Viridiana landed a job as a nanny. That's when she discovered that kids were her passion.
To act on that passion, Viridiana knew she needed to go back to school. She attended Cañada College for three years and became the first Upward Scholars student to receive an associate degree in Early Childhood Education.
During Viridiana's years at Cañada, Upward Scholars covered the cost of her textbooks and parking pass, and provided her with a laptop. Her Upward Scholars tutor, a Stanford undergrad, helped her improve her writing. Upward Scholars also arranged for her to meet with two early childhood education professionals who guided her career path. “Upward Scholars is part of my family now,” Viridiana says. “I'll remember you always.”