Foothills Sentry January 2020

Foothills Sentry January 2020 Page 15 714-289-1508 Reservations Recommended 7448 E. Chapman Ave., Orange (corner of Chapman and Newport) www.dabianca.com Dinner - served nightly from 5:00 - 9:00 pm Buon Anno Nuovo! Da Bianca is celebrating our 30th anniversary in 2020! We are so grateful for the tremendous community support over the years. For those who haven’t tried us, Da Bianca offers fresh Italian food made to order and made in house. We are a neighborhood “trattoria” serving authentic food in an intimate, lively atmosphere. Ci Vediamo (see you soon)! Marjan and the staff Save the date: Antinori wine dinner is January 28th. T R A T T O R I A By Andie Mills El Modena High senior Jacob Rodriguez has many goals. He has worked hard, researched, helped his family, taken leader- ship positions at school, played a sport -- and it all paid off. The personable, always-smiling stu- dent has earned a full ride to Yale University. Jacob was named one of only 10 Dean’s List Winners by FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology), a worldwide program to inspire innovation and careers in STEM fields, based on his leadership ability, technical expertise and passion, creativity and contribu- tion to the team. That, in itself, is inspiring. But more than anything, Jacob sin- cerely wants to inspire and moti- vate those students who may have modest means and a less-than- perfect home life – students like himself, who are not defined by their circumstances. Rodriguez has been a huge support to his family, which includes his mother and two younger siblings. When he first saw robotics at El Modena, Rodriguez was smitten. “A light went on,” he said. “I had never seen science like that.” He pursued his interest in robot- ics, joining the high school team to compete in FIRST regional, and then against the top 200 teams, in worldwide competitions. He learned to code and build; was president of the robotics club his junior and senior years; was lead mentor for an elementary robotics team; and, as president of the BSA STEM Venturing Crew, organized community out- reach events (STEAM for Teens and Robot-In-A-Day) to expose younger students to STEM. Inspired by robotics, Jacob wanted to learn more – about ev- erything. “Education is my out- let,” Rodriguez said. He loves to learn, and began researching, parlaying his wide-ranging in- terests into a one week summer engineering program at Cornell University during his sophomore summer. The following summer, Jacob flew to Colorado Springs to attend a one week program at the Air Force Academy, then had one Jacob Rodriguez Assistance League of Orange offers scholarships to students pursuing any field of post-high school study at a university, com- munity college or trade school. General Scholarships are avail- able, as well as four specialized scholarships that have specific application requirements. The Eugenia Love Arts Scholarship is geared toward a student pursuing an arts major, including music, dance, acting, drawing, painting or photography. The Alfreda Niewig Nursing Scholarship is intended for a student pursuing a degree in nursing or a health care profes- sion. The ALO Memorial Scholar- ship for Special Needs is designed for a student currently enrolled in a special education program for intellectually or physically disabled students. The Richland High School Scholarship (new this year) is available to students who are now attending Richland High School or who have attended it during the current school year. Richland High School scholarship recipients will be chosen by staff recommendation. Qualified students may apply for both a general and a special- Events planned for VPWL The Villa Park Women’s League will host a night of so- cializing, raffles, prizes, dinner -- and bunco -- on Mon., Feb. 10, 6:30 p.m., at Colleary’s Bis- tro. To reserve your spot, Venmo, PayPal or send a $35 check to philanthropic chair Andie Mills. A donation of feminine hygiene products is requested at the door. The program at the VPWL gen- eral meeting will feature wine and chocolate pairings curated by Elaine Moulden, a first-level sommelier through the Court of Sommeliers and a recognized French wine scholar through the International Wine Scholar Guild. The meeting will take place on Thurs., Feb. 20, beginning at 6:30 p.m. at City Hall. Events and activities are open to all members; for information about joining, see vpwl.org. ELMo student inspires and earns full ride to Yale day at home before traveling to Amherst College as a SCS Noon- an Scholar, where he “nerded out” meeting astrophysicists, talking advanced calculus, the econom- ics of foreign aid, and getting free copies of quantum computing texts. Not willing to give up any offered opportunity, Jacob over- lapped a 26-week online MIT program on machine learning and science writing, developing a machine learning algorithm that identified exoplanets, using raw NASA Keppler data. The experiences helped Ro- driguez shape his ultimate goal of astronautical engineering “be- cause that encompasses physics, math, computers, sciences, every- thing!” He would like to minor in minorities studies, “so I can help others achieve.” At ElMo, he founded and is president of a SHPE Jr. chapter (Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers), partnering with UCI. “It is the simple things,” he said, “like knowing you need to take the SAT test.” Rodriguez is a nerd, and proud of it. But he does enjoy literature and writing, referencing Albert Einstein: “If you can’t explain it simply, you don’t understand it well enough.” Growing up, Jacob had no role model, but began looking to his grandfather and teachers in high school. To help his family, he cold-called aeronautical firms to find a paid internship position at an engineering company, first skateboarding, then using a bike to get to work. He tries to be a good role model for his siblings. He has tried to take advantage of every opportunity presented, restarting the ElMo Academic Decathlon (president; placed third; received Coach’s Award); playing ElMo mens volleyball (2019 CIF State Champions); co-founding a company to print T-shirts and banners; and playing lead guitar for the band Eupho- ria Drive (after engineering the equipment and learning to play). Oh, andYale? Surprisingly, it is not his first choice. MIT is where he feels he belongs, but those ac- ceptance letters won’t be out until spring. Until then, Jacob will be busy with robotics, scholarship applications -- and learning. Assistance League offers scholarships to seniors ized scholarship. Applicants must have a 3.0 cumulative GPA, re- side in Orange or attend an Or- ange Unified School District high school. Scholarships will be awarded based on a student’s community service, academic achievements, financial need, high school activities, extra-cur- ricular pursuits, positive refer- ences and leadership qualities. Interested students may ap- ply on the website, alorange.org . Click on the Programs tab, and then Scholarships. The last date to submit applications is Sat., March 28. Contact Michele Markel or Charlene Ruble at scholarships@ alorange.org or (714) 787-4106 for more information.