Two students from Vieques are beginning college with financial support from HITN’s Vida y Salud scholarship program.

HITN has awarded this year’s scholarships to 17-year-old Johnelis Hill Carmona and 17-year-old Ishael Feliciano, who recently began their college studies.

Johnelis Hill Carmona

Hill Carmona, a nursing student, said the scholarship will help her purchase the uniform and other materials required for her first semester. For the recent high school graduate, the first weeks of college have brought both excitement and the practical challenges of starting a new academic chapter.

Feliciano is studying Sports Technology at Universidad Interamericana in San Germán. Attending college away from Vieques means adjusting to life farther from home while managing the costs of tuition, supplies and other expenses. The scholarship, he said, will help ease the financial burden on his mother.

Ishael Feliciano

The scholarships were awarded in coordination with the Reyes Magos de Vieques Festival, an annual celebration that also supports educational opportunities for young people on the island. Irmgard Iglesias, one of the festival’s creators, said the program represents an investment in Vieques’ future by encouraging young people to pursue their education and remain engaged with their community.

One of this year’s scholarships honors Cándida Pérez. The other was established in memory of Elmer Sánchez, an activist and longtime advocate of the Three Wise Men tradition in Vieques.

Beyond helping students meet the immediate costs of college, the Vida y Salud program seeks to encourage a broader commitment to wellness and healthy living, values HITN is always promoting. For Hill Carmona and Feliciano, the scholarships offer something more immediate: a little more room to focus on their studies as they take their first steps toward the futures they are working to build.