First, let me tell you a little bit about myself and my background. My parents owned a small business, which gave me an early start in developing "people skills" and a strong work ethic in rural southwest Alabama. My father taught me to love all kinds of people, which wasn't always a popular opinion in my small town. I grew up learning to help others and found joy in doing so. I went to a small Christian school but wanted a different experience after graduating from high school, so I decided to attend Auburn University. I volunteered at a summer camp for special needs individuals in high school and grew to love the population. This experience motivated me to pursue undergraduate and master’s degrees in special education from Auburn. Growing up, I was considered one of the "weird and quirky" kids, but I always got along with people who were different from me. I enjoy having a routine and find it helpful to have a plan. I tend to take things literally, and I believe that I am empathetic to the needs of others. During my junior year of college, I got married. My first husband and I went through cancer and remission together, but unfortunately, he passed away when I was 25. I quickly, to be honest too quickly, remarried, and ten years later, in 2017, I found myself a single mother, my children fatherless within one day’s time. As you can imagine, what a trauma this was.  I was devastated and broken. Being an "all-in" type, I threw myself into my children, church, and work. Without "my village", I don’t know where we would be today. I am now remarried and supported to continue my educational path and career aspirations.     I have a strong desire, a dream, to pursue higher education to enhance my ability to help individuals and families. I believe I am holding myself accountable by following through with the goals I have set forth for myself. My aim is to advocate for those who may not be able to do it themselves. Having experienced the importance of a supportive community, I take pride in being part of such a dynamic for individuals with developmental differences and their families. My focus is on reaching families at the beginning of their special education journey and teaching parents how to advocate and fight for their children. Though I have been realizing this dream through my current job for almost 20 years, I wish to continue with more advanced knowledge, skills, and understanding. I am particularly interested in early childhood special education and autism and would like to explore the relationship between the COVID pandemic, social-emotional development in very young children, and the possible rise in autism diagnoses and developmental delays during that period.
   I am interested in pursuing a career in special education and aspire to become a district or state-level employee in the field or a professor in the next 6-8 years, with a focus on autism, family advocacy, and teacher training. Thank you for your time and consideration in reviewing this essay.

My parents owned a small business, which gave me an early start in developing "people skills" and a strong work ethic in rural southwest Alabama. My father taught me to love all kinds of people, which wasn't always a popular opinion in my small town. I grew up learning to help others and found joy in doing so. I went to a small Christian school but wanted a different experience after graduating from high school, so I decided to attend Auburn University. I volunteered at a summer camp for special needs individuals in high school and grew to love the population. This experience motivated me to pursue undergraduate and master’s degrees in special education from Auburn. Growing up, I was considered one of the "weird and quirky" kids, but I always got along with people who were different from me. I enjoy having a routine and find it helpful to have a plan. I tend to take things literally, and I believe that I am empathetic to the needs of others. During my junior year of college, I got married. My first husband and I went through cancer and remission together, but unfortunately, he passed away when I was 25. I quickly, to be honest too quickly, remarried, and ten years later, in 2017, I found myself a single mother, my children fatherless within one day’s time. As you can imagine, what a trauma this was. I was devastated and broken. Being an "all-in" type, I threw myself into my children, church, and work. Without "my village", I don’t know where we would be today. I am now remarried and supported to continue my educational path and career aspirations. I have a strong desire to pursue higher education to enhance my ability to help individuals and families. My aim is to advocate for those who may not be able to do it themselves. Having experienced the importance of a supportive community, I take pride in being part of such a dynamic for individuals with developmental differences and their families. My focus is on reaching families at the beginning of their special education journey and teaching parents how to advocate and fight for their children. Though I have been doing this for almost 20 years, I wish to continue with more advanced knowledge, skills, and understanding. I am particularly interested in early childhood special education and autism and would like to explore the relationship between the COVID pandemic, social-emotional development in very young children, and the possible rise in autism diagnoses and developmental delays during that period.
 I am interested in pursuing a career in special education and aspire to become a district or state-level employee in the field or a professor in the next 6-8 years, with a focus on autism, family advocacy, and teacher training. Thank you for your time and consideration in reviewing this essay.

What a fun scholarship opportunity! My favorite concert memory was the first I attended with my husband. I have always loved 80's and hair band music, so my husband surprised me with tickets to the Def Leppard/Motley Crue Stadium Tour concert in Atlanta, dated for August 2020. The concert also featured Joan Jett and Poison! I was so excited, but alas, don't you recall 2020 was the dumpster fire of a year with COVID? So, we were postponed 2 years and on June 16, 2022, we finally made it. It was outside in the middle of summer and HOT! We actually tried to sell our tickets because it was going to be so hot and bad weather was also predicted that evening. But, we went and I am so happy we did. Def Leppard was the last act, and just as they started, the bottom falls out and people are storming to the exit. My husband and I braved the storm, and lightning began to strike all around and behind the stage. It was actually quite beautiful and I actually have several pictures. They finished out the concert with a bang, and we survived the lightning storm. The whole experience of that concert made it all worth the while! The first concert I remember is just bits and pieces. I must have been 4 and I do recall attending with both my parents. The images I do recall are the venue seemed like a large barn, but I am not sure as I do remember walking down a slope to get to our seats. I also know we were in the very deep south, somewhere in LA (lower Alabama as we joke) because we had spent the night with my grandmother for this concern. I remember she had a very old general store across the street from her and I would often walk over there when she had a customer (her house was across the street so she could watch for customers and not have to "man" the store all day) and I would get some sort of little trinket or treat. I do remember on that trip, she had given me a small turquoise ring, that later turned my finger green, but it was such a treasure to me. I wore that ring with my little cowboy boots, specially purchased for that event, that night, and my mama said I was just "strutting my stuff" I thought it looked so good! I do remember the music and my daddy holding me on his shoulders and we were swaying with the music. I recall feeling so important that I got to do something just with my parents. Man, I wish i could have some of those moments back, as my dad has since departed this earth. Years later, I asked who it was, and my mother told me it was T Graham Brown, a fairly popular country singer in the 80's. I hope you enjoyed reading about a couple of my concert memories. I love live music, so I hope to have many more opportunities to come.

