Media release from Georgia Northwestern Technical College:
Georgia Northwestern Technical College (GTNC) announces the first recipients of a new scholarship, which is funded by the Latin American Association (LAA) with the sponsorship of Mohawk Industries Inc., to support Latino or Hispanic students who graduated from eligible high schools in Floyd, Gordon, Murray or Whitfield Counties.
Maria Alvarado, Accounting, Gordon County Campus; Maximo Guerrero, Air Conditioning Technology, Walker County Campus; Adan Lara, Business Management, Whitfield Murray Campus; Andy Martinez, Automotive Technology, Walker County Campus; Stephanie Silva, Radiologic Technology, Floyd County Campus; and Jacqueline Valdez, Criminal Justice, Floyd County Campus, have received the new scholarship, which was established last year and awarded for the first time for the spring 2025 semester.
The inaugural scholars were announced during “LAA-Mohawk Scholarship Day” held on the Gordon County Campus in Calhoun on Thursday, Jan. 9.
“The Latin American Association-Mohawk Scholarship is the beginning of what we hope will be an impactful relationship between GNTC and these two community partners for years to come,” said Dr. Heidi Popham, GNTC president.
GNTC is grateful to Mohawk Industries, a longtime partner of the college, for its ongoing, steadfast commitment to workforce development in northwest Georgia, Popham said. Mohawk’s generous support has helped to make the scholarship possible.
“Last semester, 25 percent of our student body was Hispanic,” Popham said. “As this number continues to rise, the Latin American Association will be a vital and treasured friend and advisor to Georgia Northwestern Technical College.”
GNTC has been designated as an Emerging Hispanic-Serving Institution and is on its way to becoming a Hispanic-Serving Institution, Popham said.
The $1,000 scholarships will be applied to tuition, fees and related educational expenses. Open to GNTC students with a minimum 2.5 GPA in any program, this scholarship recognizes scholars engaged with the Latino/Hispanic community in one or more of the following ways: heritage, involvement, volunteerism, language and support.
According to the Latin American Association, the scholarship represents the collaboration between LAA and GNTC to change the lives of students and families and advance outcomes for the Latino community in northwest Georgia and beyond.
“A strong community is based on collaborations,” Rafael Huerta, managing director of the Latin American Association in northwest Georgia, said. “The LAA’s Economic Empowerment focus area supports education and workforce development by conducting events and activities in our community, like the Latino Youth Leadership Conference, the Dalton-Whitfield Latino Leadership Institute and the LAA-Mohawk Scholarship program.”
The LAA works to empower Latinos to adapt, integrate and thrive. For more than 50 years, the LAA has worked in Atlanta to empower Georgia’s Latino communities, assisting clients in a language they understand and in an environment that is culturally responsive to them; the organization expanded these services in 2019 to northwest Georgia by opening the Dalton Outreach Center, according to the LAA.
“Mohawk believes in the mission of the LAA and what they do for the community,” said Lauren Sneary, senior director of Communications for Mohawk Industries’ Flooring North America segment. “Northwest Georgia has generations of Hispanic families and culture, and as we look at how our community and our workforce have grown over the last three decades, we believe that education, professional resources and family services are critical for everyone.”
Sneary said Mohawk is “proud to be a longstanding partner and supporter of GNTC, with the opportunities it creates at an individual level and the impact it has at a regional level, preparing students for excellent, stable careers while supporting industry in northwest Georgia.”
“This scholarship opportunity reflects the partnership across our three organizations and our joint commitment to our students and our communities,” Sneary explained. “Our hope is that the scholarship demonstrates that commitment in a tangible way and helps the deserving recipients propel their studies, their goals and ultimately their careers in northwest Georgia.”
Visit www.gntc.edu/community/foundation/scholarships/ for more information on GNTC Foundation scholarships.
In this GNTC photo –
(From left) GNTC students Adan Lara, Jacqueline Valdez, Stephanie Silva, Andy Martinez, Maria Alvarado and Maximo Guerrero are the first recipients of the Latin American Association-Mohawk Scholarship.
