NYCHA-CUNY Scholar: Connie Aleman

Like many students her age, Connie Aleman planned to attend college away from home. 

The resident of Saint Mary’s Park Houses was all set to enroll at Ithaca College during the summer of 2015 when those plans suddenly had to be pushed aside. Shortly after her high school graduation, Ms. Aleman’s mother passed away, forcing the then-17-year-old aspiring college student to step in as the sole caretaker of her younger brother and sister.  

“It was hard,” recalled Ms. Aleman, 23, who immigrated to the U.S. from Belize at the age of 11. “I don’t think I knew what I was doing.”  

Despite the newfound parental responsibility that required her to stay close to home, Ms. Aleman kept her college hopes alive by first enrolling in Lehman College before eventually transferring to City College of New York. After initially studying business, the South Bronx resident pursued a degree in chemical engineering – a field more well-suited to her passion – at City College. 

“I decided that I would still set myself up for success, but in a field that I genuinely saw myself contributing to,” she said. 

Hoping to become the first in her family to graduate from college, Ms. Aleman was recently named a 2020 NYCHA-CUNY Scholar, along with 21 other NYCHA residents. She earned a Levine Family Scholarship, a $1,000 award for education-related expenses for NYCHA residents attending the City College of New York.    

Ms. Aleman acknowledged that juggling her studies with her role as a guardian at home was initially challenging. But while she worked a full-time job to support her family and pay rent, Ms. Aleman was also committed to making sure that none of her responsibilities would have to be sacrificed for the good of the other.  

“I was determined to move both my family and my education forward no matter what,” she said.  

That dedication often led to long days in which she would have to cook dinner early in the morning so that her siblings would have a meal ready when they returned from school. Noting how her relationship with her siblings has had to evolve due to their circumstances, Ms. Aleman said she is proud of how the siblings have grown.  

In addition to her job and school, Ms. Aleman is also active as the president of the City College Chapter of the American Institute of Chemical Engineers and as a member of 100 Hispanic Women, a non-profit comprised of Latina leaders. Still, a primary focus for her at the moment is graduating from City College with a degree in chemical engineering in May.  

“It’s going to be amazing, but I think it’s also going to be very emotional,” she said of being the first in her family to earn a college degree. 

The NYCHA-CUNY Scholar aspires to start a career in the pharmaceutical industry after pursuing a master’s degree in chemical engineering, though she will defer her graduate school enrollment for about a year so she can gain work experience.  

“I truly believe that my education, along with these skills learned at CUNY, will help me achieve all my future goals,” she said.  

To learn more about the NYCHA-CUNY Resident Scholarship, click here.

To see the full list of 2020 NYCHA-CUNY Scholars, click here.