Growing up, I was considered one of the "weird and quirky" kids, but I always got along with people who were different from me. I enjoy having a routine and find it helpful to have a plan. I tend to take things literally, and I believe that I am very empathetic to the needs of others. I am now a special education teacher and also suffer from major depressive disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, obsessive compulsive disorder, and PTSD. I grew up with these ailments, so I was usually quirky and different from others, but I have always found joy in helping and advocating for others. Relationships have been difficult for me as I have grown because I am very literal and tend to obsess over minute, unimportant (to others) details and ideas. But conversely, these characters have enabled me to be insanely organized and I excel with time management and detailed assignments. I do have friends and acquaintances, am happily married, am a mother, a teacher, and an active church member, but these areas of my life are a challenge for me, as I prefer to be on my own and find it difficult to trust or hand off tasks to others, as I prefer to be "in charge" and "in control". I feel these characteristics have led me to feel great empathy and oneness with the special needs community. I have always found myself to understand others with similar exceptionalities and have grown to be a leader in my district as an educator and teacher trainer in the field of early childhood special education. I am the special education department chair for my school and am a liaison with our central office and have often collaborated with our state department. I have mentored new teachers and supervised practicum and intern students from neighboring universities. In special education, I have truly found a home and family. My passion is to advocate for others and to train parents as their special education journey begins with their very young children. I am interested in pursuing a further career in special education through an EdD (doctoral) program and aspire to become a district or state-level employee in the field or a professor in the next 6-8 years, with a focus on autism, family advocacy, and teacher training. This is my love and passion and it has been a dream of mine for years to receive more development and a higher level of learning in this field so I may best help and serve others in this area.

My parents owned a small business, which gave me an early start in developing "people skills" and a strong work ethic in rural southwest Alabama. My father taught me to love all kinds of people, which wasn't always a popular opinion in my small town. I grew up learning to help others and found joy in doing so. I went to a small Christian school but wanted a different experience after graduating from high school, so I decided to attend Auburn University. I volunteered at a summer camp for special needs individuals in high school and grew to love the population. This experience motivated me to pursue undergraduate and master’s degrees in special education from Auburn. Growing up, I was considered one of the "weird and quirky" kids, but I always got along with people who were different from me. I enjoy having a routine and find it helpful to have a plan. I tend to take things literally, and I believe that I am empathetic to the needs of others. During my junior year of college, I got married. My first husband and I went through cancer and remission together, but unfortunately, he passed away when I was 25. I quickly, to be honest too quickly, remarried, and ten years later, in 2017, I found myself a single mother, my children fatherless within one day’s time. As you can imagine, what a trauma this was. I was devastated and broken. Being an "all-in" type, I threw myself into my children, church, and work. Without "my village", I don’t know where we would be today. I am now remarried and supported to continue my educational path and career aspirations. I have a strong desire to pursue higher education to enhance my ability to help individuals and families. My aim is to advocate for those who may not be able to do it themselves. Having experienced the importance of a supportive community, I take pride in being part of such a dynamic for individuals with developmental differences and their families. My focus is on reaching families at the beginning of their special education journey and teaching parents how to advocate and fight for their children. Though I have been doing this for almost 20 years, I wish to continue with more advanced knowledge, skills, and understanding. I am particularly interested in early childhood special education and autism and would like to explore the relationship between the COVID pandemic, social-emotional development in very young children, and the possible rise in autism diagnoses and developmental delays during that period.
I am interested in pursuing a career in special education and aspire to become a district or state-level employee in the field or a professor in the next 6-8 years, with a focus on autism, family advocacy, and teacher training. Thank you for your time and consideration in reviewing this essay.

What a fun and unique scholarship. Michael Scott is absolutely my favorite character from "The Office". While he has many admirable traits as a person, he definitely has some flawed character traits! I can relate to Michael in that he always seems to have good intentions and thinks "outside the box" in an effort to keep his team motivated. He seems like a very empathetic character and is an optimist like no other! He allows others to see his softer side and that he cares. I like to think, as a special education teacher, and carry these traits over into my professional life. When you are working with students and families with special needs, I always have to look optimistically toward the future from program planning for my students. I also feel great to build rapport with families and students through humor and common interests. I also feel my sense of empathy is an asset in this career, so I may put myself in parent's shoes having to make difficult and planning decisions for their child. I also feel these traits are much needed when leading a team, as I am tasked with supervising our special education department faculty and staff. Now Michael also has some not so great personality traits! I can often be awkward in social situations, and you can definitely see that in Michaels as he tries so hard to fit in with his team, often through crude and tasteless jokes and acts. I also feel Michael can often be very selfish in the work setting as he craves the spotlight, and attention. Thankfully that is something I do not crave! Thank you for reading and your consideration of this essay.

