October 15, 2015

NJ Revilla-Garcia

Southwest Airlines and HACU keep college students connected with family through its Travel Award program 

101 college students to receive complimentary travel from Southwest Airlines  

More than ten years ago, the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities (HACU) and Southwest Airlines teamed up to offer college students a program to stay connected with family. 

HACU President and CEO Antonio R. Flores said the program has provided many Hispanic families an opportunity to visit with their college student on campus and hometown visits while in college. 

“By offering a program that supports student’s higher education goals and travel awards to families who might not otherwise have the opportunity to visit with their college-bound student, Southwest Airlines is making a great contribution to Hispanic success in higher education,” said Flores. 

During the 2015 Hispanic Heritage Month, Southwest Airlines and HACU have announced that 101 students will receive "Lánzate/Take Off" Education Travel Awards. For a complete list of all Travel Award Program recipients and their colleges and universities, click here. 

“The Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities congratulates the student recipients and Southwest Airlines for giving flight to higher education success,” said Flores.

The awardees were selected from students across the nation who submitted essays under the theme "Dándole Alas a Tu Exito/Giving Flight to Your Success," and demonstrated how the travel award would help them achieve their goal to pursue higher education. 

The travel awards program, in its eleventh year, provides awardees with complimentary roundtrip tickets. A total of 193 tickets were awarded among the 2015 recipients.