Boston, MA (May 9, 2025) — The Massachusetts Association of Community Colleges recognizes two Northern Essex Community College students for outstanding academic achievement and exemplary student service. They selected Nayeli Almanzar-Lizardo and Daniela Valdivia-Terres for the 2025 Phi Theta Kappa (PTK) All-Massachusetts Academic Team. The students received their awards along with their peers at a ceremony at the State House earlier this month.

See highlights from the ceremony here:

Nayeli Almanzar-Lizardo, of Lawrence, is a Liberal Arts major. She first enrolled in NECC’s Early College Program as a high school senior and became a full-time student upon graduation. She had participated in the Adelante Program at the Lawrence YMCA and now works there as an advisor. She was recently appointed to the YMCA of the USA (Y-USA) National Youth Advisory Council. In this role, she will collaborate with other young leaders to provide input on programs and initiatives that impact more than 2,600 YMCAs nationwide, ensuring that youth voices play a pivotal role in shaping the organization’s future.

Daniela Valdivia-Terres, of North Chelmsford, is the current Campus Compact Newman Civic Fellow, a distinction that honors student leadership. The journalism major is the outgoing editor-in-chief of the student newspaper, the NECC Observer. In 2023, she was chosen for the highly selective Keith Sherin Global Leaders Program at The Hague, Netherlands. Valdivia-Terres has won numerous writing and journalism awards and has interned with several Spanish-language broadcasting companies.

Both Almanzar-Lizardo and Valdivia-Terres are graduating from NECC this month. Almanzar-Lizardo is already taking classes at UMass Lowell. Valdivia-Terres plans to transfer to a four-year institution as well, and is still narrowing down her options.

PTK is the international honor society of two-year colleges. PTK has recognized and encouraged scholarship among community college students for 100 years while promoting the academic integrity of the associate degree program. Students with grade point averages of 3.5 or higher are invited to join Phi Theta Kappa. For additional information, contact Professor Lisette Espinoza at lespinoza@necc.mass.edu.