I grew up in a very small rural town, learning to help others and found joy in doing so. I went to a small Christian school but wanted a different experience after graduating high school, so I decided to attend Auburn University. I volunteered at a summer camp for special needs individuals in high school and grew to love the population. This experience motivated me to pursue undergraduate and master’s degrees in special education from Auburn. Growing up, I was considered one of the "weird and quirky" kids, but I always got along with people who were different from me. I enjoy having a routine and find it helpful to have a plan. I tend to take things literally, and I believe that I am empathetic to the needs of others. I am now a special education teacher and also suffer from major depressive disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, obsessive compulsive disorder, and PTSD. I grew up with these ailments, so I was usually quirky and different from others, but I have always found joy in helping and advocating for others. Relationships have been difficult for me as I have grown because I am very literal and tend to obsess over minute, unimportant (to others) details and ideas. But conversely, these characters have enabled me to be insanely organized and I excel with time management and detailed assignments. I do have friends and acquaintances, am happily married, am a mother, a teacher, and an active church member, but these areas of my life are a challenge for me, as I prefer to be on my own and find it difficult to trust or hand off tasks to others, as I prefer to be “in charge” and “in control”. I feel these characteristics have led me to feel great empathy and oneness with the special needs community. Had I gone to public school, I am sure I would have fallen into this specific educational population. I have always found myself to understand others with similar exceptionalities and have grown to be a leader in my district as an educator and teacher trainer in the field of early childhood special education. I am the special education department chair for my school and am a liaison with our central office and have often collaborated with our state department. I have mentored new teachers and supervised practicum and intern students from neighboring universities. In special education, I have truly found a home and family. My passion is to advocate for others and to train parents as their special education journey begins with their very young children. I am currently an inclusive preschool teacher in a classroom specifically designed for special education children, ranging in age from 3-5, but developmentally as low as 6 months old. I am interested in pursuing a further career in special education through an EdD (doctoral) program and aspire to become a district or state-level employee in the field or a professor in the next 6-8 years, with a focus on autism, family advocacy, and teacher training.

My parents owned a small business, which gave me an early start in developing "people skills" and a strong work ethic in rural southwest Alabama. My father taught me to love all kinds of people, which wasn't always a popular opinion in my small town. I grew up learning to help others and found joy in doing so. I went to a small Christian school but wanted a different experience after graduating from high school, so I decided to attend Auburn University. I volunteered at a summer camp for special needs individuals in high school and grew to love the population. This experience motivated me to pursue undergraduate and master’s degrees in special education from Auburn. Growing up, I was considered one of the "weird and quirky" kids, but I always got along with people who were different from me. I enjoy having a routine and find it helpful to have a plan. I tend to take things literally, and I believe that I am empathetic to the needs of others. During my junior year of college, I got married. My first husband and I went through cancer and remission together, but unfortunately, he passed away when I was 25. I quickly, to be honest too quickly, remarried, and ten years later, in 2017, I found myself a single mother, my children fatherless within one day’s time. As you can imagine, what a trauma this was.  I was devastated and broken. Being an "all-in" type, I threw myself into my children, church, and work. Without "my village", I don’t know where we would be today. I am now remarried and supported to continue my educational path and career aspirations.     I have a strong desire to pursue higher education to enhance my ability to help individuals and families. My aim is to advocate for those who may not be able to do it themselves. Having experienced the importance of a supportive community, I take pride in being part of such a dynamic for individuals with developmental differences and their families. My focus is on reaching families at the beginning of their special education journey and teaching parents how to advocate and fight for their children. Though I have been doing this for almost 20 years, I wish to continue with more advanced knowledge, skills, and understanding. I am particularly interested in early childhood special education and autism and would like to explore the relationship between the COVID pandemic, social-emotional development in very young children, and the possible rise in autism diagnoses and developmental delays during that period.
   I am interested in pursuing a career in special education and aspire to become a district or state-level employee in the field or a professor in the next 6-8 years, with a focus on autism, family advocacy, and teacher training. Thank you for your time and consideration in reviewing this essay.

Growing up, I was considered one of the "weird and quirky" kids, but I always got along with people who were different from me. I enjoy having a routine and find it helpful to have a plan. I tend to take things literally, and I believe that I am very empathetic to the needs of others. I am now a special education teacher and also suffer from major depressive disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, obsessive compulsive disorder, and PTSD. I grew up with these ailments, so I was usually quirky and different from others, but I have always found joy in helping and advocating for others. Relationships have been difficult for me as I have grown because I am very literal and tend to obsess over minute, unimportant (to others) details and ideas. But conversely, these characters have enabled me to be insanely organized and I excel with time management and detailed assignments. I do have friends and acquaintances, am happily married, am a mother, a teacher, and an active church member, but these areas of my life are a challenge for me, as I prefer to be on my own and find it difficult to trust or hand off tasks to others, as I prefer to be "in charge" and "in control". I feel these characteristics have led me to feel great empathy and oneness with the special needs community.  I have always found myself to understand others with similar exceptionalities and have grown to be a leader in my district as an educator and teacher trainer in the field of early childhood special education. I am the special education department chair for my school and am a liaison with our central office and have often collaborated with our state department. I have mentored new teachers and supervised practicum and intern students from neighboring universities. In special education, I have truly found a home and family. My passion is to advocate for others and to train parents as their special education journey begins with their very young children. I am interested in pursuing a further career in special education through an EdD (doctoral) program and aspire to become a district or state-level employee in the field or a professor in the next 6-8 years, with a focus on autism, family advocacy, and teacher training. This is my love and passion and it has been a dream of mine for years to receive more development and a higher level of learning in this field so I may best help and serve others in this area.

