WESTFIELD, PLAINFIELD and PASSAIC, NEW JERSEY – July 28, 2026

More Than Bootstraps (MTB), a New Jersey non-profit, is thrilled to announce that one of our students, Anyelo Cruz, has been selected as a 2026 Hispanic Scholarship Fund (HSF) Scholar. This prestigious and selective program includes access to HSF Scholar Support Services, including career services, mentorship, leadership development, and wellness training. Scholars can also attend Scholar Conferences and are eligible for additional scholarship support. 

Anyelo, a 2025 graduate of Passaic Academy for Science and Engineering (PASE), is entering his second year at Stevens Institute of Technology, where he is majoring in computer science. Anyelo was an MTB High School Fellow. Following his high school graduation, he transitioned into the role of College Student Leader. In that position, Anyelo is responsible for mentoring two younger high school peers through the college search, application, and confidence-building process.

More Than Bootstraps congratulates all these students for putting themselves out there and striving for opportunities.

“We are thrilled that the Hispanic Scholarship Fund has recognized the leadership skills, academic talents, and drive to empower others of these outstanding young people,” said Audrey Fisch, president of More Than Bootstraps.

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Grants and donations to More Than Bootstraps fund the monthly stipends that allow the high school and college students in the program some time and space to devote to their professional development and college-going activities while still meeting their financial responsibilities. Interested donors are invited to visit the MTB website: www.morethanbootstraps.org/donate.

More Than Bootstraps is a nonprofit created by educators seeking to level the playing field and remove some of the substantial barriers that first-generation college students encounter in accessing and succeeding in higher education. More Than Bootstraps employs a near-peer mentoring model to create a community of success. College students from the community return to guide their younger peers in the community through the college search, application, and assimilation process. These leaders, working as a mentoring cohort, in turn strengthen their own college-going identities and improve their own chances of success in higher education.

Students are selected based on their desire to attend college and their commitment to the program rather than grade point average or test scores. All students in the MTB program receive stipends, laptop computers, and access to emergency resources to help them with the many non-tuition expenses of higher education. 

About the HSF SCHOLAR PROGRAM

Founded in 1975, HSF empowers students and parents with the knowledge and resources to successfully complete a higher education, while providing support services and scholarships to as many exceptional students, Scholars , and Alumni as possible. HSF strives to make college education a top priority for every family across the nation, mobilizing communities to proactively advance that goal—each individual, over a lifetime, in every way they can.

The HSF Scholar Program selects outstanding students as HSF Scholars from a broad and talented pool of applicants and provides access to a range of Scholar Support Services, including career services, mentorship, leadership development, knowledge building, and wellness training.

As one of the nation’s leading nonprofit organizations, HSF has awarded over $756 million in scholarships and provides a broad range of programs and support services for students, parents, HSF Scholars, and HSF Alumni. For more information about HSF, please visit HSF.net.

More Than Bootstraps is a 501(c)3 organization, Tax ID 83-2245008.

Media Contact:

Audrey Fisch, Ph.D.

President, More Than Bootstraps

(908) 397-0893

audrey@morethanbootstraps.org