Community rallies around Pasadena students after they lose promised scholarships

"This was the first scholarship I had received. I was super excited," Ana Pineda told us after the City of Pasadena pulled the scholarship she'd been awarded.

PASADENA, Texas — The cost of college makes it out of reach for many students unless they get scholarships or loans.

Two students in Pasadena recently received $500 scholarships from City Councilmember Emmanuel Guerrero.

"I applied to a lot of scholarships the last two years," Ana Pineda said. "This was the first scholarship I had received. I was super excited."

So, Ana was crushed when she learned the City of Pasadena pulled the scholarships after they'd already been promised.

"Maybe I didn’t work hard enough ... I'm not sure," the disappointed student said.

Guerrero said the money came from his personal operating budget that's supposed to be used for the promotion of public health, education or security of property. Minutes before a city council meeting, he said the city pulled the checks without an explanation.

"All vague and provided the runaround," Guerrero told us.

We reached out to city officials, and they sent us a statement that said the money Guerrero wanted to use to pay for the scholarships was taxpayer dollars.

“Sadly, had these checks gone through, it would have potentially violated the Texas State Constitution and possibly been illegal. To prevent such an error by Mr. Guerrero, the city legal department pulled those checks so they could review the process. Had he asked for direction in the first place, all this could have been avoided,” city officials said.

Guerrero thought the decision was unfair.

"Selective enforcement and interpretation of this law," he said.

When word got out, the community rallied around the disappointed students. People decided to make donations to help ensure the two girls could fulfill their dreams of going to college.

"The village around us pouring into these young ladies," Guerrero said.

"There is people out there who want us to succeed as minorities," Ana said.

The city also said the administration found a donor to double the amount the students were originally promised and they'll get those checks next week.

Guerrero told us they'll also receive donations from community members and organizations like FIEL next week.

Anayeli Ruiz on social media: Facebook | X | Instagram