BOROUGHWIDE — A Kingsborough Community College graduate headed to Yale University this semester.
William Cesar Lotz, who graduated from the Brooklyn school earlier this year, was named a member of the 2025 Kaplan Leadership Scholars.The Kaplan Leadership Program helps high-potential low-income and underserved community college students complete their associates degree, successfully transfer and go on to earn a four-year bachelor’s degree at the nation’s most highly-selective schools.
Lotz was raised in the Sheepshead Bay area but also spent a lot of his childhood in Washington Heights and Bay Ridge.
“Getting into Yale means more than the world to me, because I did not feel confident in my chances of being able to get into an Ivy League institution, let alone Yale, despite knowing that I was an exemplary student,” said Lotz.
Lotz plans to study film and is aspiring to be a film archivist.
“My mission is to uplift the voices of those from underrepresented backgrounds,” he said. “Attending Yale as a student from an underrepresented background speaks directly to this goal.”
Lotz received the good news when he was sent an acceptance email early in the day while at a meeting at KCC to go over his role of emcee for that semester’s Deans’ List ceremony.
“My mother’s voice immediately echoed in the back of my head because she had explicitly requested that I not open this letter without her, regardless of the news,” he said. “I went through my entire school day anxious to read the email, genuinely unsure what to expect upon opening my portal. When it was evening time and I finally arrived home, I could not wait any longer.”
“I immediately grabbed my mom and pulled her into the dining room with me as I opened my email,” Lotz continued. “As I was directed to the Yale student application portal, the big update was waiting for me to click it. Once I navigated to my response screen, the word ‘Congratulations’ appeared on the screen, and I let out a victory screech.”
His time at Kingsborough taught him many lessons but the most important one to him was knowing himself. He graduated from High School of Telecommunication Arts & Technology through a District 75 Program with Lillian Rashkis High School in 2019. Afterwards, he did not see himself in a classroom setting again.
“I struggled from middle school into high school and graduated with the equivalent of a 2.0 GPA,” he said. “This led me to many odd jobs from dog walking, to sales, to retail work, all of which did not seem to provide me the fulfillment I was seeking after graduating high school.”
Lotz with the ten other recipients of the 2025 Kaplan Leadership Scholars. Photo courtesy of Kaplan Educational Foundation
In 2023, he enrolled at KCC as a Liberal Arts major. During his time there, his grades significantly improved.He found out about the Kaplan Leadership Program through his professor, Dr. Luz Martin Del Campo, who encouraged him to apply.
“Through my experience with the program, I was assigned my own personal writing coach who provided me with swift feedback on my application essays,” he said. “Working with Sam [my writing coach] really helped me articulate myself, and ensure my applications were telling my story in the most authentic way possible.”
Lotz thanked his professors at KCC for the accomplishment.
“From my first semester, my professors, such as Dr. Luz Martin Del Campo, Professor Jason VanOra and Professor Maxine Krenzel, all believed in me and saw things in me that I was unable to see in myself at the time,” he said. “Their mentorship made me believe in my abilities as a writer, a student and an overall human being.”
Nolvia Delgado, executive director of the Kaplan Educational Foundation, congratulated this year’s 11 recipients.
“We’re thrilled to celebrate this year’s KLP scholars as they continue to build on the program’s 20-year legacy of success,” he said. “This year’s cohort continues to represent the high-potential talent that exists in U.S. community colleges, including non-traditional age students, recent immigrants and first-generation college students. We’re committed to continuing to remove barriers and provide greater access to higher education for talented, motivated individuals.”
SUNSET PARK — “As a resident of Marine Park, one of the great surprises I found biking around Industry City and visiting Japan Village was to discover Bush Terminal Park. I continue to be amazed at the serene hideaways that the city offers in some of the busiest places — and, still, with an iconic view.”
BROOKLYN HEIGHTS — ‘A miracle that no one was killed …’ That’s what neighbors are saying about the collapse of the Hotel St. George marquee. Shown in this photograph are workmen beginning the removal and repair of the historic, old neon sign at the corner, referencing a relic of Brooklyn Heights’ past: the St. George Hotel.
ATLANTIC AVENUE — Exhausted shopper with cluster of bags and goods from mall at Boerum Place stops to look at huge construction site across the street. “Is that REALLY going to be a jail??” Her male companion is reassuring, “Nothing like Rikers … this is 21st Century.”
BROOKLYN HEIGHTS — Overheard in line at one of most popular pastry outlets on Montague Street: “Hope I can get them into a camp …” A mother with two pre-schoolers in tow was showing a friend the Dodge Y flyer for Healthy Kids Day on Saturday, April 18.
