On September 4th 2016, Mayor Ras Baraka   presented  American History High School student Ashley Santana with a CERTIFICATE OF APPRECIATION  as well as a Las Hermanas Mirabal scholarship during the Dominican Parade & Cultural Festival of Essex County, held on Bloomfield Avenue in Newark, New Jersey . This award  is given yearly to a deserving Newark Public School student of Dominican ancestry with high academic achievement and a commitment to work diligently on community service projects enhancing  the quality of life for others.

Ashley Santana is a senior at American History High School in Newark, NJ, class rank number five (5), in the 2017 graduating class maintaining a 4.3 GPA. Her parents, Edward Santana and Cynthia Garcia, Newark residents for over 20 years were both born and raised in Mao, Valverde, Dominican Republic. Ashley is President of the Future Educators Association and slated to be the Team Leader of Stand & Deliver: Communication Tools for Tomorrow’s Leaders. She is also a member of the S.T.A.R Club, Video Production and Yearbook Club. Ashley has participated in copious impactful Community Service Projects at American History High School.

After graduating high school and entering college, Ashley plans to major in Chemistry with high hopes of becoming an Anesthesiologist. While working on her Doctorate Degree, she also plans to teach in a local urban area. Ashley specified that:

“I want to make everyone proud, including myself. I have lived and studied in the Dominican Republic and the only thing I can say is, students are taught differently throughout the world and people live in different circumstances. I plan to give back to my community and my sincere goal is to give students in the future an education with a smile. I want them to be able to say that learning is what they are passionate about. Education in America should be greatly appreciated.  I am very thankful that my parents worked tirelessly to get my siblings and I back here, where most goals are reachable. My father works day and night as a truck driver sometimes getting by with little to no sleep. Although he works long hours he always makes sure that his children have the best! My mother works at home as a child care giver, but she always manages to make sure that my siblings and I are completely comfortable and  have what we need to become successful.  I have always wanted the best for my parents and in the future I will give back to them for everything they have done and are doing for me. I will be the first in my generation to go to college in my family and I intend to make everyone proud!”