Cal State LA graduate student Rebekah Reyes will be honored on Sept. 24 with the top academic achievement award in the CSU system. She will be awarded a $18,000 scholarship and named a CSU Trustee Emeritus and CSU Foundation Board Member Ali C. Razi Scholar. Despite an abusive childhood experience and earlier struggles with addiction, Reyes has prevailed to become an outstanding college student.

“I am grateful that I have been chosen as the Razi Scholar,” said Reyes, a 32-year-old Alhambra resident. “This award reflects and symbolizes the resiliency of my spirit and dedication I have placed on my success and on my goals.”

Reyes is one of 23 students statewide to receive the 2024 California State University Trustees’ Award for Outstanding Achievement. She will receive the largest scholarship, which was made possible by a donation from CSU Trustee Emeritus Ali C. Razi, who endows a scholarship fund to recognize the top-scoring CSU Trustees’ Award recipient annually.

“Ms. Reyes personifies the vision we hold for first-generation student success by demonstrating personal resourcefulness, overcoming adversity, and a strong commitment to serve her community,” said Berenecea Johnson Eanes, president of Cal State LA, in a nomination letter.

Reyes, a sociology major in the College of Natural and Social Sciences, believes that education has the power to transform lives.

“By committing myself to educational goals, I have avoided becoming a statistic associated with weak family ties, an abusive home life, and the health and life implications produced by childhood experiences,” she said.

Reyes indicated that with the correct guidance and resources, people can not only survive but also thrive, despite any challenges they may have to endure.

Reflecting on her college journey, she said, “Figuring out how to navigate the college system, my own finances, and experiencing homelessness due to my LGBTQ status, and the healing of childhood trauma required to even adequately function in a society were some of the challenges I faced to gain an academic degree.”

Even though she was determined to change her life trajectory through pursuing a higher education, Reyes admitted that she went through a period of self-doubt, grappling with imposter syndrome while attending Pasadena City College.

Reyes was utterly incapable of concentrating on the course topics and was experiencing suicidal thoughts following a summer of rehabilitation and less than 90 days sober. She eventually confided in her professor about her circumstances and decided to take a semester off to attend to her mental health.

“This lesson taught me how to communicate honestly, to listen to my body,” she said, “and most importantly, that it is okay when plans get thrown off course for a bit of time, as long as we return to them.”

Demonstrating her ability to embrace change in a positive way, Reyes eventually completed her associate degrees in psychology, humanities, and sociology in 2017. She then transferred to UC Davis, where she graduated with a bachelor’s degree in sociology in 2019.

Reyes revealed that she loved her sociology studies and decided to pursue a degree in sociology since she found the study of social psychology to be more fascinating than psychology.

“Sociology was able to negate some of the statements that I grew up hearing, therefore leaving me evermore curious about the world around me rather than individual psyche,” she explained. “Learning the impact that social institutions have on individuals expanded the scope of my own thinking, leaving me more eager to learn more.”

Through all her adversity, Reyes has gained compassion and understanding for others. She is now motivated and feels equipped to serve low-income, first-generation students seeking higher education.

“The drive to not want to struggle, to seek the truth of social systems and human behavior, and to understand my own ascribed situation through academic learning results in my ability to be a strong, compassionate leader for future generations,” she said.

With a determination to help others experience the transformative power of education, Reyes is currently working as an intern at the Housing Authority of the City of Los Angeles, where she supports students through its Build Hope scholarship program.

“Getting to know many of the students through their essay stories and via email reminds me of the hope that I was holding onto when I was going through community college and undergrad myself,” said Reyes, as she looks forward to graduating with her master’s degree this spring.

Since attending Cal State LA classes in fall 2022, Reyes has been named to the Dean’s List and maintains a 4.0 GPA in the sociology program. She was also invited to present her working research on the opiate epidemic at the 2024 Pacific Sociological Association Conference.

After graduating from Cal State LA, Reyes hopes to pursue a career as a community college teacher and become a mentor for underserved communities.

“With a master’s degree, I plan to teach at a community college part-time while working for a nonprofit organization,” said Reyes. “I want to place myself in a setting where I can lend a hand to others and offer my experience, strength, and hope to individuals that may need it.”

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California State University, Los Angeles is the premier comprehensive public university in the heart of Los Angeles. Cal State LA is ranked number one in the United States for the upward mobility of its students. Cal State LA is dedicated to engagement, service, and the public good, offering nationally recognized programs in science, the arts, business, criminal justice, engineering, nursing, education, and the humanities. Founded in 1947, the University serves more than 24,000 students and has more than 250,000 distinguished alumni.