From a young age, I've always loved the competitive nature of sports. I constantly strived to be the best I could. Going into my freshman year of high school, I realized that if I wanted to have the best chance at recruiting to play volleyball in college, I would likely have to choose between indoor club and club beach volleyball. I had only been playing sand volleyball for a couple of months at the time, but the choice seemed obvious to me. Although I had met the best team through indoor volleyball, it was time to take my kneepads off and put on my sunglasses. Something about the atmosphere, how physically demanding it is, and having to know how to do almost every skill compelled me to pursue beach volleyball. From a young age, my goal was to play a Division I sport, but the path to get there often felt unpredictable and out of reach. Unlike many sports with clear recruiting timelines or guaranteed opportunities, beach volleyball recruiting can move quickly and without warning. At times, it felt like all of my hard work depended on whether the right coach happened to watch me play at the right moment. I spent countless hours training, emailing coaches, practicing six days a week, and traveling to tournaments, hoping to prove that I belonged at the next level. It was difficult to stay confident when the recruiting process required so much patience and determination. Eventually, everything changed faster than I expected. June 15th arrived, and the school that had always felt like it was such a reach school suddenly became a real opportunity. My club director had asked me in my freshman year what my dream school was, and I told him it was Cal Poly. "If they called you right now and offered you, would you commit on the spot?" he asked me. I replied with "absolutely". On June 15th, I was boarding the plane to visit another school for a camp, and I got the call from the head coach at Cal Poly. I remember sitting in the airport on that call, smiling ear to ear. Once they offered me, I was full of happy tears. I got off the call, talked to my parents, and not even a couple of minutes later, I called him back and committed. I will never forget how special that moment was to me. As we were scanning our boarding passes, I was on the phone committing to the #3 Division 1 program in the NCAA, and the rest of the people in line to board the plane overheard and started cheering. The moment I had committed to my dream program was incredibly rewarding because it represented years of dedication and faith in the process. I plan to major in Food Science at California Polytechnic State University, San Louis Obispo, beginning this fall. My long-term goal is to use my education to create a company focused on women's personalized nutrition and wellness. Research shows that dietary supplement use is extremely common in the United States. About 3/4 (approx. 77%) take dietary supplements, with women using them even more than men. However, studies indicate that only 24% of adults taking supplements have blood test evidence showing a true deficiency. After getting basic labs done, we will create a personalized daily supplement that contains the exact vitamins and nutrients each customer requires. Customers will receive one daily supplement instead of taking multiple unnecessary products. By offering customized, science-based supplement plans, my company will help woman avoid unnecessary products and meet their nutritional needs.

There is growing research showing how nutrition plays a critical role in preventing and managing many serious health conditions, such as heart disease, cancer, arthritis, and autoimmune disorders. However, despite this research, many people still struggle to understand what their bodies truly need. This concept has inspired me for my future career choices. I plan to major in Food Science at California Polytechnic State University (SLO) in the Fall of 2026. My long-term goal is to use my education to help people make more informed and personalized nutrition choices that can improve both their quality and quantity of life. One way I hope to do this is by educating patients and parents about the importance of individualized nutrition. Many people will take dietary supplements in hopes of improving their health, but they often take products without knowing whether they actually need them. Research shows that approximately 77% of Americans take dietary supplements, with women using them even more than men. However, studies also indicate that only about 24% of adults taking supplements have test evidence showing a true deficiency. This research shows that many people are spending money on products that may not benefit them, while potentially overlooking the nutrients that their body actually needs. My goal is to address this gap through a company focused on women's and men's personalized nutrition and wellness. My business will provide customized supplement plans based on each person's nutritional needs. After completing lab testing, each person will receive a personalized daily supplement designed to provide the exact vitamins and nutrients their body requires. Education is also a key part of this process. My goal is also to educate patients and their families on their deficiencies, what they are potentially at risk for, and how we can build a plan to prevent various medical conditions/health problems. By helping patients understand how nutrition, vitamin deficiencies, and lifestyle-health habits influence long-term outcomes, individuals can better understand how their diet and nutrition intake affect their bodies. This approach could empower patients to take a more active role in their health and make informed decisions about what they put into their bodies. My company would also emphasize continuous care over time rather than a one-time solution. Each customer would be re-evaluated approximately every six months to ensure that their nutritional and supplement plan continues to meet their needs. Ultimately, my goal is to combine scientific research with practical solutions that make nutrition both easier to understand and to apply to one's daily life. By educating parents and providing personalized, evidence-based nutritional support, I hope to help individuals and their families improve both their daily well-being and their long-term health outcomes. Through my education in food science and my future business, I hope to give people the knowledge and tools they need to live healthier lives.

I love baking because it allows me to be creative while also problem-solving. Unlike following a recipe, I love to tweak and/or substitute items in a recipe and figure out how small changes can transform the finished product. One of my favorite parts of baking is taking traditional recipes and tweaking them to use cleaner or simpler ingredients. Whether that means using less processed/more whole-food ingredients, or making something completely from scratch, I love the challenge of finding ways to make recipes even more delicious and better for you. My favorite thing to bake is brownies because there are so many different ways you can make them, and they give me the most freedom to experiment. Brownies can be dense, fudge, rich or lighter, and I like seeing how different substitutes change both the flavor and texture of them. I've experimented with baking them with ingredients like oat-flower, applesauce, blackens, sweet potatoes, and natural sweeteners to create brownies that are still satisfying but made with simpler ingredients. Sometimes the experiments work perfectly and sometimes they don't but every attempt teaches me something new about how they react. I love baking from scratch because not only does it allow me to know what goes into the delicious foods that I make but it also teaches me more about the science behind baking. My curiosity about ingredients and experimentation is one of the main reasons I am planning on majoring in food science next year in college. Food science combines creativity with chemistry, which is exactly what baking feels like to me. Instead of just following recipes, food scientists understand how the ingredients react on a deeper level, which allows them to create new foods and modify existing ones. In the future, I plan to use what I learn in food science to develop my own brand/company focused on creating either baked goods, a food, or even maybe a drink based on clean, high-quality ingredients. I want to create products that people can enjoy while improving their health. many baked goods today rely on heavily processed ingredients and I would love to create alternatives that are both delicious and thoughtfully made. Ultimately, baking inspires me because it allows me to combine creativity and science to create something great. Every recipe I experiment, I am learning something new and it inspires me to keep creating/learning. Constant curiosity motivates me to continue baking now and inspires me to pursue a future in food science.