I grew up in a very small rural town, learning to help others and found joy in doing so. I went to a small Christian school but wanted a different experience after graduating high school, so I decided to attend Auburn University. I volunteered at a summer camp for special needs individuals in high school and grew to love the population. This experience motivated me to pursue undergraduate and master’s degrees in special education from Auburn. Growing up, I was considered one of the "weird and quirky" kids, but I always got along with people who were different from me. I enjoy having a routine and find it helpful to have a plan. I tend to take things literally, and I believe that I am empathetic to the needs of others. I am now a special education teacher and also suffer from major depressive disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, obsessive compulsive disorder, and PTSD. I grew up with these ailments, so I was usually quirky and different from others, but I have always found joy in helping and advocating for others. Relationships have been difficult for me as I have grown because I am very literal and tend to obsess over minute, unimportant (to others) details and ideas. But conversely, these characters have enabled me to be insanely organized and I excel with time management and detailed assignments. I do have friends and acquaintances, am happily married, am a mother, a teacher, and an active church member, but these areas of my life are a challenge for me, as I prefer to be on my own and find it difficult to trust or hand off tasks to others, as I prefer to be “in charge” and “in control”. I feel these characteristics have led me to feel great empathy and oneness with the special needs community. Had I gone to public school, I am sure I would have fallen into this specific educational population. I have always found myself to understand others with similar exceptionalities and have grown to be a leader in my district as an educator and teacher trainer in the field of early childhood special education. I am the special education department chair for my school and am a liaison with our central office and have often collaborated with our state department. I have mentored new teachers and supervised practicum and intern students from neighboring universities. In special education, I have truly found a home and family. My passion is to advocate for others and to train parents as their special education journey begins with their very young children. I am currently an inclusive preschool teacher in a classroom specifically designed for special education children, ranging in age from 3-5, but developmentally as low as 6 months old. I am interested in pursuing a further career in special education through an EdD (doctoral) program and aspire to become a district or state-level employee in the field or a professor in the next 6-8 years, with a focus on autism, family advocacy, and teacher training.

Why are you passionate about the special education teacher profession? That is a question that will have a big response! First, let me tell you a bit about myself. I grew up in a very small rural town, learning to help others and found joy in doing so. I went to a small Christian school but wanted a different experience after graduating high school, so I decided to attend Auburn University. I volunteered at a summer camp for special needs individuals in high school and grew to love the population. This experience motivated me to pursue undergraduate and master’s degrees in special education from Auburn. Growing up, I was considered one of the "weird and quirky" kids, but I always got along with people who were different from me. I enjoy having a routine and find it helpful to have a plan. I tend to take things literally, and I believe that I am empathetic to the needs of others. I am now a special education teacher and also suffer from major depressive disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, obsessive compulsive disorder, and PTSD. I grew up with these ailments, so I was usually quirky and different from others, but I have always found joy in helping and advocating for others. Relationships have been difficult for me as I have grown because I am very literal and tend to obsess over minute, unimportant (to others) details and ideas. But conversely, these characters have enabled me to be insanely organized and I excel with time management and detailed assignments. I do have friends and acquaintances, am happily married, am a mother, a teacher, and an active church member, but these areas of my life are a challenge for me, as I prefer to be on my own and find it difficult to trust or hand off tasks to others, as I prefer to be “in charge” and “in control”. I feel these characteristics have led me to feel great empathy and oneness with the special needs community. Had I gone to public school, I am sure I would have fallen into this specific educational population. I have always found myself to understand others with similar exceptionalities and have grown to be a leader in my district as an educator and teacher trainer in the field of early childhood special education. I am the special education department chair for my school and am a liaison with our central office and have often collaborated with our state department. I have mentored new teachers and supervised practicum and intern students from neighboring universities. In special education, I have truly found a home and family. I grew up in a very small rural town, learning to help others and found joy in doing so. I went to a small Christian school but wanted a different experience after graduating high school, so I decided to attend Auburn University. I volunteered at a summer camp for special needs individuals in high school and grew to love the population. This experience motivated me to pursue undergraduate and master’s degrees in special education from Auburn. Growing up, I was considered one of the "weird and quirky" kids, but I always got along with people who were different from me. I enjoy having a routine and find it helpful to have a plan. I tend to take things literally, and I believe that I am empathetic to the needs of others. I am now a special education teacher and also suffer from major depressive disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, obsessive compulsive disorder, and PTSD. I grew up with these ailments, so I was usually quirky and different from others, but I have always found joy in helping and advocating for others. Relationships have been difficult for me as I have grown because I am very literal and tend to obsess over minute, unimportant (to others) details and ideas. But conversely, these characters have enabled me to be insanely organized and I excel with time management and detailed assignments. I do have friends and acquaintances, am happily married, am a mother, a teacher, and an active church member, but these areas of my life are a challenge for me, as I prefer to be on my own and find it difficult to trust or hand off tasks to others, as I prefer to be “in charge” and “in control”. I feel these characteristics have led me to feel great empathy and oneness with the special needs community. Had I gone to public school, I am sure I would have fallen into this specific educational population. I have always found myself to understand others with similar exceptionalities and have grown to be a leader in my district as an educator and teacher trainer in the field of early childhood special education. I am the special education department chair for my school and am a liaison with our central office and have often collaborated with our state department. I have mentored new teachers and supervised practicum and intern students from neighboring universities. In special education, I have truly found a home and family. My passion is to advocate for others and to train parents as their special education journey begins with their very young children. I am currently an inclusive preschool teacher in a classroom specifically designed for special education children, ranging in age from 3-5, but developmentally as low as 6 months old. Now, for the task of my own interpretation of the following quote, "I have learned that the purpose of teaching is to bring the student to his or her sense of his or her own presence." - Professor Harold Bloom, Possessed by Memory. To me, this means taking into account everyone’s individualized needs and gifts, helping them to find joy and success in life, to live life with a purpose and meeting, and to feel like they are part of our world. I feel like I have been working on this for the past 20 years as a special needs educator, but I feel if I were to further my career in special education through an EdD (doctoral) program, I would aspire to become a district or state-level employee in the field or a professor in the next 6-8 years, with a focus on autism, family advocacy, and teacher training, thus “passing the torch” to a new generation of compassionate special educators. Thank you so much for your time and consideration to this essay.

