Sonia Aldape spent 4 years in California's Foster Care System

Sonia Aldape is person willing to fight for those who need it most. Her passion extends to all underprivileged groups and she plans to pursue a career in case management or counseling incarcerated individuals and individuals challenged by drug abuse or mental illness. She is already serving to empower and inform individuals and communities in need of resources.

Some of the activities Sonia has already made her mark on include a Free Clinic in Berkeley where Sonia volunteers as a Hepatitis Counselor and Funding Committee member and outreach spear-header. She co-facilitates a student run internship course, in which her students serve as translators for Alameda County child welfare workers and participate in a discussion course that supports students with issues encountered throughout the internship.

She has also volunteered as a tutor for inmates at San Quentin State Prison and plans to reach out further to her community by starting a mentorship program for foster youth in Kern County. The experiences Sonia has endured helped give her a unique understanding of the dynamics of poverty, mental illness, and education and she is using that understanding to empower others in her community.

As someone interested in supporting at-risk youth in education, Sonia will surely addressing such a wide range of injustices. One of Sonia’s adult supporters states, “I have been privileged to know her, learn from her, and be a part of her life. She has the ability to help others due to her intelligence, education, values, and learning from her own life experiences.”

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Team(s) or Cohort(s)
2011 Outstanding Young Leaders
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