Adelanto honors student interns and awards $15,000 cannabis-funded scholarships

Council and staff recognized student interns for their work digitizing thousands of city records and presented certificates and challenger coins to the participants. City manager and council members praised the internship as a feeder program for future municipal employment and highlighted staff supervision from Kyle Hovanasian and Isaiah Lara.

Mayor Pro Tem Ramos described the Green Futures Cannabis Scholarship Program and emphasized the funding source. "Every single cent of these $15,000, not 1 penny is from the school district," he said, noting the scholarship has been funded by the city's legal cannabis operators and city leadership. The program aims to grow the award pool, with a stated long-term goal of awarding up to $50,000 per student.

Two recipients were named in the meeting record: Zuleika and McKenna (named by council members), and the council said scholarship funds will be dispersed directly to the students' educational institutions and must be used within five years. Council members encouraged recipients to return to Adelanto after completing college and highlighted the scholarship as part of a broader youth-investment strategy.