My parents owned a small business, which gave me an early start in developing "people skills" and a strong work ethic in rural southwest Alabama. My father taught me to love all kinds of people, which wasn't always a popular opinion in my small town. I grew up learning to help others and found joy in doing so. I went to a small Christian school but wanted a different experience after graduating from high school, so I decided to attend Auburn University. I volunteered at a summer camp for special needs individuals in high school and grew to love the population. This experience motivated me to pursue undergraduate and master’s degrees in special education from Auburn. Growing up, I was considered one of the "weird and quirky" kids, but I always got along with people who were different from me. I enjoy having a routine and find it helpful to have a plan. I tend to take things literally, and I believe that I am empathetic to the needs of others. During my junior year of college, I got married. My first husband and I went through cancer and remission together, but unfortunately, he passed away when I was 25. I quickly, to be honest too quickly, remarried, and ten years later, in 2017, I found myself a single mother, my children fatherless within one day’s time. As you can imagine, what a trauma this was.  I was devastated and broken. Being an "all-in" type, I threw myself into my children, church, and work. Without "my village", I don’t know where we would be today. I am now remarried and supported to continue my educational path and career aspirations.     I have a strong desire to pursue higher education to enhance my ability to help individuals and families. My aim is to advocate for those who may not be able to do it themselves. Having experienced the importance of a supportive community, I take pride in being part of such a dynamic for individuals with developmental differences and their families. My focus is on reaching families at the beginning of their special education journey and teaching parents how to advocate and fight for their children. Though I have been doing this for almost 20 years, I wish to continue with more advanced knowledge, skills, and understanding. I am particularly interested in early childhood special education and autism and would like to explore the relationship between the COVID pandemic, social-emotional development in very young children, and the possible rise in autism diagnoses and developmental delays during that period.
   I am interested in pursuing a career in special education and aspire to become a district or state-level employee in the field or a professor in the next 6-8 years, with a focus on autism, family advocacy, and teacher training. Thank you for your time and consideration in reviewing this essay.

Growing up, I was considered one of the "weird and quirky" kids, but I always got along with people who were different from me. I enjoy having a routine and find it helpful to have a plan. I tend to take things literally, and I believe that I am very empathetic to the needs of others. I am now a special education teacher and also suffer from major depressive disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, obsessive compulsive disorder, and PTSD. I grew up with these ailments, so I was usually quirky and different from others, but I have always found joy in helping and advocating for others. Relationships have been difficult for me as I have grown because I am very literal and tend to obsess over minute, unimportant (to others) details and ideas. But conversely, these characters have enabled me to be insanely organized and I excel with time management and detailed assignments. I do have friends and acquaintances, am happily married, am a mother, a teacher, and an active church member, but these areas of my life are a challenge for me, as I prefer to be on my own and find it difficult to trust or hand off tasks to others, as I prefer to be "in charge" and "in control". I feel these characteristics have led me to feel great empathy and oneness with the special needs community.  I have always found myself to understand others with similar exceptionalities and have grown to be a leader in my district as an educator and teacher trainer in the field of early childhood special education. I am the special education department chair for my school and am a liaison with our central office and have often collaborated with our state department. I have mentored new teachers and supervised practicum and intern students from neighboring universities. In special education, I have truly found a home and family. My passion is to advocate for others and to train parents as their special education journey begins with their very young children. I am interested in pursuing a further career in special education through an EdD (doctoral) program and aspire to become a district or state-level employee in the field or a professor in the next 6-8 years, with a focus on autism, family advocacy, and teacher training. This is my love and passion and it has been a dream of mine for years to receive more development and a higher level of learning in this field so I may best help and serve others in this area.

