It's been over a year since community leader Ma Kaing died. In July 2022, Kaing was killed outside her home in East Colfax by stray bullets shot from nearby New Freedom Park. She was the owner of a Burmese restaurant known in the community for her work giving back.
Since Kaing was killed, four men were arrested and charged in her death, Denver Police installed more lights and surveillance cameras in the neighborhood and Verizon said they would update their 911 call-routing system so no one will have to struggle to get in touch with the right police department again.
Also since Kaing's passing, a coalition of nonprofits started a scholarship fund to assist first- and second-generation immigrants with paying for higher education or trade skills. The Ma Kaing Scholarship Fund was established by the Refugee Action Coalition of Colorado, which includes the International Rescue Committee in Denver, Lutheran Family Services Rocky Mountains, and the Spring Institute for Intercultural Learning. The Coalition has traditionally assisted the refugee and immigrant community with a range of advocacy work and services that include adult education classes.
Those classes also include high school equivalency preparation and career coaching, said Paula Schriefer, Spring Institute's president and CEO, but the Coalition wanted to expand their offerings. So they applied for a grant to help people in the community who want to extend their educations.
"I think it was only $4,000 to provide little scholarships for refugees and immigrants who were interested in getting a post-secondary education," Schriefer said. "They're not huge pots of money but they're things that can definitely help individuals who otherwise would just be taking that on as debt. It can help pay for rent. It can help pay for books. It can help pay for tuition."
Schriefer said while the coalition was working on the mini-scholarships, Kaing's death highlighted the numerous issues plaguing East Colfax. It also brought to life who Kaing was a community leader and immigrant who shared her wealth with others.
Schriefer said the Coalition wanted to name the scholarship after Kaing and reached out to her family for their permission.
Once the scholarship was announced, Schriefer said an email blast was sent out to a bunch of nonprofits organizations and it reached the inbox of Kyle Clark, 9News.
Clark hosts a Word of Thanks segment, which is all about micro-giving to nonprofits. Clark mentioned the scholarship on the show and Schriefer said that that initial $4,000 grew into almost $30,000.
Last year, 22 people received a scholarship and pursued a slew of career opportunities. One person went to a technical school to get a certificate as a mechanic, another is pursuing an advanced degree to become a neurosurgeon.
The goal of the scholarship wasn't to limit where recipients can go to school or what they can major in because everyone's trajectory is different, Schriefer said.
"I think things have really shifted in the U.S. as colleges and universities have become so expensive and I think people have recognized that that closes itself off as an opportunity for so many people," Schriefer said. "We don't want to make those choices for people. As long as somebody's going into something that's meaningful to them, that's going to allow them to live a full successful life, support themselves, support their families; We want to encourage that."
This will be the second year the coalition is offering the scholarship. This is also the second year they've partnered with Clark. They've raised over $11,000 as of Sept. 8 and are still accepting donations, which can be done through the Spring Institute's website.
Schriefer said so far, they've received about 33 applications. The deadline is Sept. 22. To qualify, applicants must be at least 17 years old and either enrolled in or accepted into a post-secondary educational or training program. Applicants must be members of the immigrant and refugee community, either first- or second-generation. They must live in Colorado and intend to go to school in Colorado. And lastly, the recipients must commit to staying in touch with the organizations to provide occasional updates. Schriefer said anyone who needs assistance can reach out to the Spring Institute.
The Coalition's goal is about support, just like Kaing supported her community.
"For the foreseeable future, we'll keep it going and we'll keep it focused on these scholarships for post-secondary education," Schriefer said, citing the growing expense of higher education and how inaccessible that is to many immigrants and refugees.
"We know that any post-secondary education is really critical for people to do well economically in today's economy, so we really want to encourage choice," she said.
