Joe Gutierrez Office of Strategic Communication (909) 537-5007 joeg@csusb.edu
Elin Wahman, a program administrator for The Annexstad Family Foundation, visited the Cal State San Bernardino Palm Desert Campus recently and met with three recipients of the Leaders of Tomorrow Scholarship, which the foundation supports. One of the students Wahman met with was Adrian Martinez, a graduate of Rancho Mirage High School and a pre-nursing major at the CSUSB Palm Desert Campus. In April 2018 at the “Keeping Our Brightest Stars” Scholarship Dinner attended by Al and Cathy Annexstad, Martinez was named the first PDC recipient of the Annexstad Family Foundation’s Leaders for Tomorrow Scholarship, which was established in 2012. Also meeting with Wahman were PDC Leaders of Tomorrow scholars who are also pre-nuring majors: Katrina Estacio, a graduate of La Quinta High School, and Jennifer Hanson, a graduate of Palm Desert High School. Al and Cathy Annexstad, who established The Annexstad Family Foundation in 2000, were honored by the university at the April 2018 banquet for their support of higher education in the Coachella Valley and across the nation through the Leaders for Tomorrow scholars, including students at the CSUSB Palm Desert Campus. Also at that banquet, an additional $25,000 gift from The Annexstad Family Foundation was announced for the University Legacy Scholarship fund. The program was created for deserving local students who are graduates of high schools from the Coachella Valley Unified School District, Desert Sands Unified School District, and Palm Springs Unified School District. In addition, students graduating from accredited private and online schools in the Coachella Valley will be eligible for this scholarship program. The Annexstad Family Foundation was established in 2000 by Al and Cathy Annexstad and their family with a singular purpose of helping deserving young people realize their dreams of earning a college degree. The foundation strongly believes that among the ranks of America’s young people is a special group who have overcome extraordinary hardship in their young lives and who are likewise exceptionally bright and motivated. Their Leaders for Tomorrow Scholarship program assures that outstanding students are able to attend college without the debt burden after completing their degree.