Scholar Entries - Hispanic Lawyers Scholarship Fund of Illinois

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Are you a past recipient of an Hispanic Lawyers Scholarship Fund award?

Name

Stefanee Monterroso

Current Mailing Address

1014 W 19th St
Apt. 2F
Chicago, IL 60608
United States
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Permanent Address (only if different from Current Mailing Address)

United States
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Phone

(308) 258-7076

Connection to Illinois

I have lived here for 6 years, but have not established residency yet. I will upon graduation.

In what city do you intend to practice law upon graduation?

Chicago, IL

Name of Law School

UIC School of Law

Class year

2nd year law student

Full Time or Part Time Student?

Full Time

Date you began attending THIS law school

08/20/2024

Anticipated Graduation Date

05/15/2027

Current GPA

2.27

Law School Honors, Awards or Special Recognitions

HLAI Charities Summer Internship Scholarship

Name of Undergraduate Institution

UIC

Degree (BA, BSE, etc.) and Concentration/Major

BS in Disability Studies

Undergraduate Graduation Date

05/05/2024

GPA

3.61

Undergraduate Honors, Awards, or Special Recognitions

Chancellor’s Student Service Award
Dean's List (almost every semester besides 2)
Graduated Cum Laude

Were you employed in 2025?

yes

If yes, please identify your employer(s).

DeCaro Law, Mart Anthony's

What was your immediate family’s (including you and your spouse or domestic partner, if applicable) estimated income from all sources for the 2025 Tax Year?

20,000

Do you expect to be employed in 2026?

yes

If yes, please identify your employer(s).

Mart Anthony's

Please estimate your immediate family’s (including you and your spouse or domestic partner, if applicable) income from all sources for the 2026 Tax year

20,000

Please estimate your parent's average annual household income over the last five years

65,000

Do your parents own or rent their home? Please describe, if necessary

Own

Describe your parents' health insurance situation. Do they have employer-sponsored health insurance, health insurance through the exchange, or no health insurance?

Nebraska Medicaid

LIST below your total EXPENSES for attending law school for ONE YEAR (Please refer to example in FAQs)

Total Tuition Cost $

31,200 per year

Books Cost $

1,400 per year

Fees Cost $

4,640 per year

Housing Cost $

17,520 per year

Food Cost $

1,200 per year

Other Costs $ (describe)

7,680 ( Utilities and other bills) per year

Total Expenses $ (add above entries)

63,640 per year

LIST below your total FUNDING sources you plan to use to pay for these expenses (Please refer to example in FAQs)

Student Loans $

63,107 per year

Scholarships and Grants $

4,000 (once)

Personal Contribution (Savings/Employment) $

5,000

Family Contribution $ (include parents, spouse, partner, etc.)

Total Funding $ (add above entries)

72,107

For 2Ls and 3Ls, what is your current TOTAL loan debt from the previous law school years?

144,148.91

Please list any community service activities with which you have been involved in the last ten years, paying particular attention to activities in support of the Hispanic community. For each activity, please include the dates of your participation, a short description of the organization and the community they serve, and a description of the activity you performed to help them. (Please read FAQs before completing)

- HLAI (Chicago, IL) 2024-Present: As a law student volunteer at their Galas and events.
- Translating within the community (Chicago, IL) 2023- present: I have made a lot of connections with the businesses in my community and neighbors, so sometimes they ask me to translate for them on personal matters and or business matters.
- Canvasing (Chicago, IL) 2024- 2025: helped a friend who works with a local nonprofit and went business-to-business to talk about having a clothing, coat, and supplies drive for the homeless community, as well as the Venezuelan population.
- CIRCA- Pinting/ Digital Tapestries (Chicago, IL) 2024: Helped plan a round table talk about accommodations in the workplace and school.
- Food Pantry (Chicago, IL) 2023: Helped pass out food and supplies at the local food pantry in Pilsen
- Chicago Point- In- Time Count (Chicago, IL) 2024: We went around Chicago late at night in January to count how many people were unhoused. If we were able to talk to the individual, we would interview them and give them a bag with food and supplies.
- Unified Valentine's Day (Nebraska) 2020: I planned and fundraised a dance for students with disabilities within the district.
- American Red Cross Blood Drive (Nebraska) 2019: Hosted and ran a city-wide blood drive under the National Honor Society.
- Children’s Day (Nebraska) 2019: A city-wide initiative to provide coats, gloves, haircuts, and medical care for immigrant and lower-income families.
- Third City Christian Church (Nebraska), Sundays, 2019: Watched children during Sunday service. Sometimes would teach stories from the Bible (depending on age range).
- Operation Shine Camp (Nebraska) Summer 2019: I was a big camper for a weekend summer camp for students with autism or similar disabilities.
- NHS Voices of Freedom (Nebraska) 2019: Fundraiser banquet for an anti-sex trafficking organization.
- NHS Easter Basket Extravaganza (Nebraska) 2019: This was a fundraiser to raise money for the local food pantry and Meals on Wheels within the community.
- Grand Island Senior High Unified Field Day (Nebraska) 2018: This was a unified field day for students with disabilities within the district.

Please provide a statement describing your background and focus your statement on your reasons for pursuing a legal career and your legal career goals. This statement is important. Please give it appropriate attention. (min. 1000 characters) (Please read FAQs before completing)

My journey to law school has been shaped by financial hardships, an evolving understanding of my cultural identity, and a strong belief in the value of higher education for minority communities. I grew up in a small town in Nebraska, where my parents worked multiple jobs and where we received government benefits. I am the first in my family to attend a four-year institution, let alone pursue a career in law. As part of a working-class Latino-American household, I saw firsthand the obstacles faced by marginalized communities. Although our resources were limited, my parents always prioritized education. They instilled in me a drive to pursue a better life, even if I didn't always see our circumstances as difficult.
At 17, I moved to Chicago alone, started a full-time job, and balanced it with full-time studies. After COVID restrictions ended, I had to go down to part-time so I could focus more on my education. Through scholarships, grants, and several part-time jobs, I was able to finish my undergraduate degree. I graduated Cum Laude and with no debt, as well as received the Chancellor’s Student Service Award. For law school, I am only able to take out loans to help me get by. I am not able to ask my parents for money, considering that they have their own bills to pay.
Maintaining strong ties to the Latino community remains a priority throughout my academic career. I have stayed active with HLAI, taken part in immigration protests, and volunteered locally on community initiatives. As a member of the Latino Student Association, I help foster community and a sense of belonging among Latino students. After law school, I aim to practice public interest law, particularly in civil rights, to represent underserved populations and help drive systemic change.

Please upload a copy of your financial award letter labeled as follows: LastName.FirstName.FinAwardLtr*

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Monterroso.Stefanee.-FinAwardLtr.pdf

Please upload a copy of your resume labeled as follows: LastName.FirstName.Resume*

Please upload a copy of your law school transcript labeled as follows: LastName.FirstName.LSTranscript*