Sallie Rowland Bright Futures Scholarship

Hello! My name is Addison Jenkins, and I am a sophomore at Winthrop University in South Carolina. I am a proud interior design student and excited to bring creative and innovative designs to the interior design world. I hope to work in an array of fields such as Hospitality, Residential, Exhibit, Furniture Design, and so much more! I believe there is no such thing as being too educated and I plan to learn as much as I can!      I want to start my essay by expressing my deep gratitude for being selected as a finalist in last year’s round of applicants. Even though I didn’t win, the excitement of being a finalist gave me the courage to continue with my interior design goals and scholarship applications. I hope to build on that momentum and display my growth and dedication in this year's application process.      Humble Yet Hungry: Something that I value as a designer and individual, is the fact that I will never know everything about anything. This is an idea that governs my life and my designs as an interior design student. There is always something else to learn, a different way to learn it, or a completely undiscovered idea or design, and that is so exciting to me! My favorite part about being an interior design student is feedback from my peers and professors. I love being molded by others to combine the best aspects of all perspectives, designs, and cultures. My hunger for education is a driving force in my designs and I hope to learn even more as I continue my journey.    Focused yet Fun: Throughout my academic career, I have displayed the necessary qualifications to be a focused and fun student. I have been/am a member of the National Honor Society, Gamma Beta Phi, and Alpha Lamba Delta Chapters at Winthrop University! I also earned a place on Winthrop’s Dean’s list for my first semester in college, the Fall 2023 semester! Despite my academic achievements, I manage to make time for things that are important to my happiness and health, such as meeting new people/businesses at on-campus events, art, spending time with my wonderful family, and learning new languages in my free time!    Super yet Human: Something that I had to learn in my first year at college is that I am going to make mistakes as a designer, and that is part of life and the design process. I view my shortcomings as room for improvement rather than faults in character or effort. Instead of showing only my best work in my portfolio, I want to show the worst too. I want to show my growth as a person, student, and designer. I am proud of the mistakes I have made and recognized, as they have allowed me to become a better person and designer. Every mistake is a step towards improvement in my book. This helps me be positive about my plans and goals. Part of being a good designer is being human, recognizing my faults, desires, and improvements allows me to see those in my designs, further fueling my growth.      I am the personification of Luminaut’s core values, this is evident through my accomplishments academically and my portfolio. I want to thank you (The scholarship Panel) once again for this opportunity and for considering my application. I hope you see my passion for interior design, my desire to grow, and the luminary I can be!

Growing up I was always caring for others and their needs. The topic of homelessness has always weighed heavy on my heart. As a child, I did not understand why these people were outside and why they were not home with their families. Eventually, I learned the homelessness problem in America is not due to lack of housing, on the contrary, there are 553,742 homeless people and upwards of 17 million vacant homes. The issue lies in the fact that there is a lack of affordable housing in our country. To think the reason human beings are sleeping outside through torrential downpours, frigid winters, and sweltering summers is due to limited access to affordable and safe housing is sad. As an architect, I have the opportunity to create housing for the forgotten within our society. Humble yet hungry is a core value that I tend to cling to. Ever since the eighth grade, I have been dedicated to my career in Architecture, and every academic decision I have made since then has been for me to get further and establish myself in the field. I know that I have the potential to be great, but the reason that I know that this is my calling is not because I want to be famous or to be rich, but because I want to help those that others tend to look down upon. Though I am very dedicated to my studies, I still make time to have fun because I know that no one can be successful and healthy without a balanced lifestyle. I always make time for the things I enjoy such as cooking, dancing, skateboarding, playing bass guitar with my friends, and working part-time. However, I know that these things are not my main priority and I manage my time well by always getting my work done first. I am a fast learner and I apply the things I learn in class to my schoolwork, and my dedication to my craft has allowed me to maintain a 3.67 GPA. Though I have always been described as independent and as having an "If you want something done right do it yourself" attitude, I understand I could not have gotten this far without the help of my community. I mean, every superhero has a team such as the Avengers or the Justice League right? Like them, I realize that I have my own strengths, but I am not afraid to ask someone else to help where I am weak. I see my "team" in all types of people such as my family, classmates, professors, coworkers etc. I know that I have people counting on me to succeed, and knowing that I have people that see my strengths and are there for me when I am weak is the reason why I can continue pushing forward. Only 17% of registered Architects are women, and only 4% are black women. I plan to foster change by using my role to implement affordable housing, creating safe spaces for the less fortunate. By moving forward in my career, I plan to join the 2% of licensed black architects by establishing my own firm. With this firm I plan to use architecture to change the lives of people for the better; allowing them to live their lives where they don't have to make tough decisions because of money. I feel my history in leadership and volunteerism has set the stage for my future in helping others and I will always use the knowledge I have gained to help others.