To encourage New York state legislators to increase funding for student aid, a trio of Siena students headed to the Capitol to advocate for programs that help students achieve their dream of a college education, while another group starred in an advocacy video.
McKayla Lashley ’25, Emmanuel Moscoso ’25, and Alina Urena Nuñez ’27, along with Meg Manchester, assistant director of academic counseling for Siena’s Higher Education Opportunity Program (HEOP), paid visits to several legislators on February 18 to share their personal stories with the goal of increasing state funding for HEOP and the Tuition Assistance Program (TAP).
“The part that stood out to me about the whole event was being able to see other young people who are in the same position as I am come together to fight for something that is important to all of us and that changes the lives of those who are looking to gain higher education,” said Nuñez. “I believe that the most important message that we all wanted to get across to the legislators is that this isn’t a waste of money but an investment towards brighter futures and ending generational poverty by providing higher education.”
Manchester said the visits were an excellent opportunity for the students to see government in action.
“They got to see up close how government works and that their voices matter,” she said. “If they care about something, they can advocate for it. This is real boots-on-the-ground political action, and their personal stories mattered to the legislators and their staff.”
Moscoso had a special opportunity: he got to meet directly with Assemblyman Manny De Los Santos, the legislator who represents his home district in New York City.
“HEOP made the impossible dream of earning a degree possible for me, and being able to relay that message to lawmakers was a powerful experience,” said Moscoso. “Being able to do this with HEOP peers from across the state was unforgettable. Assemblyman De Los Santos was so approachable and is actually a graduate from EOP himself, which only goes to show that student aid isn’t a handout but an investment."
Lashley said she enjoyed seeing “how many students— especially those who look like me and my HEOP peers— come together to advocate for increased funding for opportunity programs and the subsequent access to higher education it will bring.
“I hope the legislators were able to understand the importance of such opportunity programs, as they bring us closer to opening doors to a brighter future that would’ve otherwise been closed without a higher education,” she said.
The student advocacy focused specifically on:
- Increasing Opportunity Program funding by 20%: Rejecting the proposed cut to opportunity programs and increasing funding over last year’s levels. This includes HEOP, STEP and CSTEP, and the Liberty Partnerships Program, as well as EOP and SEEK.
- Expanding TAP: Supporting Governor Kathy Hochul’s proposal to streamline and expand part-time tuition assistance benefits.
- Supporting Bundy Aid: Fixing last year’s cut to Bundy Aid and the elimination of certain schools from the program.
Another group of Siena HEOP students continued the advocacy effort by sharing their personal stories in a video produced by the Commission on Independent Colleges and Universities (CICU). Click here to listen to Shelsy Vicente Gross ‘25, Briyana Howard ‘26, Dario Cueva ’27 and Sara Gelani ’28 talk about their personal higher ed journeys.
Siena HEOP Director Yasmin Fisher noted the strong four-year graduation rate for the College’s HEOP students, and the need for funding: Siena is currently reviewing 713 applications for 14 places.
“The need is there!” Fisher said. “HEOP has been offered at Siena for well over 40 years and we are grateful to the institution and friars for believing in HEOP’s mission. I am also beyond proud of our students who embody what this program is all about.”
