‘A blessing’: AFT moms revel in their kids’ $1,500 scholarships from their unions

The daughters of two AFT members will have an easier time paying for college this fall after they each won a $1,500 scholarship from the Texas AFL-CIO, the union announced last week.

Amanda Soria-Cueto,18, daughter of Maria Fabiola Cueto de Soria, a member of the McAllen AFT, Local 6329, in McAllen, Texas, and Chloe Azocar, 18, daughter of Melina Espiritu-Azocar, president of the Northside AFT, Local 3216, in San Antonio, are two of 25 recipients of the Texas AFL-CIO's 2026 scholarships. In total, the Texas AFL-CIO awarded $37,500 in both college and career-building scholarships to the 2026 recipients.

The criteria for high school seniors to receive one of these scholarships include academic performance, extracurricular activities, a labor test, an interview and financial need. The students must have a parent or legal guardian who is a member of a local union that is affiliated with both the Texas AFL-CIO and the local Central Labor Council.

Espiritu-Azocar praised the Texas AFL-CIO for offering to support union members' children after they graduate high school. It's a commitment that shows the union is willing to step up and help students whether they go to college or technical school, she said.

"It means a lot to us as working families, and I think it means a lot to our kids as well," Espiritu-Azocar added.

As the cost of higher education continues to rise, more working-class families are struggling to afford college and grappling with skyrocketing student loan bills. That's why labor unions are stepping in to help make college education more affordable for students.

"Texas labor unions are investing in the next generation's education because it's going to take all of us to build a state that works for working people," Texas AFL-CIO President Leonard Aguilar said. "Congratulations to all of these scholarship winners-you have an entire movement rooting for you!"

Soria-Cueto said she applied for the Texas AFL-CIO scholarship because she was looking for ways to help pay for her education, especially since she plans to go to graduate school. She will attend the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley in the fall, where she will major in exercise science. Her goal, she said, is to be a physical therapist. Soria-Cueto was inspired to enter the profession while she was a student athlete at McAllen Memorial High School.

As both a powerlifter and a swimmer, she frequently visited a physical therapist for several sports-related injuries. It was during her appointments that she became interested in a career in physical therapy.

"I would love to help people just get back on the field or get back to doing their everyday things independently without pain," she said.

Her mother, Maria Fabiola Cueto de Soria, said she is grateful for the Texas AFL-CIO's support. "To me it was a blessing," she said. "For [my daughter] to get the scholarship, it means a lot."

Azocar, who will be attending Northwest Vista College-a community college in San Antonio-said she was inspired to apply to the Texas AFL-CIO scholarship out of her passion for unions.

"Knowing that there was a scholarship that was for unions-especially with my mom being a great example for me growing up-I thought, '[This is] just the perfect opportunity for me,'" she said.

With the help of the scholarship money, Azocar plans to study political science. Eventually, wants to work as an attorney, fighting for the rights of people of color and women in San Antonio. The Texas AFL-CIO scholarship is "just perfect for what unions stand for," Azocar said. It's a wonderful thing, she added, that a union wants to help its members and their children too.

[Alvin Buyinza]