Dermalogica, a skincare brand with a legacy of leading through education and mentorship, is giving back to support next gen estheticians “New Beginnings” scholarship awards. Combining a $5,000 gift and a six-month mentorship, the scholarship is administered by Beauty Changes Lives. Meet the scholarship winners and their respective schools below.
Winter 2023 “New Beginnings” Winner
Qiana Grant
Paul Mitchell The School – Tinley Park, IL
Check out her winning submission HERE.
Fall 2022 “New Beginnings” Winners
Teyona Davis
Ogle School of Hair, Skin, and Nails in Fort Worth, TX
Teyona Davis is a certified medical assistant, a single mom of three, and is currently enrolled the esthetic program at Ogle School of Hair, Skin, and Nails in Fort Worth, Texas. This single mother of three, says she is applying for the Dermalogica scholarship because winning will help after all the changes she has gone through in the last year. She welcomed a baby boy, and in the same breath filed for divorce. She says “achieving her goal of becoming an esthetician will not only show that all things are possible but it will show my children that mommy may bend but she’ll never break.” Her end goal is to become a medical esthetician and ultimately own and operate her own IV Hydration Med Spa. She ends her submission by quoting JP Morgan, “the first step towards getting somewhere is to decide you’re not going to stay where you are.” We look forward to seeing where Teyona is going to go! Check out her winning submission HERE.
Tanisha Scott
Kilgore College in Tyler, TX
Tanisha is a student at Kilgore College in Tyler, Texas, where she is working towards becoming a licensed esthetician. She says that the Dermalogica scholarship has the appropriate title, New Beginnings, as it would “enable me to start my new beginnings because it would financially ensure and reassure my completion of the program.” She says that she has always had a passion for esthetics as she suffered with her own skin issues since she was a teenager. Now as an adult, learning to understand skin, will help her to help others with their own skin issues. I want to begin “by promoting beauty, awareness, creativity, diversity, selflessness and most of all self-love.” Check out her winning submission HERE.
Summer 2022 “New Beginnings” Winners
Nykia McKenzie
Kenneth Shuler – Columbia, SC
“I am passionate about esthetics because I whole heartedly believe in the saying when “You Look Good you Feel Good”, because when you look good you can do anything,” Nykia states in the opening of her video submission. She goes on to explain that coming from a low-income community, she always thoughts that skin services were a luxury that not everyone could afford. Her passion to change this assumption became even more intense when she unfortunately found herself embarking on her own Breast Cancer journey in 2020. This is when she realized that simply giving herself a facial was a form of escape from the daily reality of chemotherapy and radiation.
Once she is licensed, she plans on hosting monthly free workshops in her community, to provide mini-facials and skin analysis to those that would normally not have access to these services. She hopes to dismantle the idea that these are not just luxury services, that everyone can benefit from regardless of background and circumstance. She believes that esthetics provides a form of self-care that is beneficial to all and someday wants to become an oncology trained esthetician to support those who have also been affected by cancer.
Check out her winning submission video HERE.
Elise Shufford
JD Academy Salon and Spa – Danville, CA
Elise explained that as a teenager with acne, “my self-confidence hit an all-time low to the point I did not want to leave my house,” She said her mother did not have the resources at the time to fix the issue, so she learned to suffer through it. This was one of the reasons she was drawn to esthetics. She states that growing up with any skin condition can not only affect your skin health, but it also affects your confidence, and your personality can suffer. Now that she found ways to improve her complexion, her confidence is back, and she wants to share her knowledge with others.
Elise believes in sharing “light, love and joy” and as a single mom, working full time, she wants to use her passion to serve others as soon as she is licensed. Elise will be volunteering at local domestic violence shelters to give free services to women that took that first step to recovery and freedom to pave a better future for themselves and their children. Check out her winning submission HERE.
Fall 2021 “New Beginnings” Winners
Anastasia Colligan
@rosegoldmagnolia_1
Lotus Professional College, Richmond, VA
For Anastasia, skincare is not only a passion project, but a subject of continuing study that informs her self-care practices. Her commitment to skincare starts with her own regimen. “I avoid the sun, swear by SPF, cleanse twice daily and drink lots of water,” she says. The busy mom and esthetics student wants to share her skincare knowledge with others upon completing her esthetics program. “I want to be a powerhouse of knowledge in my community and hold workshops to show others how to care for their skin. I’ll mix it up and make skincare fun,” she says. Watch her video here.
Valerie Lopez
@glowbyvlo
American Beauty and Barber Academy, Reading, PA
Valerie’s parents moved from Puerto Rico to Pennsylvania with a dream of giving their daughter something that could never be taken away – education. But after earning a degree in social work, Valerie felt unfulfilled. In researching her career path forward, Valerie says esthetics found her and opened a new world of possibilities. She looks forward to blending photography, makeup, and skincare into a bi-lingual skincare practice. “I want my clients to feel beautiful and I plan to photograph them, so they’ll always remember how they felt when they received services from me,” she says. She looks forward to offering a safe space where all clients can receive professional treatment regardless of their ethnicity or how they identify Watch her video here.
Summer 2021 “New Beginnings” Winners
Kiet Duong
Advance Beauty College, Garden Grove, CA
Imagine “Leaf”as a place where clients can relax, hang out and get educated. Kiet aspires to open a spa rooted in the belief that skincare education can remove insecurities and contribute to skincare. “If you take the time to educate people on healthy habits, you can change the view of skincare,” says Kiet. He believes that skincare education earlier in his life would have meant fewer insecurities. He plans to use his $5,000 award to invest in products for the Belief Spa he plans to open following completion of his studies.
Watch their application video here.
Johnathan Hererra
Salon Success Academy, Upland, CA
Jonathan’s approach to skincare draws on the spiritual ethos of his Native American heritage as well as elements of the Hispanic, Queer and SoCal community. “Esthetics is so much more than skin deep. Practicing skincare is ultimately a commitment you make to your best self and a confirmation that you are worth the time money and effort,” he says. Not one to shy away from innovations, Johnathan proposes, “Maybe natural isn’t always better and science isn’t so bad.” Upon completing his esthetics program, he looks forward to opening a spa that helps clients look and feel their best.
Watch their application video here.
Dermalogica has generously funded the “New beginnings” Esthetics scholarship. This scholarship is open to students who identify as a Person of Color who are newly accepted or currently enrolled in an esthetics program at a Dermalogica partner school. In addition to tuition funding, this scholarship also includes a 6 month mentorship with a Licensed skin therapist.
Learn more about Dermalogica HERE.
