Technology, to me, represents opportunity, protection, and progress. Technology critical to how people learn, work, and interact in today’s digital society. My understanding of technology began early in my academic journey and has since evolved into a passion for cybersecurity, where I aim not only to protect systems but also to educate and empower others. My cybersecurity journey began within the Early College program at my high school. The program allows high school students to take classes at a community college with the end goal of receiving an associate's degree. One of those classes, Business Computer Information Systems (BCIS), introduced me to the foundations of technology and sparked my interest in technology. After graduating high school with my Associate of Arts degree, I attended the University of North Texas (UNT) to major in BCIS. While taking classes at UNT, I accepted a position at the IT Help Desk. The position was my first formal IT job and quickly became vital to my career. Through this role, I developed technical skills, strengthened my problem-solving ability, and gained firsthand insight into how technology supports organizations. After earning my degree from UNT, I continued in the same career path and took a position at a community college as an IT Customer Service Representative II for the Service Desk. Right now, I work in the support of the Workday Student, Microsoft Entra ID, and MFA systems. Every day, I help students, faculty, and staff with problems like access difficulties, and account and MFA support challenges. While my role is primarily IT support, my curiosity about cybersecurity has continued to grow. Being surrounded by a higher education environment has pushed me to want more for my career. I want to understand how to prevent access issues, secure systems, and protect sensitive information before vulnerabilities could be exploited. Ultimately, my goal is to become a Cybersecurity Engineer. This drive has led me to take the next step in my academic and professional journey. I am currently pursuing a Master’s degree in Cybersecurity and Information Assurance at Western Governors University. Through this program, I am learning about penetration testing, incident response, cloud security, risk management, and identity-based protection strategies. Working in a community college setting has also had a profound impact on my long-term goals. Being surrounded by students who are beginning or continuing their academic journeys has inspired me to not only advance in cybersecurity, but also to one day become a professor. I am determined to help students build confidence, develop technical skills, and discover opportunities in technology just as I once did. My service desk support experience has given me a unique perspective on the user side of technology. At the same time, I recognize how even small gaps in authentication or access control can create significant security risks. This combination of technical exposure and user-centered understanding allows me to approach cybersecurity with both practicality and purpose. What motivates me most is the opportunity to contribute to a purpose-driven industry. Cybersecurity goes beyond barriers and systems to focus on people, their data, and their trust. Every password reset, MFA setup, and access request has the potential to either strengthen or weaken an organization’s security posture. I want to be part of building stronger, more resilient systems that reduce risk and improve user confidence. Receiving this scholarship will foster my ability to advance my education and develop new skills and credentials to be a successful cybersecurity professional. This will bring me one step closer to contributing to a field that is essential in today’s digital world.

Diversity and inclusion in the workplace are very important to me. Diversity means seeing and interacting with people of a different background than me. This can include race, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, culture, lifestyle, experiences, or interests. Diversity is important because it brings new perspectives, innovation, and encourages growth. When you have diversity, people become more culturally aware and culturally sensitive. You learn how to respect other people’s beliefs and values. This also creates a welcoming environment for everyone. Currently, I am majoring in Business Computer Information Systems at the University of North Texas. My passion is technology, specifically the field of Cybersecurity. The person that inspired me is Roy Clay Sr. He is an African American inventor and computer scientist. He was born in 1929 and is currently 94 years old. He is a founding member of the computer division at Hewlett-Packard. He also led the team of people that created the HP 2116A in 1969. He is one of the most influential Black innovators in technology and science. I first learned about him in my high school science class during Black History Month. He stood out to me because he was a Black person in tech. As a Black woman, this resonated with me because we do not have much representation in this field of study. This inspired me and made me want to work harder to achieve a technical degree in college. I plan to use my passion to positively affect my community by establishing a non-profit. The goal of this non-profit will be to help Black women secure tech-based roles. According to a 2021 report by the National Center for Women and Information Technology, 26 percent of tech jobs were held by women. Of that 26 percent, only 3 percent were held by Black or African American women. Winning this scholarship will make a tremendous difference in my life because it will reduce the amount I have to pay for college. This upcoming fall, I will be an incoming senior. All my life, I have dreamt about graduating from college. The only uncertain thing is how I am going to pay for it. Currently, at the University of North Texas, there is a housing crisis. This means the university is accepting too many first-year students and does not have enough dorms to accommodate upperclassmen. Due to this, I will be living in an off-campus apartment and have to pay rent. I deserve this scholarship because I am a hardworking individual. I am a full-time university student who participates in several student organizations. For the 2023-2024 academic year, I will be living in an apartment near my university. I recently accepted an on-campus job that will help pay for my apartment. I am also applying for as many scholarships as possible to help limit the amount of out-of-pocket money I will use. If I get this scholarship, your money will not be wasted. This will also help me get one step closer to attaining my goal, which is graduating debt free. The greatest challenge I have had to overcome was experiencing deaths in my family and staying focused in school at the same time. In the Fall of 2020, my uncle, Michael Cooper, sadly passed away. His death was due to a condition called muscular dystrophy. It was sad and his death still affects me. In the Fall of 2021, I started college at the University of North Texas. My first semester was challenging due to the effects of COVID. In my classes, there were constantly people who caught COVID-19. This made it hard to learn because sometimes I could not attend class. On October 23 of Fall 2021, my great-grandmother on my dad's side, Arnell Green passed away. She passed due to cancer and it greatly affected me. In the Spring of 2022 my great-grandmother on my mom's side, Irene Winn passed away. She suffered from pre-existing conditions and caught COVID. Since these situations have happened my GPA dropped. For the Fall 2022 semester, I made it on the Dean's List for exemplary academic performance. My cumulative GPA is now a 3.0 and I am working very hard to improve my GPA every semester. Overall, I am a very passionate person about the Cybersecurity field. I want to see more Black women hold tech-based roles. I would love to have more representation and see people who look like me in this field. I believe more companies must become diverse and hire more Black women. In the future, I hope to see more Black women get opportunities in this field of study. Instead of waiting for change, I want to be the change.

