Marian Haley Memorial Scholarship

Education makes a difference in one's life as well as in the lives of others. It is the foundation for creating a better future. Most importantly, education is lasting, while money and status can be fleeting. I am a proud teenage daughter of two Parsi parents who have sacrificed many of their life goals to immigrate to the United States. They have ensured me every opportunity to maximize my potential in both my nursing career and my life. Though social norms have steadily progressed, in India, where my parents were born and raised, there continues to be a stigma against women receiving a high education, financial independence, and leadership roles in society. I am blessed to have parents who have inspired me to embrace the opportunities that I have received in life, particularly through my education, and be the progressor of change that millions of women across the globe seek to be a part of. I will graduate from BASIS Scottsdale in May 2024, after completing 11 AP (Advanced Placement) Exams. I plan on earning my BSN at ASU (Arizona State University) in Downtown Phoenix. After working in the SICU (Surgical ICU), I aim to specialize in Anesthesia, by earning a DNP at the University of Maryland. I intend on becoming a CRNA (Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist) to have a sense of pride in my career. Additionally, I am confident that a career in nursing will allow me to positively impact patients' lives by providing beneficial and compassionate care in my field. I want to be part of a career field that I, my family, and hopefully, someday my future family will be proud of. In my undergraduate education, I desire to study amongst other passionate individuals interested in personalized mentorship, prestigious internship opportunities, reputable clinical nursing programs, and study abroad initiatives. I want to help shape the very same community that I plan to serve, with a minor in Health Care Coordination, in addition to completing a High School Senior Research Project highlighting primary care in family medicine and its role in preventing cardiovascular diseases, through an internship at Novakovic Family Practice. I further aim to develop an understanding of how healthcare coordination enables me to assist every patient and their family and protect their right to proper treatment. Due to a favorable College-Career balance and a personal touch to caring for patients, by viewing every patient as an individual rather than merely as an aspect of a caseload, I do not doubt that nursing is the career path that I want to specialize in. My main goal is to provide comfort and care and leave a lasting, constructive imprint on the lives of others, in my profession and life. For me, education's purpose is to give back—to myself and others. I want to give back to my Parsi immigrant parents who have provided me with a stable life despite their hardships and sacrifices. I want to give back to them as much as I want to give back to my community, as their dedication has been just as supportive as my school and my community in providing me with invaluable resources for my future. Above all, I strive to use education to better the lives of patients through my nursing profession and specialization.

As a born-and-raised homeschooler, education has always been the first priority to my family and to me. I have been raised to value education as an opportunity and as a privilege. According to the values I've been raised in, education is an opportunity to improve, refine, and further myself, and the privlege of education and deeper knowledge may not be something immediately accessible to everyone. Being fortunate enough to have access to any books, research, or information I may desire through the Western world of libraries, internet, and tutors has postiviely impacted my desire to improve myself through higher education and use my training to create a meaningful impact in the lives of others. I am adamantly passionate about reaching families and communities affected by disabilities, special needs, and learning setbacks through ministry and education. During my life, I have been personally impacted by the influence of loved ones living with various disabilities. These people genuinely brighten every community they participate in, motivate meaningful change, and have ultimately inspired me and my passions. Recently, I learned that people living with developmental, physical, or learning disabilities cumulatively make up the largest unreached people group in the world, and this is something I intensely aspire to see changed. Because of my desire to participate in a positive, meaningful change in the circumstances of those living with disability, I plan on pursuing a degree in Christian Ministries with a minor in Special Education. With the training I will receive from this and from my current internship with Joni & Friends, my intent and ambition are to help initiate the steps necessary to see the disability community further connected with the church community in an authentic manner, one where these people deserving of compassion of hope are integrated as relevant, functioning units of society. The first, most intentional step I take in stewarding, serving, or leading the communities around me is knowing the individuals within groups of people I am serving for more than face-value appearance. I strive to understand their character, their needs, and the most optimal way to serve, support, and lead them toward positive relationships and choices. I have realized that most people do not take the time to apply this sort of consideration to people impacted by disability or special needs, and I believe that is hugely important for especially this community, since their needs are widely misunderstood. This is hugely important to the career I have chosen, and I intend to advocate to the public for the special needs of those with misunderstood disabilities. I am incredibly excited to initate meaningful change in the lives of others with the education I hope to achieve and the career path I plan to take. Being so deeply passionate about the special needs communities that I have encountered has been fuel to my desire to further the education and integration of other communities like their's and, ultimately, an overrall attitude of authentic compassion towards these people. I aspire for my education to impact the education of others and for my leadership to strengthen the leadership of others. Participating in an impactful mission that carries an influence larger than myself is so valuable and imperative to me, that I would feel incredibly fortunate to be able to do so. Special Education and Disability Ministry has always been an outlet for service that I feel personally connected to, so I hope my current internship with Joni & Friends opens doors for a career path in disability ministry post-college graduation.

While I may not hold the power to rescue every soul, one cannot single-handedly rescue the entirety; one can only persist in becoming a more adept champion, a skilled conveyer of truths, and an attuned listener. However, this journey gradually unfolds, as I aspired to transcend stereotypes. Evading the confines of the enraged black woman cliché which I was the victim of—one daunted by self-confrontation and bereft of communication due to an absence of such in her origins. No longer confined by the label of an enraged black woman, I sought out the requisite tools, unraveling the intricacies, and comprehending the art of metamorphosing from an inherently flawed construct. Rather than confiding in a man or the refuge of a pill bottle, I pursued psychological wisdom, determined to break the cycle of emotional and mental immaturity among black women and families, ensuring its cessation with me. Reflecting on why I harbor such strong sentiments about the act of listening, I can't help but visualize my childhood self when I look in the mirror—carrying a memory of nights spent awake on the hard floor with only a pillow and my brother by my side. I struggled to maintain my innocence while my mother was nearby and the man who ignored her pleas for help. He solely emanated his voice, which radiated misery and hostility onto all of us. For other people, returning home after school may have been the most enjoyable part, but for me, getting home was like waking up in the middle of a nightmare. His mistakes were projected onto us; his voice hovered over us like a choke slam ensuring we knew we’d never amount to anything just like him. It then became evident that hearing and listening are not always a virtue; occasionally, they reveal realities that were never supposed to be said in the first place. My personal growth and especially my interest in a top-tier education to further my knowledge of psychological interactions are heavily influenced by the emotions and feelings I have encountered from his wrongdoings. They have molded me into the individual I am now and the individual I am striving to become. I aspire to become a compelling voice that resonates with people's auras. I'm determined to refute the limitations of my past and transcend my own experiences, emerging as a superior listener and communicator. Instead of succumbing to the pitfalls of my history and allowing them to infiltrate my present, I embarked on a journey to understand the root causes behind them. My pursuit of education is a deliberate effort to shatter the chains of generational adversity. With this in mind, I'm preparing to enroll at San Diego State University. As I approach the culmination of my high school journey, I'm unwavering in my commitment to propel myself forward. I'll continue to invest my efforts into every class and achievement, regardless of scale, to realize my aspirations. While the path beyond high school might not unfurl precisely as planned, I'm poised to embrace the uncertainty, driven by the desire to deepen my understanding of life and fortify the mental and emotional faculties that will guide me through my educational voyage. Ultimately, my goal is to refine myself to a point where I possess the expertise to extend a helping hand to other children in need. With that being said my education and future ahead of college are highly dependent on my will to further my knowledge and are at the top of my priorities.