Estefania Hernandez Luna Awarded CSU Trustees’ Award for Outstanding Achievement

Until she began Stanislaus State's Master of Social Work program in fall 2023, Estefania Hernandez Luna, who goes by Nia, had never received a scholarship before.

When she started the two-year program, she received an award from Health Force Partners.

Now, Hernandez Luna, a 4.0 student, has earned one of the California State University's most prestigious scholarships: the Trustees' Award for Outstanding Achievement.

The CSU Trustees award one scholarship to a representative from each of the system's 23 campuses each year, and Hernandez Luna was awarded the William Randolph Hearst Scholarship. The award recipients will be honored during the CSU Board of Trustees meeting on Tuesday, Sept. 24.

"It is with tremendous joy and great pride that I celebrate the outstanding achievements and extraordinary perseverance of this year's Trustees' Scholars," said CSU Chancellor Mildred García. "Through the visionary generosity of our donors, the CSU is able to uplift and support these diverse students and truly outstanding scholars who have overcome educational and personal hardships in pursuit of a college degree that will not only transform their lives but will also elevate their families and strengthen their communities."

After receiving the news, Hernandez Luna recalled when she realized the magnitude of the award.

"I didn't know how to act, because I had never gotten a big scholarship like that," she said. "They wanted to take pictures. I was like, 'Oh my gosh, this is official.' They're going to fly us to Long Beach.

"I feel really special and proud of myself. My parents were spooked because they're flying me out. It's big. I mean, who flies someone out?"

"I don't know if the donors understand the impact they have. They change a lot of people's lives. We're not always able to work if we take on an unpaid internship. A scholarship helps so much. I'm so thankful to them. It means so much."

-Estefania Hernandez Luna, 2024-25 Stanislaus State Trustee Scholar

The presentation of the Trustees scholars during the second day of the Board of Trustees' September meeting is only one benefit. The real award is the $10,000 that Hernandez Luna will receive. The Stockton native, who returned home after her 2021 graduation from San José State with a Bachelor of Science in Psychology, will be able to focus on her studies and clinical work with San Joaquin County Behavioral Health.

"I'm part of the access point of entry," Hernandez Luna said of her role there. "We work with substance abuse and mental health clients."

She began on Sept. 3, and has been shadowing licensed clinicians, learning how to conduct assessments and handle mental health and substance abuse screenings.

The internship is a continuation of the year-long internship she served last year with El Concilio, where she also shadowed licensed social workers for a month before she started seeing clients herself.

"Mostly it's a lot of listening," she said. "That's what they need. They don't have anybody to talk to, and they come, and you're there. It releases a lot off their shoulders. I've seen it a lot with clients.

"I was scared at first, but once I got it, it flowed. I loved all my clients. It felt good when they kept coming back and you can see the progress within them. That was my favorite part, to see them elevate and change for the better."

Hernandez Luna had some understanding of the population served by El Concilio. She had started working for the nonprofit the previous February as a case manager. Her job was to find people who were homeless, get them to appointments or to the food bank to assist them in obtaining basic needs.

Being placed at El Concilio for her internship allowed her to retain her part-time job and continue to see two different sets of clients being served.

The work as a therapist - overseen by a licensed social worker - prepared her for this year's placement with the county agency. Hernandez Luna noted that El Concilio clients typically have mild to moderate issues, while the county serves those with more moderate to severe mental health issues.

"We're still human," she said. "I don't want people to see the clients and define them as their diagnosis. They're just struggling with their daily lives. At the end of the day, everyone is human, and everyone has things to work on within themselves. Just because I'm a clinical intern doesn't mean I don't have my own stuff to work on. Everybody has room for growth and self-improvement."

The Cesar Chavez High School graduate said her personal growth began when she entered San José State as a first-year student. Raised in a strict Mexican immigrant household, she said she experienced generational trauma. As a college student, she was free to make her own choices and made lasting friends.

She joined a Filipino Club to meet people and enjoyed night spots in downtown San José, but only after her schoolwork was done. She always loved school and said she graduated 13th in her high school class.

Although an undeclared major, she considered becoming a pediatrician, but a chemistry class ended that idea.

She pursued psychology with a minor in public health and in her third year, a professor talked about social work and the different career paths of the field.

"My mom would always say, 'You should be a trabajadora social.' I didn't know what that meant. It was a social worker," Hernandez Luna said, laughing, which she does easily.

Her mom saw early that her only daughter, the middle of her three children, had a heart for giving.

Hernandez Luna's first job was with an agency that sent workers to check on seniors who were home alone. Then, when her paternal, Spanish-speaking grandfather was diagnosed with colon cancer, Hernandez Luna saw him through his treatments, doctor's appointments and medicine routine.

"As a bilingual clinician deeply versed in diversity, equity, and inclusion issues, her knowledge and skills make her a clinician that is extremely important to the needs of the Central Valley and beyond, said Professor of Social Work John Garcia. "Estefania is a deep thinker, a scholar and a genuinely wonderful human being who authentically cares about the well- being of others."

He isn't the only professor to note her qualities.

"Nia is a Swahili word that means purpose," said Master of Social Work Associate Professor Sevaughn Banks, who wrote one of Hernandez Luna's letters of recommendation for the scholarship. "Nia had several mentors who helped shape her early career choices, including her mother, who was prophetic in knowing her daughter's passions for helping others by embodying her purpose through social work. The CSU Trustees' Scholarship will allow Nia to fulfill her purpose of completing a master's degree in social work and becoming a clinical social worker in her community. While 'Nia' is short for Estefania, it is clear she has always personified her purpose through service."

It is the future Hernandez Luna envisions for herself.

"I want to become a licensed clinical social worker," she said. "It doesn't matter the population: adults or kids. Wherever it takes me, I'm willing to go."

For now, it's taking her to Long Beach to be acknowledged by the CSU Trustees.

"I'm so excited, and I'm nervous," Hernandez Luna said.

She has a great appreciation for the scholarship and the donors who make them possible.

"I don't know if the donors understand the impact they have. They change a lot of people's lives," Hernandez Luna said. "We're not always able to work if we take on an unpaid internship. A scholarship helps so much. I'm so thankful to them. It means so much."

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