Hello, my name is Alexandria Brown. I am a senior majoring in Business Computer Information Systems at the University of North Texas. Throughout my time in college, I joined student organizations such as the Black Student Union and the National Association of Black Accountants. These organizations promote diversity and inclusion on the University of North Texas campus. As a general member, I marketed these organizations on campus and helped attract and retain members. The goals of these organizations help to provide a safe space on campus for Black Students and foster diversity and inclusion in the workspace. My passion is technology, specifically the field of Cybersecurity. The person that inspired me is Roy Clay Sr. He is an inventor and computer scientist. He was a founding member of the computer division at Hewlett-Packard. He also led the team of people that created the HP 2116A in 1969. He is one of the most influential Black innovators in technology and science. I first learned about him in my high school science class during Black History Month. He stood out to me because he was a Black person in tech. I am a Black woman and this resonated with me because we do not have much representation in this field of study. This inspired me and made me want to work harder to achieve a technical degree in college. I plan to use my passion to positively affect my community by establishing a non-profit. The goal of this non-profit will be to help Black women secure tech-based roles. According to a 2021 report by the National Center for Women and Information Technology, 26 percent of tech jobs were held by women. Of that 26 percent, only 3 percent were held by Black or African American women. I believe that this degree will give me foundational knowledge about technology so I can help provide information to women in my community. I want to be an inspiration to people just like Roy Clay Sr. was to me. Also, going to college gives me the ability to network. By networking, I can make connections with people and get them on board with this idea. Overall, I am a very passionate person about the Cybersecurity field. I want to see more Black women hold tech-based roles. I would love to have more representation and see people who look like me in this field. I believe more companies must become diverse and hire more Black women. In the future, I hope to see more Black women get opportunities in this field of study. Instead of waiting for change, I want to be the change.

Although I intend to major in Business, I have a great love for music and playing the saxophone. The reason I wanted to play an instrument is because I was inspired by listening to Dexter Gordon, one of the best saxophonist of all time. I became interested in music because my dad used to play jazz music in the car when I was a little girl. I then began thinking that maybe one day, I could play an instrument like those musicians that I had once heard on the radio. Now, I have been playing the saxophone for six years and it is the driving force in my life. All four years of high school, I participated in the marching, concert, and jazz band. I played alto, tenor, and baritone saxophone during those years too. Being in the band is one of the best decisions I have ever made in my life. Music is a big part of my life, and it has helped me to express myself. The memories of being in the band, after-school practice, football games, and winning band competitions will all be held close to my heart. I will always love music for the opportunities that it has given me.

Throughout my life, I have encountered lots of adversity. An example of this is the death of grandfather. A few years ago, my grandfather passed away suddenly because of an illness. We were very close and he was practically my best friend. His death devastated me and I did not know what to do. For many days I cried because I was so heartbroken. I overcame this situation of adversity by talking to my family about how I was feeling. Thankfully, my family was very supportive and helped me get through this sad situation. This experience shaped who I am because it helped me cherish my loved ones now. I also realized that every day is not guaranteed. Overcoming this helped me to become a stronger person and persevere. This situation of adversity also helped me to have better expectations for myself. Before my grandfather passed away, he told me that he was saving up money so I could go to college. I always used to tell him how I wanted to attend a great college and graduate. My grandfather was so supportive because this was something that he was never able to do. He grew up in a very racist society and was not able to get a college education. Now, I expect to attend college, leave debt-free, get a degree, and get a good job. My personal goals are to maintain a healthy family relationship and become a better person every day. Even though I have faced adversity, the overall outcome of the situation was positive.

Throughout my life, I have overcome adversity. An example is the death of grandfather. A few years ago, my grandfather passed away suddenly because of an illness. We were very close and he was practically my best friend. His death devastated me and I did not know what to do. For many days I cried because I was so heartbroken. I overcame this situation by talking to my family about it. Thankfully, my family was very supportive and helped me through this sad situation. This experience shaped who I am because it helped me cherish my loved ones now. I also realized that every day is not guaranteed. This situation helped me to have better expectations for myself. Before my grandfather passed away, he told me that he was saving up money so I could go to college. I always used to tell him how I wanted to attend college. My grandfather was so supportive because this was something that he was never able to do. He grew up in a very racist society and was not able to get a college education. Now, I expect to attend college, leave debt-free, get a degree, and get a good job. My personal goals are to maintain a healthy family relationship and become a better person every day.