Wednesday, February 4, 2026–2:30 p.m.
-News Release-
(From left) Rafael Huerta, managing director of the Latin American Association in northwest Georgia; Dr. Heidi Popham, president of GNTC; scholarship recipients Yvonne Beltran, Ronaldo Ramirez, Guadalupe Nuñez, Melissa Del Real, Joseph Guerrero, Leslee Menjivar; Haley Chapman, senior community relations and public relations specialist at Mohawk Industries Inc; and Eliezer Velez, LAA Chief Operations Officer pose for a picture during the LAA-Mohawk Scholarship Ceremony at GNTC’s Gordon County Campus in Calhoun.
Georgia Northwestern Technical College (GNTC) announced the 2026 recipients of the LAA-Mohawk Scholarship at a recent ceremony held in the Conference Center on the Gordon County Campus in Calhoun.
The scholarship, funded by the Latin American Association (LAA) with the sponsorship of Mohawk Industries Inc., supports students engaged in the Hispanic community who reside in Floyd, Gordon, Murray or Whitfield Counties.
“This scholarship is very meaningful, as it creates fresh opportunities and futures for students pursuing educational dreams not just for themselves, but for their families,” said Dr. Heidi Popham, president of GNTC.
The majority of the 2026 LAA-Mohawk scholarship recipients are first-generation college students.
“Although they are the first in their family to attend college, I predict that they will not be the last,” Dr. Popham said.
In the last academic year, 25 percent of GNTC’s enrollment was Latino or Hispanic. “As this number continues to rise, the LAA will be a vital and treasured friend and advisor for GNTC,” Dr. Popham said.
Listed are students chosen as the 2026 recipients of GNTC’s LAA-Mohawk Scholarship, showing (from left) the students’ names, city of residence, and program of study.
- Yvonne Beltran, Dalton, Welding and Joining Technology
- Melissa Del Real, Rome, Radiologic Technology
- Joseph Guerrero, Calhoun, Electrical Systems Technology
- Leslee Menjivar, Calhoun, Electrical Systems Technology
- Guadalupe Nuñez, Dalton, Healthcare Billing and Coding specialist
- Ronaldo Ramirez, Rome, Aviation Maintenance Technology
The $1,000 scholarships will be applied to tuition, fees, and related educational expenses. Open to GNTC students with a minimum 2.5 GPA in any program, this scholarship recognizes scholars engaged with the Latino/Hispanic community in one or more of the following ways: heritage, involvement, volunteerism, language, and support.
“We want to encourage you to provide support for your community in the future; engage, be a volunteer and remember that you have to support your community that is supporting you at this time,” Eliezer Velez, LAA Chief Operations Officer, said.
According to the Latin American Association, the scholarship represents the collaboration between LAA and GNTC to change the lives of students and families and advance outcomes for the Latino community in northwest Georgia and beyond.
“About six years ago Mohawk began working with the LAA to see how we can partner to serve our local community with a workforce in Georgia that is over 30 percent Hispanic, said Haley Chapman, senior community relations and public relations specialist at Mohawk Industries Inc. “We felt like it was a really important opportunity to invest in programs and resources that have a really positive impact, not just for our employees and their families, but for our entire community.”
“The Latin American Association works to lower the barriers to economic mobility and prosperity that our community may encounter as they adapt and integrate in life in the United States. Through service centers in Atlanta, Gwinnett County, and northwest Georgia, the LAA helps bring the American dream to life by offering resources, support and a sense of community that all families in Georgia need to thrive” said Rafael Huerta, LAA managing director in northwest Georgia.
Visit www.gntc.edu/community/foundation/scholarships/ for more information on GNTC Foundation scholarships.
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