Throughout life, I have felt very blessed with the emotional support of my family. I have always had a very strong family unit, and have never felt alone in life. Despite the emotional support I have always had, my family struggled very hard financially growing up. My mother had me at 20 years old, while living in my grandparent’s basement with my father and siblings. I was the third child of four. My parents, 2 siblings and I shared a room in my grandparents house for the beginning of my life, with little to no money to our name. My parents were very determined to save up, and find a home for our family. After working non-stop, while taking care of three children, my parents saved up enough money to buy our starter home. We moved into a trailer, which would become our home for the next 7 years of my life. During this 7 years, my mom was determined to get her teaching degree through a night school program. My dad worked 7 AM- 7 PM, and took care of us kids at night so my mom could achieve this goal. They had their 4th child during this time, and thought that there was no longer any chance of my mom earning her degree. However, my mom did not give up. She gave birth to my little sister, and now all 4 of us children shared a bedroom. I remember at the young age of 6, waiting in line with my dad at the local Salvation Army to receive assistance for heat in our trailer. During this time, my mother was still continuing her path of education, and getting closer to the finish line. There were times we didn’t know where our next meal was coming from. However, my parents always somehow found a way to make it work. Even if it meant them going without dinner so us kids could eat, they always found a way. Finally, the day came where my mom graduated college. From this point on, we started to live more and more comfortably as the years went on. We started to receive Christmas gifts. We started being able to go out and buy clothes instead of wearing donated clothes. We began eating out once a month as a special treat. These are things I would have never imagined in my early years of life. This adversity, of growing up in poverty, has certainly made me the hardworking, independent, and gracious person I am today. Seeing my parents never give up on achieving their goals has made me learn that no matter how hard it is, you never give up in life. Hard times come and go, and as long as you can see the importance in the finish line, there is nothing that can stop you. I have also learned to enjoy the simple things in life. Even when my family had no money, no heat, and limited food, we still were surrounded with love and support, and knew that no matter what, we would be okay. I believe that I am able to see what really matters in life, and will forever be thankful to understand the life lesson of working hard for what you want out of life.

My name is Alexa Zeman. I am currently a certified occupational therapist assistant working for my local educational service center treating our special education children in our county. I work with children with a wide range of disabilities every day, and get to see their progress first-hand, which is the most rewarding job of all. I graduated from Kent State University with my associates in applied science in 2022, and am currently enrolled in the University of Cincinnati's online bachelor's in science program in hopes to further my education in the health science field. What led me to choose my major was my love for the healthcare field, combined with my love for helping people who need it most. For as long as I can remember, I have known that I wanted a career based around helping the populations most in need. Although I have my associate in applied science, I am enrolled in Muskingum University's Master of Occupational Therapy program, class of 2027, due to my love for my career field. Although I am already pursuing my career as an occupational therapist assistant in the school settings, I am excited to take the next step in my career and become an occupational therapist, which will come along with growth in this field, making me overall a better clinician and enabling me to provide amazing results to my students in need. I will be more well-versed in my professional development, and therefore able to give my students the greatest chance for improvement. Seeing the kids I work with accomplish new goals and develop new skills, brings a sense of accomplishment that makes every day of work feel like a blessing. I have known since a young age that I have wanted to be a part of the medical field. I have always found that helping others has been my purpose in life, and the ability to help the more vulnerable populations, like children or elderly, is one of the greatest gifts to have. My first job out of college was working at a school that specializes in working with children on the autism spectrum. When I first got this job, I was not yet certified to practice occupational therapy. Therefore, I worked as a classroom aide who assisted in the student’s school days. It did not take long to realize that this is the population I was meant to work with. The passion I felt for working with these children, and the full heart I felt going home after a day with them is something that has stuck with me. When I set my mind to something, I will not stop until I have given it my all. This is the reason I want to continue my education; because I know I have more potential in this field and being provided with this scholarship can help me reach that potential. Thank you. -Alexa Zeman

