We, at 1,000 Dreams Fund, are thrilled to start 2022 off with a bang with our announcement today of our Paliwal Club of 100 STEAM Scholars and Music Scholars Fund Winners.

In 2019, 1,000 Dreams Fund teamed up with Ila and Dinesh Paliwal and their two children, Aasheesh (“ShiShi”) and Shriya, through the Ila and Dinesh Paliwal Foundation to launch our Paliwal Club of 100 STEAM Scholars program, supporting high-potential young women in S.T.E.A.M (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Math). The scholarship program will fund the dreams of 100 talented young women in college and graduate schools for 10 years.

Expanding on this commitment in 2021,  1DF and the Ila and Dinesh Paliwal Foundation announced the launch of our new Paliwal Club of 100 Music Scholars Fund, which will finance the dreams of talented young women pursuing careers in music over the next 10 years. Supporting and empowering young women across the music industry is critical because, in 2020, only 20.2% of artists featured in songs that made the top 100 charts were women and women held only 2.6% of all producing positions across the Billboard Hot 100 Songs.

Both programs aim to fund women in industries where they remain underrepresented and underserved. We aim to accelerate our STEAM and Music Scholars’ progress, while they’re in school, through their transition into the workforce.  

Our winners receive scholarships to assist with educational opportunities that extend beyond tuition. That could be anything from research-related costs, to travel for conventions and/or educational conferences, graduate school exam or entrance fees, instructional programs related to creative or artistic pursuits, and more.

We are pleased to unveil our 2021 Paliwal Club of 100 STEAM Scholars Winners: 

• Charlie Chesney | University of California, Santa Cruz, Degree: Ph.D. in Environmental Studies – “My dream is to lead teams to develop solutions to environmental problems.”

• Cynthia-Rae M. | University of Texas at El Paso, Degree: B.S. in Nursing – “My dream is to be a nurse educator and clinical researcher.”

• Faith Bailey | Cornell University, Degree: Animal Science (pre-vet) – “My dream is to be a small animal veterinary surgeon.”

• Gayda Mohamed | Brown University, The College, Degree: B.S. in Biophysics – “My dream is to be a trauma surgeon.”

• Kaleigh Coker | Hendrix College, Degree: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology – “My dream is to be a genetic researcher.”

• Myshela Todd | Dixie State University, Degree: B.S. in Biology w/Natural Science Emphasis – “My dream is to be a wildlife biologist.”

• Niharika Shukla | Cornell University, Degree: M.Eng. – “My dream is to develop more sustainable tech and reduce carbon emissions.”

• Nishtha Tripathi | St. Bonaventure University, Degree: B.S. in Biology and Behavioral Neuroscience – “My dream is to be a surgeon.”

• Samantha Townsend | UNC Chapel Hill, Degree: Applied Mathematics/Computer Programming – “My dream is to work in tech and become a math professor to encourage others.”

• Stephany Melissa Alfaro Barrera | Weber State University, College of Engineering, Applied Science & Technology, Degree: B.S. in Product Design and Development – “My dream is to tell the stories of my home country and help others there.”

We are also pleased to announce our inaugural 2021 Paliwal Club of 100 Music Scholars:

• Ashlee Sanchez | Capital Community College, Degree: Associate’s degree in Science – Music Industry  – “My dream is to be a professional musician/producer.”

• Rory Shirley | Boston Conservatory at Berklee, Degree: Musical Theatre – “My dream is to be a performer and playwright.”

• ShaDaia | San Diego Community College, School of Arts, Degree: Associate’s degree in Science-Digital Music Technology – “My dream is to be a music engineer and teacher.”

• Sophia Alfa | Hawaii Pacific University, College of Business, College of Liberal Arts, Degree: B.S. in Finance, B.A. in International Studies – “My dream is to be a performing artist, selling out concerts globally.”

A huge round of applause to all of our 2021 Paliwal Club of 100 Winners. We know you are going to do great things.

Interested in applying to the Paliwal Club of 100? Our 2022 application will open soon, so stay tuned!