SafeLaunch has announced the eight recipients of the 2026 SafeLaunch Scholarship Award. The graduating high school seniors were selected in recognition of their perseverance in the face of substance abuse, family instability, and hardship in their home environments, circumstances they did not choose and could not control.

The Class of 2026 recipients are: Elisa C. Alvarez, Pioneer Valley High School, left; Ashley Garcia, San Marcos High School; Michael Gomez, Bishop Diego High School; Gustavo Hidalgo, San Marcos High School; Josai’a Peneueta, San Marcos High School; Valeria Pulido, Carpinteria High School; and Nadia Signorelli, Pioneer Valley High School, and one student who requested anonymity.

Each $1,000 award was presented in person, with SafeLaunch Board members joining principals, counselors, teachers, classmates, family members, and local leaders to celebrate each recipient, organizers said.

At every gathering, students heard their own inspiring words read back to them, a reminder of how far they have come and how clearly their voices matter, according to SafeLaunch.

This year’s recipients represent communities across Santa Barbara County and are pursuing degrees in fields including the sciences, healthcare, and public service. Several are first-generation college students. Many have already engaged in peer mentorship, mental health advocacy, and community organizing.

“Children do not choose the circumstances they are born into. These students were tested in ways most adults will never be,” said Janet Rowse, co-founder of SafeLaunch. “We celebrate their courage, and we recognize that they shouldn’t have had to work this hard.”

The stakes behind this work are significant. Research shows that 90% of addiction begins in adolescence and that roughly 60% of addiction risk is heritable.

For students raised in households shaped by substance use, deciding not to use is the most powerful choice they can make. It is up to us to make that choice easier.

“If you never start, you never have to stop,” SafeLaunch notes in its program materials. These eight students understand that. Their stories make the case.

Founded in 2010, SafeLaunch promotes the non-use of substances by teens and young adults under 21 for health reasons.

SafeLaunch said it endorses Drug Free Clubs of America in schools because it works: independent evaluations show that 79% of members said that the club “absolutely” helped them stay drug free. Learn more at safelaunch.org.

Elisa C. Alvarez, left, Michael Gomez, Gustavo Hidalgo; Josai’a Peneueta; Valeria Pulido; and Nadia Signorelli. (SafeLaunch.org)