Edwin Santos, a dedicated student at American University hailing from Virginia, has been honored with the esteemed Truman Scholarship in recognition of his unwavering commitment to advocating for immigration reform and uplifting the lives of low-income Latino families.
Santos, reflecting on his journey from humble beginnings in Woodbridge, Virginia, emphasized the transformative power of hard work in realizing one’s dreams. “I am a normal kid from Woodbridge that, like, came from essentially nothing, as well, and that if I’m able to do it, then anyone else is able to do it, too,” he remarked.
Raised by immigrant parents from El Salvador, Santos is the youngest of four siblings and proudly stands as the first to attain a four-year college degree in his family. His advocacy efforts, particularly in defending Latino immigrants—both adults and children—facing deportation, have earned him the esteemed Harry S. Truman Scholarship.
Speaking on the importance of leveraging privilege for advocacy, Santos expressed, “I think that it’s important for a lot of times … to use our positionality and our privilege to be able to advocate for other people who don’t have that opportunity.”
The Truman Scholarship selection process, spanning nearly a year, rigorously evaluates over 800 applications nationwide. Following comprehensive review and interviews, only 55 to 65 students are chosen annually for this prestigious award, with recipients demonstrating a steadfast dedication to a career in government or public service.
Motivated by his father’s labor-intensive work in construction, Santos remains resolute in his pursuit of advocating for marginalized communities. “So, just seeing that, of course, motivated me to want to continue oftentimes when I wanted to give up, when things get hard, and just also just the social pressure of realizing that a lot of people are facing similar circumstances, that my actions can have impact on a lot of different people,” he explained.
Intent on furthering his impact, Santos intends to utilize the scholarship funds to pursue a career as an immigration lawyer.
Joining Santos in receiving the Truman Scholarship are three other students with ties to the D.C. area: Jackson Boaz from American University, Ray Epstein from Temple University, and Eli Glickman from the University of California, Berkeley.