Every day, Nayeli Berenice Aranda Hernandez works with students whose futures are uncertain. that can pull them away from school. She connects students and families with resources, encourages them to keep moving forward, and helps them imagine possibilities beyond their current circumstances.

The work is deeply personal.

Years ago, Aranda Hernandez was one of those students.

She knows what it feels like to face instability, poverty, and difficult family circumstances. Most importantly, she knows the life-changing impact of having someone believe in you when you are struggling to believe in yourself.

Today, that experience guides her work and her commitment to helping others find opportunities she once thought were beyond her own reach.

For her dedication to service, leadership, and the success of others, Aranda Hernandez has been named Heritage University’s 2026 Violet Lumley Rau Alumna of the Year. The award recognizes graduates who exemplify Heritage’s values of excellence, inclusion, perseverance, leadership, and service.

A DIFFICULT EARLY ROAD

Just four years old when her family migrated from Mexico to the United States, Aranda Hernandez worked alongside her parents in the orchards and fields of the Yakima Valley.

Her childhood was marked by poverty, alcohol, drugs, and domestic violence.

“As a coping mechanism to survive hard things, sometimes your brain disassociates,” she said.

By her sophomore year of high school, she had dropped out. She moved to Chicago, worked minimum-wage jobs, and eventually returned to Pasco.

At 16, she enrolled at New Horizons High School through Destination Graduation, a dropout- prevention program. There, she found caring educators, supportive community organizations, and people who believed in her potential.

The program encouraged students to share their stories publicly. Through those experiences, Aranda Hernandez discovered something she had never felt before.

“When I would talk about my experience in school, for the very first time I felt like I mattered,” she said.

She also realized that successful people rarely followed a straight path.

“I was exposed to a new world of possibility. It was the first time in my life I felt like I had a chance.”

CHOOSING A DIFFERENT FUTURE

Even with newfound hope, her life remained complicated. Very few people around her valued education.

“There was a part of me that said I should just stop going to school, get married, and have a bunch of kids,” she said. “But I kept going.”

The support of three caring families—one of whom gave her a place to live—combined with the encouragement of teachers and mentors, helped her thrive academically.

She graduated with honors, was named class salutatorian, and received the Hispanic Academic Achievers Program Award.

Listening to fellow scholarship recipients discuss their college plans inspired her to imagine a future she had never considered possible.

She enrolled at Columbia Basin College.

FINDING PURPOSE

At CBC, Aranda Hernandez became a student ambassador and earned scholarships. Then she learned she was pregnant.

Rather than derail her education, motherhood strengthened her determination.

“Breaking cycles was no longer only about me,” she said. “I wanted my daughter to grow up seeing that obstacles do not define us.”

When her ambassador position ended, she began exploring transfer options and discovered Heritage University’s Dreamers Scholarship. She received the scholarship for two consecutive years.

For someone accustomed to working multiple jobs just to survive, the scholarship provided the opportunity to focus on school. Just as important was the support she found at Heritage.

“Heritage surrounded me with help every step of the way,” she said. “They met me where I was, where my needs were, with support that was very individualized.”

That experience reinforced a lesson she had been learning for years: people succeed when others invest in them.

Today, it is the same lesson she brings to the students and families she serves.

PAYING IT FORWARD

Aranda Hernandez graduated from Heritage in 2016 with a bachelor’s degree in social work, a perfect 4.0 GPA, Student of the Year honors, and the Heritage University Excellence Award.

She went on to earn a Master of Social Work and a Doctorate in Education with an emphasis in Organizational Leadership.

Today, she helps migrant students and families successfully navigate school systems and pursue educational opportunities.

Her work has earned numerous honors, including the Pasco School District’s North Star Award, Washington State Migrant Graduation Specialist of the Year, the Martin Luther King Jr. Spirit Award, Educator of the Year from the Tri-Cities Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, and National University’s Dissertation of Distinction Award.

Yet for Aranda Hernandez, the awards are not the point. The real reward is helping students discover the same sense of possibility she once found.

Her volunteer work reflects that commitment. Among her favorite projects are supporting scholarship organizations and coordinating Sue’s Turkey Drive for the Pasco Migrant Program, which helps hundreds of food-insecure families each Thanksgiving.

A LIFE GUIDED BY VALUES

Discipline and commitment, Aranda Hernandez believes, can change lives.

“Even on the days I don’t feel like showing up, when the little voices say ‘stop’ or ‘later,’ I’ve disciplined myself to keep going,” she said.

She values education, advocacy, access, civil rights, community partnerships, and the empowerment of underserved and first- generation people.

“I’ve experienced the power of people who believed in me, guided me, and reminded me that my circumstances did not limit my potential,” she said. “My life today is rooted in ensuring others can see and feel possibilities for themselves.”

She credits her faith as a constant source of strength and points to Jeremiah 29:11 as a guiding scripture.

Today, she sees her own story reflected in many of the students she serves.

The teenager who once questioned whether school was worth the effort now spends her days helping others stay on a path toward graduation and opportunity.

For Aranda Hernandez, success is not measured by degrees earned or awards received.

It is measured by the students who discover, as she once did, that their circumstances do not define their future.

“My success is helping build and pave a stronger path for the next generation,” she said. “That’s what truly matters.”