My parents owned a small business, which gave me an early start in developing "people skills" and a strong work ethic in rural southwest Alabama. My father taught me to love all kinds of people, which wasn't always a popular opinion in my small town. I grew up learning to help others and found joy in doing so. I went to a small Christian school but wanted a different experience after graduating from high school, so I decided to attend Auburn University. I volunteered at a summer camp for special needs individuals in high school and grew to love the population. This experience motivated me to pursue undergraduate and master’s degrees in special education from Auburn. Growing up, I was considered one of the "weird and quirky" kids, but I always got along with people who were different from me. I enjoy having a routine and find it helpful to have a plan. I tend to take things literally, and I believe that I am empathetic to the needs of others. During my junior year of college, I got married. My first husband and I went through cancer and remission together, but unfortunately, he passed away when I was 25. I quickly, to be honest too quickly, remarried, and ten years later, in 2017, I found myself a single mother, my children fatherless within one day’s time. As you can imagine, what a trauma this was.  I was devastated and broken. Being an "all-in" type, I threw myself into my children, church, and work. Without "my village", I don’t know where we would be today. I am now remarried and supported to continue my educational path and career aspirations.     I have a strong desire to pursue higher education to enhance my ability to help individuals and families. My aim is to advocate for those who may not be able to do it themselves. Having experienced the importance of a supportive community, I take pride in being part of such a dynamic for individuals with developmental differences and their families. My focus is on reaching families at the beginning of their special education journey and teaching parents how to advocate and fight for their children. Though I have been doing this for almost 20 years, I wish to continue with more advanced knowledge, skills, and understanding. I am particularly interested in early childhood special education and autism and would like to explore the relationship between the COVID pandemic, social-emotional development in very young children, and the possible rise in autism diagnoses and developmental delays during that period.
   I am interested in pursuing a career in special education and aspire to become a district or state-level employee in the field or a professor in the next 6-8 years, with a focus on autism, family advocacy, and teacher training. Thank you for your time and consideration in reviewing this essay.

I grew up in a very small rural town, learning to help others and found joy in doing so. I went to a small Christian school but wanted a different experience after graduating high school, so I decided to attend Auburn University. I volunteered at a summer camp for special needs individuals in high school and grew to love the population. This experience motivated me to pursue undergraduate and master’s degrees in special education from Auburn. Growing up, I was considered one of the "weird and quirky" kids, but I always got along with people who were different from me. I enjoy having a routine and find it helpful to have a plan. I tend to take things literally, and I believe that I am empathetic to the needs of others. I am now a special education teacher and also suffer from major depressive disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, obsessive compulsive disorder, and PTSD. I grew up with these ailments, so I was usually quirky and different from others, but I have always found joy in helping and advocating for others. Relationships have been difficult for me as I have grown because I am very literal and tend to obsess over minute, unimportant (to others) details and ideas. But conversely, these characters have enabled me to be insanely organized and I excel with time management and detailed assignments. I do have friends and acquaintances, am happily married, am a mother, a teacher, and an active church member, but these areas of my life are a challenge for me, as I prefer to be on my own and find it difficult to trust or hand off tasks to others, as I prefer to be “in charge” and “in control”. I feel these characteristics have led me to feel great empathy and oneness with the special needs community. Had I gone to public school, I am sure I would have fallen into this specific educational population. I have always found myself to understand others with similar exceptionalities and have grown to be a leader in my district as an educator and teacher trainer in the field of early childhood special education. I am the special education department chair for my school and am a liaison with our central office and have often collaborated with our state department. I have mentored new teachers and supervised practicum and intern students from neighboring universities. In special education, I have truly found a home and family. My passion is to advocate for others and to train parents as their special education journey begins with their very young children. I am currently an inclusive preschool teacher in a classroom specifically designed for special education children, ranging in age from 3-5, but developmentally as low as 6 months old. I am interested in pursuing a further career in special education through an EdD (doctoral) program and aspire to become a district or state-level employee in the field or a professor in the next 6-8 years, with a focus on autism, family advocacy, and teacher training.

Growing up, I was considered one of the "weird and quirky" kids, but I always got along with people who were different from me. I enjoy having a routine and find it helpful to have a plan. I tend to take things literally, and I believe that I am very empathetic to the needs of others. I am now a special education teacher and also suffer from major depressive disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, obsessive compulsive disorder, and PTSD. I grew up with these ailments, so I was usually quirky and different from others, but I have always found joy in helping and advocating for others. Relationships have been difficult for me as I have grown because I am very literal and tend to obsess over minute, unimportant (to others) details and ideas. But conversely, these characters have enabled me to be insanely organized and I excel with time management and detailed assignments. I do have friends and acquaintances, am happily married, am a mother, a teacher, and an active church member, but these areas of my life are a challenge for me, as I prefer to be on my own and find it difficult to trust or hand off tasks to others, as I prefer to be "in charge" and "in control". I feel these characteristics have led me to feel great empathy and oneness with the special needs community.  I have always found myself to understand others with similar exceptionalities and have grown to be a leader in my district as an educator and teacher trainer in the field of early childhood special education. I am the special education department chair for my school and am a liaison with our central office and have often collaborated with our state department. I have mentored new teachers and supervised practicum and intern students from neighboring universities. In special education, I have truly found a home and family. My passion is to advocate for others and to train parents as their special education journey begins with their very young children. I am interested in pursuing a further career in special education through an EdD (doctoral) program and aspire to become a district or state-level employee in the field or a professor in the next 6-8 years, with a focus on autism, family advocacy, and teacher training. This is my love and passion and it has been a dream of mine for years to receive more development and a higher level of learning in this field so I may best help and serve others in this area.

