UCLA Pilipino Alumni Scholarship Director Bobby T. Rimas (Photo image courtesy of Pilipino Alumni Association of UCLA Facebook Page)
The UCLA Scholarship Office has confirmed that the UCLA Pilipino Alumni Endowment, which supports the UCLA Pilipino Alumni / Lovell Sevilla Scholarship Program, surpassed the $100,000 mark, a representative from the scholarship office said.
In response, UCLA Pilipino Alumni Scholarship Director Bobby T. Rimas said “This is a strong indication of our commitment to supporting opportunities for deserving students to receive a world-class education at UCLA and the strength of our alumni network. Our collective fundraising efforts paid off. I would like to thank everyone who supported this renewed scholarship campaign. I would especially like to thank Mr. Mark Bautista, a UCLA Pilipino Alumni member who has done great work assisting me with spearheading this campaign to take the UCLA Pilipino Endowment to the $100,000 mark and beyond. While there is still much work ahead of us, in continuing to increase our endowment, we can take a moment and celebrate this achievement. There will be a celebratory event in October for achieving this milestone for the UCLA Pilipino Alumni family.”
In November 2014, the UCLA Pilipino Alumni Association Board of Directors decided to rename its scholarship program to the UCLA Pilipino Alumni / Lovell Sevilla Scholarship Program. Ms. Lovell Sevilla, who served as the UCLA Pilipino Alumni Scholarship Director from 1995 through 2000, was instrumental in establishing the UCLA Pilipino Alumni Scholarship Endowment. In 2010, she was awarded the UCLA Chancellor’s Excellence in Service Award for expanding diversity in the UCLA Honors Programs and in 2011, became the UCLA director of counseling. Ms. Sevilla died in August 2014 at the Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center after battling acute myeloid leukemia.
The UCLA Pilipino Alumni / Lovell Sevilla Scholarship Program usually culminates in the awarding of scholarships at UCLA Pilipino Alumni’s annual scholarship benefit. To date, the UCLA Pilipino Alumni Association has awarded over 100 scholarships. The UCLA Pilipino Alumni Association’s mission is to create an environment for current students, alumni, and community members to network, both socially and professionally, as well as raise monies to support UCLA Pilipino Alumni’s initiatives, which include scholarships for incoming high school, undergraduate, and graduate students at UCLA. If you have any inquiries regarding who may apply for UCLA Pilipino Alumni scholarships or would like to contribute towards the UCLA Pilipino Alumni Endowment, please contact UCLA Pilipino Alumni Scholarship Director Bobby T. Rimas at Bobby.Rimas@alumni.ucla.edu.