A drive-thru graduation ceremony at Flowing Wells High School. Seventy-five percent of the school’s students live in poverty, said Principal James Brunenkant.

 Josh Galemore / Arizona Daily Star

A $4.6 million gift will help Flowing Wells High School graduates further their education with full-ride scholarships to the University of Arizona for the foreseeable future.

The Sandra, Pamela and Polly Aley Scholarship fund, announced Monday, was created with a $4.6 million endowment from Sandra Aley, a 1972 graduate of Flowing Wells High School and a UA alum.

The scholarship was awarded to five inaugural scholars for the current school year. Randall P. Irby Jr., Samantha Guerrero, Alejandra Acedo, Elias Avenente and Asia Raymor will each receive about $28,000 a year covering $12,600 in tuition, plus room and board and other necessities.

“With this scholarship, I feel incredibly blessed to the point that I don’t have to worry about financial burden or financial stress,” said Irby, now a political science student at the UA. “Instead I can pursue a much higher degree … and hope to give back to this wonderful community that I was raised with and brought up in.”

This video offers some pros and cons of online education, as many schools and universities have suspended in-person classes due to the spread of the coronavirus.

The endowment is named in honor of Aley, her sister Pamela and her mother Polly. Sandra Aley died of pancreatic cancer in January.

The endowment is the largest gift Flowing Wells has received for its students and is intended to help graduates gain higher education without taking on debt. Interest on the endowment provides $184,000 a year for the scholarships, allowing it to continue indefinitely.

“This scholarship, the amount of money is unprecedented, and it does show that kindness does make the world go around,” Irby said.

The student body of Flowing Wells High School is 70% Hispanic. Seventy-five percent of the school’s students live in poverty, said Principal James Brunenkant. The endowment is designed to serve those who have financial need and demonstrate academic merit.

UA President Robert Robbins said he often meets students who are working two or three jobs to get by while taking a full load of classes.

“Given all the turmoil that we have in our country around social justice issues, around COVID-19 and the financial crisis that’s going on around us, the ability to know that you’re going to be able to go to one of the world’s great universities and not have to worry about finding the resources to pay tuition and room and board … that’s just a tremendous, tremendous gift,” he said.

Aley earned a degree in pharmaceutical sciences and worked in the field for several years before becoming a flight attendant for American Airlines. She worked from New York City, led a team and flew international routes before returning to Tucson to care for her mother.

Aley inherited money from her sister and mother and was a saver herself, said Debra Bergman, her cousin. She decided to establish the endowment while still healthy.

“She felt the money that she, her sister and her mom accumulated needed to support the graduates who could not go to college if they did not have a scholarship,” Bergman said.

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Contact reporter Danyelle Khmara at 573-4223 or dkhmara@tucson.com. On Twitter:

@DanyelleKhmara