Francisco Pantoja Martinez ’25 Receives the Celina Karp Biniaz Model of Resilience Award

Francisco Pantoja Martinez ’25 has been named the recipient of the Celina Karp Biniaz Model of Resilience Award from Grinnell College. The Award was established to honor Celina’s courageously hopeful life and legacy and bestows a cash prize.

Celina Karp Biniaz, class of 1952, endowed the award to support a graduating senior with two key intentions: 1) To aid students like her who had to overcome obstacles to obtain their education; and 2) To recognize and support such students who wish to pursue careers teaching young people OR working for organizations or governmental entities whose core mission focuses on the education and welfare of young people.

“It is an incredible honor to be following in the footsteps of Grinnellians that I've admired in my time as a student here,” said Pantoja Martinez. “I hope to carry the name of Celina Karp Biniaz with integrity, dignity, and gracefulness.”

Pantoja Martinez has been preparing for a career in education as a political science major with an education studies concentration. He served as a summer teaching fellow with the Uncommon Schools in Newark, NJ in summer 2024 and has been a member of the Education Studies Student Educational Policy Committee for two years. 

“I plan on teaching in Chicago for a few years to really set up the foundation of my career in education,” shared Pantoja Martinez. In the future he plans to obtain a dual degree—master’s in education and Juris Doctorate. “The ultimate goal is to be an education lawyer, standing up for the rights of students,” he added. 

While at Grinnell, Pantoja Martinez has been an intern for the Office of Admission, co-founder of the volleyball club, and member of the Student Organization of Latine. Prior to college he coached children’s soccer and worked at FedEx in his home community of Chicago, IL.

He is guided by his father’s words, “Keep yourself grounded and under no circumstances, forget your roots, for those make you who you are.” 

Pantoja Martinez says with great pride, “I am the product of two Mexican immigrants, as well as the public school system. My career moving forward is based around uplifting my people to heights that they may have deemed impossible to achieve.”

Donor Story

Celina Karp Biniaz ’52 was born in Poland in 1931. Her life and education were drastically impacted by World War II. Surviving Plaszow and Auschwitz, she was the youngest child to work in Oskar Schindler’s factory in Czechoslovakia. Following the war, Celina’s family joined relatives in the United States where she graduated from North High School, Des Moines, IA, and then attended Grinnell College majoring in philosophy.

Karp Biniaz earned her master’s degree in Education at Columbia University to hold a 27-year career as a teacher. She was a pioneer in the special education field, helping to establish a program of individualized instruction for elementary school students with learning difficulties. She credits the film Schindler’s List, which was released in 1993, with enabling her to find her voice and share her personal experiences of the Holocaust. Celina has traveled the globe, appealing for a rejection of hate, sharing her incredible life experiences and her fervent hope for humanity.

This is the fourth recipient of the Celina Karp Biniaz Model of Resilience Award at Grinnell College. The Award is advised and administered through Global Fellowships and Awards in the Center for Careers, Life, and Service.