KRGV names SBN freelance writer ‘Student of the Week’

By MICHAEL RODRIGUEZ
Managing Editor
editor@sbnewspaper.com

San Benito News photo by Francisco E. Jimenez
San Benito High School senior Andrea Mosqueda, 17, is seen inside the San Benito News office Thursday afternoon.

In a single day, 17-year-old Andrea Mosqueda may devote several hours to community service projects spearheaded by the various clubs and extracurricular activities she’s involved in at San Benito High School, where she also serves as the yearbook editor, before covering a city commission meeting as a freelance writer for the San Benito News.

When taking her versatility, workload and excellence of execution into consideration, it’s no wonder that KRGV Channel 5 News named Andrea Mosqueda its Student of the Week. The honor will earn Mosqueda a $1,000 scholarship in January.

Mosqueda, who has ranked first in her class since she was a sophomore, is currently the school’s valedictorian for the senior class and has also maintained a 4.0 GPA. Still, Mosqueda remains modest about her accomplishments.

“I feel both honored and humbled at the same time,” she said when asked for her reaction about the Channel 5 recognition. “It’s just an interesting experience because I’ve worked really hard for a really long time, and sometimes being acknowledged is really nice, even though I don’t like to talk about it because it makes me feel uncomfortable.”

According to Mosqueda, SBHS Higher Education Coordinator Sandra Ruiz nominated her for Channel 5’s Student of the Week at the onset of the school year. “So I filled out all the paperwork, and that’s how it went down … In the end it was worth it,” Mosqueda added.

In addition to her contributions to the News, where she began as a volunteer for extra credit two years ago before eventually serving as a freelance writer assigned to general news stories, Mosqueda has worked at a local hospital where she’s volunteered for three years as well as her active role in numerous school clubs.

“A lot of the community service I do is club-related—going out to the community and figuring out what we need to do and what we need to help with,” Mosqueda said, adding that she plans to someday work as an editor for a New York City publishing company.