Valledupar, February 6, 2019
13 people from Drummond’s communities in Cesar and Magdalena were recognized for their academic excellence and are now beneficiaries of Drummond Ltd.’s Scholarship Program for the La Loma and El Descanso Projects.
As a demonstration of its commitment to education in the country, each year Drummond gives a scholarship to the top high school students from public schools in the municipalities in its area of influence. The scholarship covers the entire cost of their undergraduate studies, and includes a monthly stipend for living expenses, which is currently at $1,024,000 pesos.
The award ceremonies held in Magdalena on Thursday, January 31 and in Cesar on Friday, February 1 were presided over by Jose Miguel Linares, Drummond’s President. Also present at the gathering were Drummond Ltd. managers, mayors from the municipalities of influence, civilian, church, social, and military authorities, previous scholarship winners, the new scholarship winners and their families, and representatives of the schools.
To open the ceremonies, Drummond Ltd.’s President Jose Miguel Linares said: “By providing these scholarships, we are building a better country and we’re helping to close the gaps, because we are giving an opportunity to students with limited resources who would otherwise not have access to a college education or technical school. We have many examples of how Drummond scholarships have helped transform the lives of these young adults and their families.”
He also stated that “the Company has demonstrated its commitment to education, the main element of our social responsibility policy.”
At the award ceremonies, Drummond’s President made the important announcement that, thanks to the 20-year extension obtained by Drummond for the La Loma project production contract, the scholarship program will grow. Next year there will be 11 beneficiaries in Cesar and 4 in Magdalena, for a total of 15 scholarships.
Yimis Muskus, who received a Drummond scholarship in 2014, spoke in representation of all the scholarship winners, by saying: “I am very grateful for having had the opportunity to grow and develop with the help of the Drummond family. It was important for me, because it allowed me to gain the knowledge and tools to achieve my goals, and that I can now use to continue to grow and be able to help my family.”
Yimis, who is now a civil engineer, had a message for the new generation of young people who will form a part of this program: “You are very blessed to be the Drummond Scholarship Winners 2019. Take advantage of this opportunity and go out and conquer the world. I wish you blessings and success in your college career, and remember: keep your dreams alive. Understand that to achieve things we need faith – believe in yourselves – along with vision, hard work, determination, and dedication.”
Edgardo Perez, Mayor of Cienaga, who was present at the event in Cienaga in representation of the mayors of Magdalena, emphasized that “education is the best way to build a country, to transform human beings, to exalt the soul, and to form society. With the change in the lives of these young people, the lives of their families will change, and with that, society will change.”
The new scholarship winners expressed their joy at receiving a scholarship. “The way Drummond helps young people in its area of influence is very good. I’m very grateful to the company for this great opportunity. The scholarship gives us many benefits that will take us down the road toward reaching our goals,” said Fabian Mieles, one of the beneficiaries in the Department of Cesar.
Isabella Millares indicated that “Drummond’s scholarship is an opportunity to have a career and improve my future. Now the next thing is to study and work hard to earn my degree as an attorney. I’m thankful this company is committed to education.”
In this 14th year of the program, the scholarship winners in Magdalena are Jose Martinez and Valentina Miranda from the municipality of Cienaga.
And in Cesar the students who received scholarships are Cristian Dearmas and Isabella Millares from Chiriguana; Daniela Prada, Carolin Acevedo, Yulieth Galvis, Fabian Mieles and Valeria Rodriguez from Agustin Codazzi; John Castro, Maria De La Cruz, Carlos Ochoa and Laura Caceres from the municipality of El Paso. Including these most recent winners, since 2006 the program has benefited 130 young people and their families. Forty-six of them are currently practicing a profession and others are doing their internship at the company.