Jennifer Perez ('07) is Trio AchieverJennifer Perez, a 2007 graduate of Central Lakes College in Brainerd, has been named a 2011 Minnesota Trio Achiever.
Perez, the first CLC graduate to attain the honor, received the award at the annual Trio conference in Chaska.
Trio is a national student support program that helps low-income and first-generation Americans complete college.
Sue Austin, assistant director of Trio Student Support Services at CLC, nominated Perez as an extraordinary participant who has obtained a college degree and is working within a field of choice.
Perez earned a bachelor’s degree in social work from the College of St. Scholastica in 2009. She is a case manager for Lutheran Social Services, working with families to prevent homelessness.
“When Jennifer decided to begin college she was terrified,” said Austin, “but college was important to her and she believed education was the only way to make a better life for her and her daughter.”
Perez attributes her academic success to additional support she received through Trio Student Support Services at CLC. As a first-generation college student and single parent, she had to work hard to succeed.
She said that Trio advisers kept her focused on a positive life direction to complete her goal of college degrees.
Perez persisted while facing the challenges of poverty, stereotyping, relationship and peer group changes, transportation and childcare barriers and learning how to live differently.
“Jennifer’s ability to continue her education and overcome these challenges is what epitomizes a Trio Achiever,” said Austin, noting that the honoree is driven by a passion for assisting others to rise from poverty.
While a student at CLC, Perez participated on a panel for the Legislative Committee to End Poverty by 2020. She has worked for Advocates Against Domestic Abuse in Aitkin and has helped women see college as an opportunity through sharing her story.
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