[dropcap size=big]I[/dropcap]n Los Angeles, tortillas build communities, but on the corner of Cesar Chavez Street and Alma Avenue, tortillas are also creating pathways to higher education.
La Princesita Tortillería is a household name in Boyle Heights and East Los Angeles for their fresh corn tortillas that surrounding communities have sustained since 1972. But as of August, they are taking a homegrown approach to help their community differently: giving away microgrants and scholarships to their staff and their families.
“Looking back at the sacrifices our workers made during the entire pandemic to continue showing up every day to work as the essential workers that they are,” Rick Rodriguez, La Princesita’s CEO, tells L.A. TACO. “We wanted to look for ways to show that we appreciate and support their families too, and investing in their education was a natural fit.”
For their inaugural year, La Princesita gave away nine scholarships—about $8,000 in total. The funds for these scholarships were raised within their own company. Rodriguez tells L.A. TACO that the original project idea was just to give away one scholarship, but they couldn’t help but add more awards once they started seeing the overwhelming amount of letters and entries they received. They added smaller scholarships for their workers’ kids who are in high scho