Karina was one of VRG’s 2019 college scholarship winners. She sent this note:

The transition to college has been more than I could expect. It’s only been a semester, but my life has definitely changed for the better. I couldn’t thank you enough for this opportunity. I’m a first gen student, and didn’t fully know what college was, or what it could bring. My parents don’t know anything about college, and so I’ve had to figure it out on my own. At the UNLV Honors College, I have been blown away by the opportunities I can have if I work hard enough. The teachers, administration, and students I have met have only inspired me to work harder for my passions. I feel so supported when I talk about my plans, and they help me figure out how I can make that happen and in ways better than I imagined. I definitely think I chose the right college. 

Although UNLV is a very diverse campus, I saw very little vegan/vegetarian activity. I was going to try and join a vegetarian or environmental club, but there was only one on campus and it is not too active. It became really difficult to try and find some sort of vegetarian community, which I thought would be easier. The campus has very little options for people that are plant-based. Since there has been so much progress in plant-based foods, I thought there would be more options in the food trucks and restaurants at school, but there isn’t at all. In September, I met with one of my honors college advisors to talk about this. We discussed some of the changes that could occur at UNLV regarding veganism. He suggested for me to start with getting the word out. Eventually, he thinks it would be a really good idea to start a club within the honors college to help advocate more. 

Since then, I’ve been working on establishing friendships and a sense of community with people that may have interests relating to vegetarianism/veganism or just being environmentally friendly. The honors college had a Friendsgiving the day before Thanksgiving, and it became the perfect opportunity to bring in my own food and be able to discuss the beauties of being vegan. I have made friends with a teacher that has also helped me come up with ideas because she’s been a vegetarian since she was eleven. She finds the healthiness and nutrition behind plant-based diets important, and so she suggested I try to get healthier food choices on campus. I’ve been told that I have brought more positive attitudes about veganism without becoming the “stereotypical and annoying vegan.” Since there are a couple vegan restaurants close to campus, I’ve introduced more people to how good vegan food can be and have made friends that try to make more conscious food choices now.

Thank you once again for this. I knew that going to college would be great for me, but I didn’t realize just how much I could do. Somehow, my dreams got bigger and I’m more motivated to work harder. I’ll keep you updated. This is definitely only the beginning of the journey for me! I have a lot of dreams to help others, not only with veganism, but also with mental health, and am excited to work on making them come true.

Thank you so much, Karina Rose Carrillo-Juarez

To see Karina’s vegan activism in high school, see https://www.vrg.org/blog/2019/06/10/nevada-student-wins-10000-vegetarian-resource-group-scholarship/

VRG awards $20,000 in college scholarships each year to graduating high school seniors. The annual deadline is February 20th. For application information, or to see past winners, go to https://www.vrg.org/student/scholar.htm

To support additional scholarships or internships, donate at www.vrg.org/donate Under comments, indicate the purpose of the donation.