Senior Natalia Mendez was awarded the 2015 UPS Scholarship for the Fall 2015 semester provided by the ICUT Foundation and its national partner, the Council of Independent Colleges (CIC). Through this partnership, ICUT and CIC distributed $88,200 in UPS Scholarships to 36 low-income students at private institutions across Texas.

Mendez is a Communications major, minoring in both Digital Media and Media Ministries. She was selected to receive the $2,450 grant after applying for numerous need-based scholarships. She says, "I was truly touched and grateful for the opportunity to continue my education through this scholarship."

Mendez anticipates graduating in the spring of 2016 with honors and traveling during the summer before going back to school and starting her career. She currently works at Chick-Fil-A and is planning to attend cosmetology school before getting her master's degree in Business.

CIC is an association of 744 nonprofit independent colleges and universities and higher education affiliates and organizations that has worked since 1956 to support college and university leadership, advance institutional excellence, and enhance public understanding of private higher education’s contributions to society. One of CIC’s major program areas is its work with member fundraising consortia of private colleges, including the ICUT Foundation.