My parents owned a small business, which gave me an early start in developing "people skills" and a strong work ethic in rural southwest Alabama. My father taught me to love all kinds of people, which wasn't always a popular opinion in my small town. I grew up learning to help others and found joy in doing so. I went to a small Christian school but wanted a different experience after graduating from high school, so I decided to attend Auburn University. I volunteered at a summer camp for special needs individuals in high school and grew to love the population. This experience motivated me to pursue undergraduate and master’s degrees in special education from Auburn. Growing up, I was considered one of the "weird and quirky" kids, but I always got along with people who were different from me. I enjoy having a routine and find it helpful to have a plan. I tend to take things literally, and I believe that I am empathetic to the needs of others. During my junior year of college, I got married. My first husband and I went through cancer and remission together, but unfortunately, he passed away when I was 25. I quickly, to be honest too quickly, remarried, and ten years later, in 2017, I found myself a single mother, my children fatherless within one day’s time. As you can imagine, what a trauma this was.  I was devastated and broken. Being an "all-in" type, I threw myself into my children, church, and work. Without "my village", I don’t know where we would be today. I am now remarried and supported to continue my educational path and career aspirations.     I have a strong desire to pursue higher education to enhance my ability to help individuals and families. My aim is to advocate for those who may not be able to do it themselves. Having experienced the importance of a supportive community, I take pride in being part of such a dynamic for individuals with developmental differences and their families. My focus is on reaching families at the beginning of their special education journey and teaching parents how to advocate and fight for their children. Though I have been doing this for almost 20 years, I wish to continue with more advanced knowledge, skills, and understanding. I am particularly interested in early childhood special education and autism and would like to explore the relationship between the COVID pandemic, social-emotional development in very young children, and the possible rise in autism diagnoses and developmental delays during that period.
   I am interested in pursuing a career in special education and aspire to become a district or state-level employee in the field or a professor in the next 6-8 years, with a focus on autism, family advocacy, and teacher training. Thank you for your time and consideration in reviewing this essay.

My parents owned a small business, which gave me an early start in developing "people skills" and a strong work ethic in rural southwest Alabama. My father taught me to love all kinds of people, which wasn't always a popular opinion in my small town. I grew up learning to help others and found joy in doing so. I went to a small Christian school but wanted a different experience after graduating from high school, so I decided to attend Auburn University. I volunteered at a summer camp for special needs individuals in high school and grew to love the population. This experience motivated me to pursue undergraduate and master’s degrees in special education from Auburn. Growing up, I was considered one of the "weird and quirky" kids, but I always got along with people who were different from me. I enjoy having a routine and find it helpful to have a plan. I tend to take things literally, and I believe that I am empathetic to the needs of others. During my junior year of college, I got married. My first husband and I went through cancer and remission together, but unfortunately, he passed away when I was 25. I quickly, to be honest too quickly, remarried, and ten years later, in 2017, I found myself a single mother, my children fatherless within one day’s time. As you can imagine, what a trauma this was.  I was devastated and broken. Being an "all-in" type, I threw myself into my children, church, and work. Without "my village", I don’t know where we would be today. I am now remarried and supported to continue my educational path and career aspirations.     I have a strong desire to pursue higher education to enhance my ability to help individuals and families. My aim is to advocate for those who may not be able to do it themselves. Having experienced the importance of a supportive community, I take pride in being part of such a dynamic for individuals with developmental differences and their families. My focus is on reaching families at the beginning of their special education journey and teaching parents how to advocate and fight for their children. Though I have been doing this for almost 20 years, I wish to continue with more advanced knowledge, skills, and understanding. I am particularly interested in early childhood special education and autism and would like to explore the relationship between the COVID pandemic, social-emotional development in very young children, and the possible rise in autism diagnoses and developmental delays during that period.
   I am interested in pursuing a career in special education and aspire to become a district or state-level employee in the field or a professor in the next 6-8 years, with a focus on autism, family advocacy, and teacher training. Thank you for your time and consideration in reviewing this essay.

I grew up in a very small rural town, learning to help others, and found joy in doing so. I went to a small Christian school but wanted a different experience after graduating high school, so I decided to attend Auburn University. I grew up with a boy with cerebral palsy and considered him a close friend. I also volunteered at a summer camp for special needs individuals in high school and grew to love the population. These experiences motivated me to pursue undergraduate and master’s degrees in special education from Auburn. Growing up, I was considered one of the "weird and quirky" kids, but I always got along with people who were different from me. I enjoy having a routine and find it helpful to have a plan. I tend to take things literally, and I believe that I am very empathetic to the needs of others. I am now a special education teacher and also suffer from major depressive disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, obsessive compulsive disorder, and PTSD. I grew up with these ailments, so I was usually quirky and different from others, but I have always found joy in helping and advocating for others. Relationships have been difficult for me as I have grown because I am very literal and tend to obsess over minute, unimportant (to others) details and ideas. But conversely, these characters have enabled me to be insanely organized and I excel with time management and detailed assignments. I do have friends and acquaintances, am happily married, am a mother, a teacher, and an active church member, but these areas of my life are a challenge for me, as I prefer to be on my own and find it difficult to trust or hand off tasks to others, as I prefer to be "in charge" and "in control". I feel these characteristics have led me to feel great empathy and oneness with the special needs community. Had I gone to public school, I am sure I would have fallen into this specific educational population. I have always found myself to understand others with similar exceptionalities and have grown to be a leader in my district as an educator and teacher trainer in the field of early childhood special education. I am the special education department chair for my school and am a liaison with our central office and have often collaborated with our state department. I have mentored new teachers and supervised practicum and intern students from neighboring universities. In special education, I have truly found a home and family. My passion is to advocate for others and to train parents as their special education journey begins with their very young children. A recent life hardship I have had to over come in the past 10 years is the discovery my (then) husband and father of my son and daughter had sexually abused our daughter. I became a single mother and my children fatherless with her disclosure in a period of 12 hours. Their father went to prison and he will remain there until my children are adults. This was a major setback for our family and life plans. Emotionally the toll was huge and it was and has been very difficult to deal with for all of us. Financially, I have spent thousands fighting in court, the divorce, for therapy for the children and myself, relocating and taking a huge loss on our house sale, and now (on a more positive note) the adoption of my children by my new husband. I feel I grew in this experience with the revelation that we must move forward, sometimes we must rely on the help of others, and I am stronger and able to achieve things I never thought were possible. I am currently an inclusive preschool teacher in a classroom specifically designed for special education children, ranging in age from 3-5, but developmentally as low as 6 months old. I am interested in pursuing a further career in special education through an EdD (doctoral) program and aspire to become a district or state-level employee in the field or a professor in the next 6-8 years, with a focus on autism, family advocacy, and teacher training. This is my love and passion and it has been a dream of mine for years to receive more development and a higher level of learning in this field so I may best help and serve others in this area. I am so thrilled to have been accepted into a doctoral program and I’m very excited to see what the future holds for me and my family in the future. Now, I am focusing on trying to fund this endeavor. I assure you that I will put in my best efforts and work towards improving special education and advocating for families.

