May 4, 2016
Contact: Jill Drury, Communication Specialist
jedrury@dps.k12.oh.us
For Immediate Release

         Ebi Reyes earns Children’s Defense Fund’s “Beat the Odds” scholarship

    The road to success for Dayton Public Schools students is not restricted by district boundaries. Stivers School for the Arts 2016 valedictorian, Ebi Reyes’ travels began in Costa Rica, a small Central American country. There were obstacles along the way, but she worked hard, got good grades and found success in her adopted country. Ebi will attend college thanks to the Children’s Defense Fund’s “Beat the Odds” scholarship.  It is awarded to outstanding high school students who have demonstrated academic excellence and who have overcome hardships in their lives. She is well aware of the road she might have taken without the $5,000 prize.
“I would probably be cleaning houses for pay, but now I can go to college.”
Ebi left Costa Rica at the age of seven. She attended at least a dozen schools before landing at Dayton Public Schools. She started out with basic English language skills, but didn’t speak fluently until her early school days in New Jersey. Ebi’s grasp of language is so strong that she began teaching Spanish as a child. She flourished at DPS, attending both Edwin Joel Brown and Ruskin PreK-8 schools, before settling in at Stivers.
“Stivers is the most amazing school. Everybody is an artist and you are taught to be yourself. You can be weird there,” Ebi said. “I can be and do whatever I choose. I focused on creative writing.”
She fought to stay at Stivers, even when family finances were tight.
“My mom was going to move for work, so that we could afford to stay here. I did whatever it took to stay at Stivers. I got a job working as an interpreter at a roofing company to help out.”
Not only did monetary roadblocks slow her down, but her health was a challenge. While attending Stivers, Ebi learned that she suffers from celiac disease. The disease stops her body from absorbing gluten.
“I was very sick in ninth grade. I was in and out of the hospital. Homework that should take an hour to finish took me five hours. My anxiety was high because I tried to keep up and stay in class.”
Her endless resolve ultimately brought great success. Ebi is graduating at the top of her class and has that scholarship money to jump-start her college career. She is still deciding on a major field of study, but the medical field, possibly sonography (medical imaging using ultrasound), intrigues her.
The Children’s Defense Fund’s “Beat the Odds” scholarship dates back to 1990. The honor and meaning of the award is not lost on Ebi.
“It opens a world of possibilities for me,” she said. “Every year we are here is a privilege.”
Ebi says she is not eligible for any type of grant due to her immigrant status, so a scholarship program was her only chance at college. She is legally in this country as part of the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services’ “Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals” program (DACA).
Homeland Security lays out strict guidelines to qualify for DACA. Among the rules for eligibility: the applicant had to arrive in the United States as a child before the age of 16, live here consistently since June 2007, and be enrolled in school or already have graduated. It is only then they may request consideration for deferred action for two years that are renewable with immigration services. Qualified applicants are also eligible to work. Ebi met all the necessary guidelines, so as of now, she says, “I have no status, but I have the right to be here.”
When Ebi steps up to the microphone to give her valedictory speech on May 21, 2016, she will share her inspiring story and take that next step in her journey alongside her peers. She joins DPS students like Shadayah Lawrence, whose McIntosh Leadership Award allows her to attend the University of Dayton tuition-free, and Nyanna Johnson, who will pursue a degree in fashion design at the University of Cincinnati in the fall.
Nyanna has a definite eye for the arts. Her love of fashion is only one element of how she earned a scholarship. You will meet her in the days ahead, but to interview Ebi Reyes now, or any DPS scholar, contact Jill Drury, communication specialist, at 542-3023 or email jedrury@dps.k12.oh.us.

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