CALEXICO — In an effort to give back to the community and campus, the Psychology Club at San Diego State University-Imperial Valley campus raised funds in order to provide book scholarships for psychology students.

The club recently announced the first recipient of the $200 book prize, junior psychology student Rudy Mercado.

“This was our first scholarship as a way to give back to the community,” said Jamie Harguess, Psychology Club public relations officer. “This semester we plan to give back to the community in a different way but are still deciding what to do.”

Club members including Mercado sold candy canes to help raise funds for the book scholarship.

Mercado said he was excited to learn of his award, considering it came from his fellow classmates.

“I am honored to have won (the award),” said Mercado. “I plan on using it just for what it was intended for because psychology textbooks are a bit pricey, so that helped a great deal.”

In order to win the award, Mercado submitted a 500-word essay about himself, his future plans, community involvement and his career goals related to the field of psychology.

“I, hopefully, plan to graduate in spring 2014,” Mercado said. “After completing my studies (at SDSU-IV), I am planning on pursuing my master’s degree either in social work, social psychology or industrial organizational psychology.”

Staff Writer Karina Lopez can be reached at 760-337-3439 or klopez@ivpressonline.com

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