Rosanna

Growing up in a single parent home, Rosanna has overcome more obstacle than most people her age. When she was young, her mother was her motivation, her reason for succeeding. While attending St. Paul Elementary School in San Francisco, she lost her motivation: when Rosanna was ten, her mother passed away. She began to attend Leadership High School, a public charter school in the Bay Area. Being raised by her low-income grandparents made college look impossible. In late 2008 Rosanna's friend, Natalie, informed her about an opportunity to join Juma Ventures and in March, 2007, Rosanna was hired.

She participated in after-school tutoring, financial education classes, and even the Southern California College Tour. "Juma has helped me accomplish my goals as a student," Rosanna said, "and has taught me how to be a mentor to people younger than me." In late 2007, Rosanna opened up her matched savings account. "It helps me with overcoming my financial obstacles at school. It's just one less thing I have to worry about." Rosanna admits that she still does unnecessary spending from time to time, but Juma helped her differentiate needs and wants and taught her how to budget. She even had money deposited directly into her matched savings account.

Rosanna knows the meaning of hard work. Resisting peer pressure and overcoming financial struggles, Rosanna made it through her freshman year at California State University Los Angeles, where she already used some of her match funds to purchase books.

UPDATE: As of fall 2009, Rosanna continues to save and has transferred to the College of San Mateo, using a portion of her savings to enroll in classes that will help fulfill her General Education requirements. She is thinking about going into social work and is currently interning as an education intern at Juma Ventures.