Ryan McAuliffe Memorial Award

When I was 3 years old, my parents enrolled me in a preschool program that had a mixed classroom. Half of the kids were children with special needs and the other half were not. That’s where I met Sydney. She had cerebral palsy. She loved it when we read to her, when we held her hand, when we tried to push her chair. Sydney was my friend, and being her friend meant that I sometimes needed to adapt what I wanted in order for Sydney to be included. Now that I am in high school, I am proud to be a peer mentor in the Unified Buddies P.E. Program. As a mentor, I work with non-verbal teenagers with different disabilities. I spend a lot of time with my friend Jaheim, who is 14 and has a few different disabilities that require him to be in a wheelchair. I see Jaheim every day and we play games where he can pick things up, as he loves to carry things. Just recently, Jaheim and I performed a boxing act in the school talent show, and he showed everyone just how strong he is! If I am not with Jaheim, I am most likely with Nathan playing in the dirt or throwing a ball around. Never in my life have I spent as much time rolling on the ground as I have rolling down hills with Nathan, and I wouldn't have it any other way. I am beyond privileged to have the opportunity to work alongside these amazing kids. Each and every one of them has taught me something new, and I have been honored to be able to teach and mentor them in return. In terms of my career, I have always had an interest in business. However, it wasn’t until completing two pre-college business programs over the summer after my junior year, including MEET Kelley at Indiana University, that I finally decided to major in marketing. These programs helped me gain a better understanding of general economics, finance, accounting, and other fundamental business principles. However, I was absolutely captivated by the field of marketing. I realized that I want to be the person that introduces a new product to the world. I also want to assist with project management and product promotion. In ten years, my goal is to become a global marketing director. I strive to be the person that develops effective marketing strategies and forms relationships between clients that would best suit the needs of all companies involved. In order to achieve my goals, I plan to attend the Kelley School of Business at Indiana University: the incredible place where my interest in marketing was first sparked. Unfortunately, my dad lost his job during the summer of 2024. He is still currently looking for a job and pursuing every possible opportunity that arises, but in the meantime, we are down to one income. A large amount of that income goes to health insurance and my mom’s medical expenses. My mom is a breast cancer survivor, diagnosed in March of 2022. While she had cancer, she fought so incredibly hard, and it was beyond relieving when she began to recover. But sadly, her chemotherapy and her cancer treatment has left her with long term medical issues that have proven to be very costly. The remaining income goes to necessities like groceries, mortgage payments, utilities, etc. There is very little money to pay for education. Receiving this scholarship would be instrumental in me reaching my goal of attending my dream school, Indiana University, this fall.