We are elated to announce our 2023 Scholarship Laureate, Ms. Jaiden Garcia. Jaiden currently attends the University of New Mexico and is working to complete her undergraduate studies as a Political Science and Women, Gender, Sexuality Studies major. Her concentration focuses on how minority communities are marginalized and disenfranchised within our governmental institutions and how the normalization of this treatment shapes our social and political dynamic.

Jaiden’s overall goal is to provide a political platform for marginalized communities that empower people to affect change and facilitate said change directly towards lawmakers. She wants to work to reform or abolish our current justice system, give a voice to those directly affected by discriminatory agendas, and represent those communities as an advocate working to eliminate generational poverty and criminalization.

This scholarship was awarded to Jaiden on behalf of our organization and the Incarcerated Workers Organizing Committee. One of its requirements was that she submit a comprehensive program proposal that outlined an idea for a community based program that addresses a problem before underserved communities, its causes and a solution to the structural condition it creates. Beginning in April 2023, Jaiden began working closely with our team to develop and implement our R.E.B.U.I.L.D. Program & Public Policy Cohort as part of an effort to review over 100 years of discriminatory housing policy and its correlation to mass incarceration. She was instrumental in not only the development of the program, but also served as interim Program Director and assisted in the recruitment and selection of candidates for this cohort. In addition, she assisted with development of organizational infrastructure, data entry, web development, media, and marketing.

“Working with Jaiden was a blast! Like most of the young women and men who intern with us, she came into this with an open mind to build awareness of the unique vision and value that directly-impacted incarcerated citizens bring to the movement to end mass incarceration,” our incarcerated founder, Ivan Kilgore said. “Jaiden approached our Vision and Mission wholeheartedly and immediately went to work building an impactful program to serve our communities.”

To effectively change the structural dynamic in underserved communities, we recognize that one of the greatest investments we can make is in the individual. Thus, the primary objective of our scholarship program is to cultivate and empower the ideas of those working to effect change in our communities. To this end, we seek to support students (including incarcerated students) who are determined to create sound social and economic solutions to the problems we face. Developing and implementing the Program & Public Policy Cohort is just one way we can accomplish this.

Without question, the United States has a long history of exclusionary policies based on race, gender, sexual orientation, age, and education. Most of that exclusionary policy is embedded in the way people think, which is the direct result of the institutions that have existed in this nation for centuries. With specific regard to housing policy (e.g., redlining, FHA loans, 1949 Housing Act, predatory lending, etc.), the history of exclusionary policy and its impact on the African American community has been well documented. Housing discrimination, as well as other forms of social and economic discrimination, is directly tied to the current wealth gap between blacks and whites and other social determinants such as access to quality education, healthcare, and employment opportunities.

We want to give a huge thanks to Jaiden for the work she did while with the organization. Thank you Jaiden! We wish her the best on her educational journey and look forward to hearing of all the amazing work she is yet to accomplish.

Will you join us as we work to transform our communities for the betterment of society? Become a sustaining donor today for our Scholarship & Community Grant Program(s)!