ABERDEEN, S.D. – For Itzel “Izzy” Sanchez, a first-time mom and full-time student at Northern State University, scholarships are a big help—including the South Dakota Freedom Scholarship.

“Being able to have that help from the community just helps a lot, to not have to pull from savings that we can use for day care, or when medical stuff comes up,” said Sanchez, a junior elementary education major. “It makes a big impact.”

The Freedom Scholarship is a needs-based, public-private scholarship fund. NSU Financial Aid has $340,000 to award to scholarship recipients like Sanchez for the 2022-23 academic year.

A graduate of Central High School, Sanchez lives in Aberdeen with her fiancé, Brady Brick, and their six-month-old daughter, Leah. She also has a work-study position in the NSU Registrar’s Office. She learned of the Freedom Scholarship from staff in the nearby Financial Aid Office, who keep Sanchez and other student workers informed of scholarship opportunities.

“Whatever I can find, If I even qualify for one or two of the criteria, I try to apply because so many people don’t apply for them,” Sanchez said.

The Freedom Scholarship was one more she ended up getting.

For Sanchez, financial aid has been extremely beneficial to her college education. Without it, she feared that her dream of becoming a teacher would’ve come with a lifetime of debt.  

“Scholarships really just made it so I didn’t have to look at college almost as a burden,” she said. “It really just turned college from ‘it’s necessary to do what I want to do,’ to now like an opportunity that I can branch out.”

Scholarships Made Study Abroad Possible

That includes the opportunity to travel to Spain through NSU Study Abroad.

“I got to study abroad because I don’t have that debt that I thought I was going to have, so last summer I went to Spain for six weeks,” she said. “Scholarships just really made it more optimistic when I looked at college.”

Her advice to other students is to explore every single option when it comes to scholarships.

“A lot of the scholarships I do apply for and get are ones that I have only one or two of the criteria, but because people didn’t apply, I’m just lucky enough to get them,” she said.

Sanchez encourages students to take the time fill out scholarship applications. 

“Just apply, apply, apply,” she said.

‘I Love Not Being a Number’

Along with her elementary education degree, Sanchez, who speaks Spanish fluently, is also getting a Teaching English as a Second Language (TESOL) Certificate. She hopes to work at the upper elementary or middle school level in an English as a Second Language classroom.

“I love working with the ESL students,” she said.

While looking at colleges, Sanchez said she struggled to obtain information about financial aid from other schools.

“Northern was the first college that actually communicated really well with the Financial Aid Office,” she said.

That was a big factor in her decision to come to Northern. The smaller class sizes were also a plus. 

“I wanted to get 20 or less to one in the classroom,” she said. “I love not being a number.”

Learn More 

To learn more about scholarships and other financial assistance opportunities, contact NSU Financial Aid at 605-626-2640 or finaid@northern.edu.

About Northern State University  

Northern State University is a student-centered institution that provides an outstanding educational experience, preparing students through the liberal arts and professional education for their future endeavors. A regional university, Northern offers rigorous academics; diverse civic, social and cultural opportunities; and a commitment to building an inclusive environment for all points of view. Northern also offers a broad-based athletics program, sponsoring 15 NCAA Division II intercollegiate varsity sports that compete in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (NSIC). The university strives to enrich the community through partnerships such as its Educational Impact Campaign, which opened a new South Dakota School for the Blind and Visually Impaired; new athletic and recreation fields; and an on-campus regional sports complex. With the $55 million campaign, NSU has been the recipient of more than $150 million in privately funded building projects and scholarships within a decade. To learn more, visit NSU Admissions.