CNM Student Wins Prestigious Scholarship Sponsored by Coca-Cola
Jenna Davis originally graduated with an Integrated Studies and Digital Media associate degree from CNM back in 2015 and went on to work in the advertising field. But as sometimes happens, she decided to make a career change and started working as an assistant at a law firm. She didn’t know much about the law but fell in love with the profession, saw she was good at it, and quickly received a promotion to paralegal.
Knowing she wanted to stay in law as a long-term profession, she re-enrolled in CNM’s Paralegal Studies program and immediately excelled. She had previously been a member of Phi Theta Kappa, the largest international honor society serving two-year colleges, and decided to rejoin. That organization helped her apply for various scholarships, and Jenna was thrilled to learn that she recently was named as a 2022 New Century Workforce Scholar.
The $1,200 scholarship is the first of its kind to support students at associate degree-granting institutions on a national scale as they plan to enter the workforce upon the completion of a degree or certificate, and is sponsored by The Coca-Cola Foundation and Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society.
New Century Workforce Scholars like Jenna are selected based on their academic accomplishments, leadership, activities, and how they extend their intellectual talents beyond the classroom. Over 2,200 students were nominated from more than 1,200 college campuses across the country, and Jenna was the only New Century Workforce Scholar selected from New Mexico.
“I’m very honored,” Jenna says. “CNM and Phi Theta Kappa have both been enormously helpful, and the scholarship will go a long way in helping me pay for school and other expenses.”
Jenna says her time at CNM has only served to reinforce her interest in the law. She loves working with instructors who are paralegals or lawyers themselves and who can thoughtfully answer questions that come up at her job all the time.
“It’s been great having access to instructors who have so much industry experience and who’ve made me earn my grades,” she says.
Jenna plans to graduate from CNM in 2023. Afterwards, she wants to get her bachelor’s degree in Legal Studies and also her certification. She currently works for a personal injury law firm and plans to stay there because she loves that part of the law.
Personal injury law can be complicated, she says, but she likes working through those complications. And more importantly, she loves helping people.
“It’s important for me to hear these people’s stories and do everything I can to help through a difficult time,” she says.
Learn more about Phi Theta Kappa here. Learn more about CNM’s Paralegal Studies program here.