Jennifer Santiago
Career: Secondary Education
Jennifer has big dreams. She is attending Cavite State University in the Philippines, majoring in Secondary Education. She wants to become a science teacher, pay her grandfather’s bills, remodel his home, and support her younger sister’s education. But her young life belies her optimistic story of today.
When Jennifer was a child, her mother passed away. She had never known her father. Without parents to raise her, she recalls the depth of her sorrow, “I felt like an orphan.” Her grandparents stepped in, bringing Jennifer and her younger sister into their home, a makeshift tin-corrugated structure with no running water and a cacophony of roosters in the dusty courtyard. Jennifer did not mind their house. It was home, and she felt safe and loved there by her grandparents.
At age 14, tragedy struck again when her beloved grandmother passed away. Jennifer remembers asking herself, “How can I go on? How can I stand on my own?” It was a turning point for her – give up or keep going. It was then her grandfather, 77 years old and surviving on a meager pension, became her guiding light and staunchest supporter. He encouraged her to stay in school and to keep working towards a career that would provide a stable income. As much as she was deeply grateful for his support, Jennifer was aware that her grandfather’s pension was being stretched to its limits. She considered working after secondary school, saving money in the hopes of attending university someday. Her grandfather intervened, fearing that once she started working, she would never go back to school. He insisted she devote her energy fulltime to her studies. “I saw talent in Jennifer. I felt like she could do much more with her life,” her grandfather said. With his encouragement, she applied to university.
Jennifer had always loved science and decided to pursue a career teaching the subject. She was accepted to university and then the global pandemic hit. All her classes went online. Armed with only her cell phone, Jennifer struggled to do her coursework. The online classroom technology was new to her. Unlike her peers, she had never been exposed to this kind of technology in secondary school. Then there were the roosters. There were days when she needed to record presentations for class but the noisy birds in the courtyard made it challenging. Finally, there was the expectation of being online, all the time, a luxury for many households in the Philippines. She struggled to pay for a monthly data plan so she could upload her coursework. It was becoming increasingly stressful for her to ask her grandfather or uncle for 500 pesos ($9 USD) each month. She was facing another crossroads in her life and for less than what many people in higher income countries spend on a trip to the coffee shop, she nearly had to drop out of school.
Determined to stay the course, Jennifer turned to the internet, scrolling, and scrolling, searching for any scholarship – a lifeline for her future. On Facebook she came across the U-GO scholarship in partnership with the Ayala Foundation. The application process was still open! She submitted her application and, in the Catholic tradition of novena, prayed for nine consecutive days to be accepted. This was her last chance to stay in school and realize her dream. When she received the joyful news of being one of the 120 young women granted a U-GO Philippines scholarship in 2023, she could not believe it! U-GO saw potential in a girl like her, a girl from a poor family.
At U-GO, we believe that talent is universal; opportunity is not. U-GO is honored to support Jennifer’s talent and provide the opportunity for her to improve her life and her family’s life. She is on track to graduate in 2025, eager to start earning a stable income as a teacher and fulfill her dream of helping her grandfather and younger sister. For this young scholar, the tragic events of her past will not hold her back from her bright future - she’s determined to keep going.