I grew up in a very small rural town, learning to help others and found joy in doing so. I went to a small Christian school but wanted a different experience after graduating high school, so I decided to attend Auburn University. I volunteered at a summer camp for special needs individuals in high school and grew to love the population. This experience motivated me to pursue undergraduate and master’s degrees in special education from Auburn. Growing up, I was considered one of the "weird and quirky" kids, but I always got along with people who were different from me. I enjoy having a routine and find it helpful to have a plan. I tend to take things literally, and I believe that I am empathetic to the needs of others. I am now a special education teacher and also suffer from major depressive disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, obsessive compulsive disorder, and PTSD. I grew up with these ailments, so I was usually quirky and different from others, but I have always found joy in helping and advocating for others. Relationships have been difficult for me as I have grown because I am very literal and tend to obsess over minute, unimportant (to others) details and ideas. But conversely, these characters have enabled me to be insanely organized and I excel with time management and detailed assignments. I do have friends and acquaintances, am happily married, am a mother, a teacher, and an active church member, but these areas of my life are a challenge for me, as I prefer to be on my own and find it difficult to trust or hand off tasks to others, as I prefer to be “in charge” and “in control”. I feel these characteristics have led me to feel great empathy and oneness with the special needs community. Had I gone to public school, I am sure I would have fallen into this specific educational population. I have always found myself to understand others with similar exceptionalities and have grown to be a leader in my district as an educator and teacher trainer in the field of early childhood special education. I am the special education department chair for my school and am a liaison with our central office and have often collaborated with our state department. I have mentored new teachers and supervised practicum and intern students from neighboring universities. In special education, I have truly found a home and family. My passion is to advocate for others and to train parents as their special education journey begins with their very young children. I am currently an inclusive preschool teacher in a classroom specifically designed for special education children, ranging in age from 3-5, but developmentally as low as 6 moths old. I am interested in pursuing a further career in special education through an EdD (doctoral) program and aspire to become a district or state-level employee in the field or a professor in the next 6-8 years, with a focus on autism, family advocacy, and teacher training.

I grew up in a very small rural town, learning to help others and found joy in doing so. I went to a small Christian school but wanted a different experience after graduating high school, so I decided to attend Auburn University. I volunteered at a summer camp for special needs individuals in high school and grew to love the population. This experience motivated me to pursue undergraduate and master’s degrees in special education from Auburn. Growing up, I was considered one of the "weird and quirky" kids, but I always got along with people who were different from me. I enjoy having a routine and find it helpful to have a plan. I tend to take things literally, and I believe that I am empathetic to the needs of others. I am now a special education teacher and also suffer from major depressive disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, obsessive compulsive disorder, and PTSD. I grew up with these ailments, so I was usually quirky and different from others, but I have always found joy in helping and advocating for others. Relationships have been difficult for me as I have grown because I am very literal and tend to obsess over minute, unimportant (to others) details and ideas. But conversely, these characters have enabled me to be insanely organized and I excel with time management and detailed assignments. I do have friends and acquaintances, am happily married, am a mother, a teacher, and an active church member, but these areas of my life are a challenge for me, as I prefer to be on my own and find it difficult to trust or hand off tasks to others, as I prefer to be “in charge” and “in control”. I feel these characteristics have led me to feel great empathy and oneness with the special needs community. Had I gone to public school, I am sure I would have fallen into this specific educational population. I have always found myself to understand others with similar exceptionalities and have grown to be a leader in my district as an educator and teacher trainer in the field of early childhood special education. I am the special education department chair for my school and am a liaison with our central office and have often collaborated with our state department. I have mentored new teachers and supervised practicum and intern students from neighboring universities. In special education, I have truly found a home and family. My passion is to advocate for others and to train parents as their special education journey begins with their very young children. I am currently an inclusive preschool teacher in a classroom specifically designed for special education children, ranging in age from 3-5, but developmentally as low as 6 moths old. I am interested in pursuing a further career in special education through an EdD (doctoral) program and aspire to become a district or state-level employee in the field or a professor in the next 6-8 years, with a focus on autism, family advocacy, and teacher training.