At the Santa Clara City Council meeting on Tuesday, July 6, Silicon Valley Power’s Chief Electric Utility Officer Manuel Pineda awarded two outstanding students each with a $5,000 scholarship to further their studies toward a career in the energy industry. For the past 16 years, Silicon Valley Power has offered scholarships for students attending college or technical school in pursuit of a career in the energy industry. To date, the utility has granted $247,000 in scholarships, benefiting 53 deserving students in the Santa Clara community.
Cindy Vo has been attending DeAnza College and will be transferring to San Jose State University with majors in Facility and Sustainability Management and Business Administration.
She became interested in Environmental Studies shortly after learning about the Amazonian rainforest crisis and says she was “reminded that humanity as a whole still uses methods that hurt our environment and people when these methods could easily be substituted or stopped.”
This resulted in her desire to make an impact in improving the environment and society. Vo now plans to pursue a career that contributes toward developing and implementing solutions to create a more energy efficient, sustainable and healthier world.
Amanda McDowell recently graduated from Wilcox High School and plans to attend Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo with a major in Business Administration and Architecture. McDowell is a fourth generation Santa Clara resident and has been an active part of the community, as well as playing three varsity sports.
McDowell is interested in architecture and is an avid problem-solver who is always looking for multiple solutions to a problem. She is learning about the importance of energy use in building design and will be able to utilize her problem-solving skills in her architectural career to design the most energy efficient buildings to conserve resources and reduce the environmental footprint.
“Silicon Valley Power is committed to investing in the future workforce of the electric industry. Supporting students to achieve their career goals through this scholarship program is one of several ways the utility is able to support our community and the energy industry,” said SVP in their press release.
Applications for the 2021 scholarship program will be available in October.