Pulse - April 2022 - 9

JIM BELL
SCVMA PROFILE
Two Scholarship Winners
Get Unanticipated Windfall
Alejandra Garcia
Leeza Kao
T
he 2022 recipients of SCVMA scholarships
took similar winning routes to claim the
prizes that will help them deal with their
educational expenses.
Leeza Kao, a third-year student at the veterinary
school at Western University, saw a message from the
school's student representative and decided to apply. She
did not expect to receive the grant.
Alejandra Garcia, who works at a Banfield hospital in
Monrovia as a veterinary assistant and is scheduled to
take the test for an RVT license this month, saw a notification
about the scholarship as she checked her email
one morning. She decided " to throw my name in there "
- but, similarly, did not expect to win.
Leeza received an email later from SCVMA that
started with " Congratulations. " She asked herself: " Congratulations
about what? " When she read a little more of
the email, it was an " Oh my god " moment, she said. " I
was in shock. "
Alejandra said that " I'm not one of those people who
has had much luck with things like this. When I got the
response, I wondered, 'Is this real?' It was definitely an
exciting moment. "
After pursuing other career possibilities as an undergrad
at UC Riverside, Leeza realized after two years that
she wanted to be a veterinarian and " needed to get back
to science. " She finished her undergraduate degree at
UC Davis.
She was born in Arcadia and grew up in the San
Gabriel Valley. She would love to stay in Southern California.
" That would be ideal, " Leeza said, although she
PULSE
APRIL 2022
has a relationship with a fellow vet student, who loves
Chicago, where he grew up. " We're going to have a tussle
over that one, " she said.
She is interested in general practice and " would really
like to try emergency medicine. " She is currently doing
rotations at a small animal practice in Fontana. " I'm
really glad to be in clinics working with doctors, touching
animals. "
The SCVMA award " is a huge honor, " she said. " It has
validated all the effort I've put into my career, my education.
And it really confirms that I'm on the right track.
The scholarship helps out in so many ways. It makes me
feel a lot safer. As students, we rely on loans so it's really
a blessing. "
Alejandra grew up in Duarte. After high school she
began working in the fast food industry. But she soon
decided that " I could not do this with my life. "
Her interest in animals led her to an on-line course
for veterinary assistants. And that helped her get a job
at a private practice in Monrovia that is now owned by
Banfield. She has an associate degree and is enrolled in a
Banfield program that will lead to a B.S. degree.
" I have lots of support from the doctors that I work
with and from the staff, " she said. She has a long-term
interest in working with large animals or zoo animals.
" But that's probably some years away. " In the meantime,
she is studying for the RVT exam and watching for volunteer
opportunities that would further her interests.
Alejandra said that she was not told how much her
scholarship is worth. " Whatever it is, I will take it and I
will put it toward what I owe and be happy for that. " P
9
Pulse - April 2022

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