Gina Rodriguez used Jane the Virgin’s Emmy money to send an undocumented student to college, because she’s our hero

The For Your Consideration Emmy campaign season is here — and for those of us like, “huh?” this is the time when television networks and studios are tripping over each other to showcase their programs in the hopes of reaping nominations. These campaigns often involve spending a ton of money, with numerous ads, billboards, events, and themed swag to try and secure votes. But, this year, Jane The Virgin star Gina Rodriguez had a different idea in mind.

Instead of doing any sort of FYC campaign for Jane, she has decided to break away from tradition and spend the money elsewhere: Rodriguez convinced The CW to use the funds allocated for FYC to send a Latinx teen to college.

This scholarship will cover four years of education for an undocumented student, which is honestly money WAY better spent than on an expensive campaign to increase Jane the Virgin’s chance of bagging an Emmy nomination. Speaking to The Hollywood Reporter, Rodriguez said that this initiative fits the show’s continuous efforts to help the Latinx community.

"FYC is a bizarre dance," she explained. "Whatever you do requires an insane amount of money. Our show has always jumped at any opportunity to help me do something for the Latinx community. So I asked my showrunner, Jennie [Snyder Urman], if we could do something different with the money this year."

Mind you, Rodriguez has never won an Emmy before (although she did snag a Golden Globe in 2015), yet instead of attempting to increase her chances of finally winning one, she chose to help someone in need. The actress partnered with Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Los Angeles to find the right applicant, an unnamed Latinx student who will be attending Princeton University in the fall. Thanks to Rodriguez’s support, the student will be able to finish their degree without any sort of financial burden.

While Rodriguez is, obviously, delighted by this decision, she revealed that she was quite apprehensive about announcing it in public.

"It's taboo to talk about the money being spent, but it's the reality," she said. "I think sharing this might inspire other people to do something similar. You can desire recognition and, at the same time, decide to not play in the confines of the game as it's set up."

With the U.S. government showing a blatant disregard for human rights along its borders, we’re glad there are celebrities like Gina who are using their power to help immigrants. For that, she deserves all the Emmys.