My name is Alexa Zeman, and I am currently enrolled in Muskingum University’s Master of Occupational Therapy program. I currently hold my associate in applied science, graduating from the occupational therapy assistant program at Kent State University Ashtabula in 2021. I am currently a certified occupational therapist assistant working for my local educational service center, servicing our special education students in Ashtabula county. I am continuing my education at Muskingum University due to my love for my career field. My interest for this career field has immensely bloomed since working with the children that I treat. As occupational therapists we work with a wide demographic, ranging from students with handicapped disabilities, to students on the autism spectrum, to students with visual/hearing impairments. Although I am already pursuing my career as an occupational therapist assistant in the school settings, I am enrolled in the Muskingum MOT program to continue my education and become an Occupational Therapist. When making the decision of continuing my education or not, I had a lot of concerns to take into consideration. The leading hesitation toward returning to school was of course finances. When attending Kent State University Ashtabula for my associates degree, I had to work close to full time throughout school to fund my education. Nearly every cent I made went towards living expenses, or my tuition bills. Due to this, I did not have a chance to build up a savings that I could use toward furthering my education. This time around, I am forced to take out loans to afford my tuition. I am taking upper level courses that are less affordable than my previous college experience. Due to this, my loans do not cover the total cost of tuition. I am depending on generous donors and scholarships to help assist me throughout the upcoming school years. I know that when I put my mind to something, I will achieve it. I fully invest myself in what I do, and if I am given the chance to pay for part of my tuition with scholarships at the Muskingum University, I know that I will succeed. Not only will I succeed in earning my master's degree, but I will succeed in furthering my knowledge and professional development as a certified occupational therapist assistant. I believe that furthering my education in this field will make me overall a better clinician and enable me to provide amazing results to my students in need. I will be more well-versed in my professional development, and therefore able to give my students the greatest chance for improvement. Seeing the kids I work with accomplish new goals and develop new skills, brings a sense of accomplishment that makes every day of work feel like a blessing. I am hoping to further my knowledge in this career field to make me an overall better therapist and allow me to provide the greatest level of help to these children. This scholarship would make this possible by helping fund my educational journey

My name is Alexa Zeman. I am currently a certified occupational therapist assistant working for my local educational service center treating our special education children in our county. I work with children with a wide range of disabilities every day, and get to see their progress first-hand, which is the most rewarding job of all. I graduated from Kent State University with my associate in applied science with a 3.26 GPA. I spent a lot of time during high school participating in the CCP program, receiving college credit while being a student at Jefferson Area High School. I am enrolled in the University of Cincinnati's online bachelor's in science program in hopes to further my education in the health science field. What led me to choose my major was my love for the healthcare field, combined with my love for helping people who need it most. For as long as I can remember, I have known that I wanted a career based around helping populations in need. Although I have my associate in applied science, I am enrolling for my Bachelor of Science in allied health due to my love for my career field. Although I am already pursuing my career as an occupational therapist assistant in the school settings, I believe that furthering my education in this field will make me overall a better clinician and enable me to provide amazing results to my students in need. I will be more well-versed in my professional development, and therefore able to give my students the greatest chance for improvement. Seeing the kids I work with accomplish new goals and develop new skills, brings a sense of accomplishment that makes every day of work feel like a blessing. I have known since a young age that I have wanted to be a part of the medical field. I have always found that helping others has been my purpose in life, and the ability to help the more vulnerable populations, like children or elderly, is one of the greatest gifts to have. I believe that my dedication in graduating with my associate in applied science at 20 years old shows my determination and commitment to furthering my education. When I set my mind to something, I will not stop until I have given it my all. This is the reason I want to continue my education; because I know I have more potential in this field and being provided with this scholarship can help me reach that potential. Once graduated with my Bachelor of Science in Allied Health, I plan to continue working as an occupational therapist assistant and use my newly gained knowledge in my work. Although I am currently an occupational therapist assistant, I plan to become an occupational therapist in the future. There are several OTA to OT bridge programs offered in the country. However, to get to the point of graduate school to become an OT, I need to first earn my bachelor's degree. I plan to continue working as an occupational therapist assistant while earning my bachelor's degree. I hope to continue working with children with disabilities as an OTA, and then as an OT. I have found true passion in this career field and look forward to expanding my knowledge in this field. Eventually, I would like to mentor other occupational therapist assistants who are just starting out in their career journey and share my knowledge and love for this field to others who share the same passion.