Only about 16.5 percent of U.S. Hispanic students go to college, but senior Eduardo Fuentes has beat the odds in spades. Fuentes has earned the ACT SIX scholarship from George Fox University, a full four year ride.

“I don’t think there is much drive with [minorities] because we don’t think it can happen for us,” said Fuentes, “But it is possible. I mean, if I can do it, you can do it.”

Fuentes went through months of interviews, retreats, and a campus visit and beat out about 850 applicants. However, he didn’t go through the rigorous application process alone: Teachers Julie Carlson, Dave Unis, Randy Rutchman, and Carol Rutchman helped him get through the three-step process to receive this once in a lifetime opportunity that provides him four years of college and Full need money, which will pay for anything he needs.

“I had him in my Geometry and IB Pre-Calculus class, along with him as my T.A.,” said Carol Rutchman. “He made a very positive impact on my classes, so I was more than willing to write a story for him.”

After the initial application he went to a workshop where he sat at a table with seven other people. Everyone had one adult standing behind  him or her, taking notes while applicants talked about a topic given to them by teachers, and acceptance managers. Some even had to interview with president of school. They had questions like why they want to go to college, how the scholarship would help them, and how they would ultimately give back and help their community.

“He had to be a strong candidate, but I knew he would do well at [the interviews],” Unis said of the scholarship, named “ACT SIX” for a verse in the Bible. In the verse, it talks about widows who were not getting their needs met, so seven people were chosen to give them a voice.

A few weeks later, he visited the college and stayed there for two days and one night. Along with three different interviews, he had to be constantly interacting with the people around him. When he left the campus, Fuentes waited five days before he got the great news that he had won.

“My top choice was originally OSU, and my second was George Fox,” said Fuentes, “but after my first campus visit, I thought, ‘OK, this is the one’”.

“Neither of my parents went to college so I’m the first,” said Fuentes, “and I think the most important thing was that I was myself. [The admissions officers] said they liked the real me.”