Ivon Guzman (left) and Aaliyah Casiano (right) are the third year recipients of the John L. Paluszek scholarship.
MEHNAZ AFRIDI / LINKEDIN
Reyna Orlova, Contributor
Manhattan University (MU) alum John L. Paluszek awarded a $15,000 scholarship to two new first-generation students in the Kakos School of Arts and Sciences this semester. The recipients were Aaliyah Casiano, sophomore psychology major with a minor in education, and Ivon Guzman, sophomore psychology major.
The John L. Paluzek scholarship is now in its third year and is proud to add an additional recipient and increased reward. The scholarship now awards $15,000, as opposed to $10,000 in previous years, and focuses on first-generation students with high academic standing combined with civil service.
When asked about what inspired the scholarship, Paluszek shared that his time at MU made him appreciate hard workers, and that he wishes young people may have an easier time achieving their dreams with this scholarship.
“I hope that [the scholarship] will help them to take care of a large part of their college expenses so they can study hard and be successful,” Paluszek said. “A college education…can make a big difference, not only in financial ways but in how you develop your thinking.”
The scholarship focuses on sophomores and juniors with a GPA of 3.6 or higher as well as students who spend time volunteering for the community. Paluszek, a fellow first-generation student, emphasized that the scholarship doubles as a family for all the recipients.
“The basics were that the students would have to show an excellent academic record… and then they would have to write and tell us what work they have done in terms of helping out various people, but there’s one extra thing we put in,” Paluszek said.
The scholarship itself began through the friends Paluszek made during his time at MU. Mehnaz Afridi, Ph.D., professor of religious studies, Holocaust, Genocide and Interfaith Education Center (HGIC) director and friend of Paluszek, shared how the scholarship started.
“I met Paluszek in my first year or so at MU, and he quickly became one of the most faithful supporters of the Holocaust, Genocide, and Interfaith Education Center,” Afridi said. “In 2024, when the university went through a painful period of budget cuts and faculty layoffs, Paluszek and his son, Stephen, came to me and asked a simple question, ‘how can we help?’ Together, we decided to support first-generation students who need financial assistance.”
The scholarship recipients are chosen through co-chairs Mehnaz Afridi and Heidi Laudien with other MU faculty members’ input. Through their hard work, the scholarship has maintained three years of generosity, creating a family for recipients to lean on.
Heidi Laudien, Ph.D., English professor at MU and co-chair of the Paluszek scholarship, shared some of the struggles the scholarship experienced in its early days.
“It was difficult to identify who were first-generation students from the school of liberal arts, and to know how best to target them,” Laudien said. “Advertising the scholarship better to make sure all rising sophomores and juniors know that the award is available has been challenging, but something we feel confident about now.”
Ivon Guzman, one of the recipients, shared how the scholarship helped ease some of her financial anxiety and bring her focus to her studies. Guzman spoke about how she owes her education to her parents and that through this scholarship, she is able to ease her mind of possible debt being put on them.
“[The scholarship] is such a great help because as a first-generation student you owe a lot to your parents,” Guzman said. “It means so much that I can ease their stress of having to pay for my tuition…because that’s a big worry.”
Aaliyah Casiano, one of the recipients, agreed with Guzman that the scholarship allowed her to pursue her education and focus on academics instead of anxieties. She shared that this scholarship kept her enrolled at MU.
“This scholarship honestly opens a new door for me personally,” Casiano said. “I only live with my dad… so the last two semesters have been really hard to pay in terms of tuition, books, etc. to the point where I was considering transferring to another different school. However, I chose MU because it felt like I had family here when I came to visit. I plan to use this scholarship to cover the remaining cost of my tuition, pay for books, and potentially study abroad.”
Recipients Guzman and Casiano recommend that anyone interested in applying to stay focused on their grades, get involved on campus and to not be afraid to apply.