Scholarship program

Three years after his wife was killed in the crash of American Airlines Flight 587, Juan Vasquez, 35, heard about a scholarship program that would pay for him to go back to school.
A Long Island City resident, Vasquez had completed two years worth of business administration courses about 10 years ago, and now with two semesters almost complete, he has just one more year to go to earn his degree.
&#8220With the scholarship I have the chance,” Vasquez said, explaining that his wife - Milagros, who was 23 when she was killed - is his inspiration for attending DeVry Institute in Jackson Heights to study Business Administration. &#8220She was always pushing me to study.”
Vasquez received the scholarship through the American Airlines Flight 587 Memorial Scholarship program, which State Senator John Sabini helped to create.
Recently, Sabini reminded relatives of other Flight 587 victims that they are also eligible for full college scholarships. So far, of the estimated 150 eligible recipients, only 11 students who are related to crash victims have so far come forward to accept the scholarships.
&#8220There is a free education for the survivors of this terrible tragedy just waiting to be used,” Sabini said. &#8220Any benefit we, as a people, can offer the grieving survivors is a good thing. Spouses and children who have lost parents or guardians should not lose the educational opportunities they might have had if this tragedy had not occurred.”
The program, established in 2003, provides scholarships equal to the full CUNY or SUNY undergraduate tuition for up to five years, minus the amount of any other grant received from New York State. The law is retroactive to April 1, 2001 and is applicable to awards made since the 2001-2002 academic school year.
Sabini said that anyone interested for the scholarship should visit the New York State Higher Education Services Corporation website at www.hesc.org, call his office at 718-639-8469, or send an email to sabini@senate.state.ny.us.