A Newcomb High School junior is one of 12 students nationwide ‒ and the only one from New Mexico ‒ to receive a prestigious scholarship this year from the Family, Career and Community Leaders of America.
Tayeanna Bekise earned the National Leadership Conference Scholarship through a two-stage application process that included written essays, a resume, a financial need letter and a virtual interview with the national selection committee.
FCCLA is a national career and technical student organization focused on developing leadership, character, and career readiness in young people.
FCCLA is a national career and technical student organization focused on developing leadership, character, and career readiness in young people.
Bekise said the recognition carries special meaning given where she comes from.
“It is really an honor to be able to represent my people and the minorities,” she said. “I get to represent and show that we can have a voice in such a big place like that – that you don’t have to have money, you don’t have to know anybody. You can start from absolutely nothing and just work your way up by showing a person what you can do.”
Bekise said scholarship recipients from rural states are uncommon, and she reviewed this year’s cohort that showed she is the sole New Mexico representative.
Bekise joined FCCLA this year after connecting with her adviser, Renee Campbell, through a family relationship. She became an active member and competed at the New Mexico State Conference in Albuquerque in March, entering the Repurpose and Redesign category.
Her project was a pair of slippers she sewed from her father’s old baby blanket with the project name, Generations Reborn.
“My grandma uses those slippers around the house now,” Bekise said. “She shuffles around in them when she’s cooking. It’s really cute.”
When the selection committee told Bekise she had been accepted during her virtual interview, her first thought was her family.
“I try to keep my family really updated on the things that I’m involved in – things that I’m really proud to be a part of. It’s important to me that they’re updated in my life,” she said.
Her reaction was captured live on the FCCLA national YouTube channel, where the acceptance was announced in real time alongside other scholarship recipients.
“I am a huge fan of Navajo student success,” said Lynn Foster-Smith, FCCLA adviser and Business & Computer Science Teacher at Kirtland Central High School. “I feel it is a big deal to share and celebrate.”