Gabriella Monteiro

Can a scholarship change the trajectory of a student’s life?

Business major Gabriella Monteiro certainly thinks so.

“I’ll never forget the joy I felt that day when I found out I’d been awarded,” Monteiro says of the Pulichino/Tong Family Foundation, Inc. Business Endowed Scholarship that she received as a sophomore. “It didn't just mean financial stability. For me, it meant possibility. It gave me room to dream, explore and become who I wanted to be.”

Raised in Somerville by her mother and the youngest of five, Monteiro is the first in her family to attend college.

“With my curiosity to learn, I knew I needed a college education,” says Monteiro, who chose UMass Lowell because of its affordability.

Even so, Monteiro faced a tuition shortfall after her first year. Applying for and receiving the Pulichino/Tong scholarship “changed everything,” she says.

Freed from financial worry, Monteiro poured her energy into campus involvement. Her job at the University Crossing Gaming Center sparked an interest in marketing and community engagement. From there, she joined the Black Student Union (BSU), serving as social media coordinator, then creative director and ultimately president.

“We’ve organized events that celebrate culture, build community and empower students of color,” she says. One of her favorite projects was curating the “Afro Future” theme for BSU’s annual hair and fashion show during her junior year.

“I got to work with local designers, and that’s when my love for fashion styling began to grow,” says Monteiro, who hopes to pursue a career in marketing for the beauty or fashion industry.

Her Professional Communications course with Associate Teaching Professor Deborah Casey also proved transformative.

“I stood up one day and gave a presentation showing the class — mostly boys — how to apply one of my favorite lipstick combinations,” Monteiro recalls with a laugh. “It might sound small, but that moment gave me something I didn’t even know I needed: confidence.”

Monteiro has continued to grow her leadership and professional skills as a resident advisor and social media intern at Skybound Fitness in Malden.

After graduating, Monteiro plans to remain involved in the UMass Lowell community while continuing for a Master of Science in Entrepreneurship and Innovation from the Manning School.

“This journey hasn’t been the easiest,” says Monteiro, who briefly considered dropping out two weeks into her freshman year because she didn’t feel like a “fit” for college. “What made me stay was that UML quickly became my home. I realized there are countless opportunities that the school can provide, and how you're able to really go through trial and error to grow into the person you want to be.

“UMass Lowell fostered that environment for me,” she adds, “and I wouldn’t have chosen anywhere else to be.”