Hi, my name is Amanda, a high school student in Florida attending G. Holmes Braddock High School. I’m passionate about entrepreneurship, financial literacy, and real estate. I grew up in a home with my twin sister, raised by a single mom. I witnessed resilience every day. My mom did it all by herself, working, paying bills, going to school meetings, and everything else life threw at her. I saw her take limited resources and create stability in our family, and I learned two lessons in the process: first, I never grasped how significant it was to provide for a family without a net to land on, and second, financial knowledge is powerful in creating long-term opportunity. Those lessons contributed to my development and my entrepreneurial goals. I intend to major in Business Administration with a concentration in Finance. I envision creating a mission-driven business that will be somewhere in the intersection of real estate and financial literacy. My objective is to help families like mine, especially families that are underrepresented, to achieve home ownership, financial stability, and access to wealth-building tools. I know knowledge is power, and too many families are denied access to that power just because no one has ever taught them how to properly manage credit, save money appropriately, or read a housing contract. I want to build a business that fills those gaps. I don't want to just sell homes or provide services. I want to lead free workshops, mentor young people, and collaborate with schools and community organizations to teach financial literacy daily. For me, entrepreneurship is about more than creating a successful business; it is about creating a platform for change. I want to create programs that will teach students to create financial goals, to understand investments, and to gain control of their futures. I want to help parents purchase homes they can hand down. I want to create something that lasts beyond my time and continues to work for the community after it is started. Every part of that vision is grounded in creativity, empathy, and the desire to use business as a vehicle for equity. I understand that being an entrepreneur is not always going to be easy. There will be sleepless nights, creative solutions to problems, sacrifice, and learning at all times. But I also understand that I can take on that challenge. I am self-motivated, I can think critically, and I lead with the heart. I believe that great businesses are built on trust, transparency, and service, and I will uphold those values in every client interaction and every decision I make. This scholarship would help me take the first step in actualizing my vision. I have firsthand experience of how much of a difference opportunity can make as someone from an underrepresented background. With your help, I could pursue higher education without having financial stress as a barrier. I could focus on growing my business knowledge, facilitating community partnerships, and building a service-based business that helps real people in real ways. I want to be part of the generation that does not just dream of a better world but creates it. With an education in finance, life experiences, and the heart of an entrepreneur, I feel like I can help others elevate, through housing, education, and financial freedom. Thank you for investing in students like me, who are ready to create, lead, and change history.

Structure, logic, and clarity. The first time I read a housing contract, I was dumbfounded at how complicated a contract could be. I wasn’t even the one signing it, but I watched as a family member struggled to interpret what it was they were agreeing to. The language was dense and complicated, the terms were buried, and the person on the other side of the table didn’t seem interested in explaining much of the content. Being a lawyer has always been in the pool of careers I’ve wanted to pursue, but in that moment, I realized how powerful knowledge of the law is- and how damaging it can be when you don’t have it. That experience ignited my interest in law and real estate. I started to notice how legal language controls access to housing, land, and opportunity, and how those without the right tools often lose out. I want to become a real estate lawyer, not because I love contracts, but because I care about access and fairness. The law can either lock people out or open doors, and I strive to be someone with the key. I have been enthusiastic about law as a profession because it can help real people and communities. I am fascinated with how the law touches people on the ground level, from zoning laws that dictate where businesses can open to eviction proceedings that affect families in crisis. I want to be a professional who not only understands the legal systems, but who uses that knowledge to help others understand and navigate those systems. In preparation for my career as a legal advocate, I intend to pursue a Business Administration degree concentration in Finance. I do this because I believe it will make me a better legal advocate, especially when advocating for real estate and housing issues. By understanding both the financial side of property and the legal side of property, I will solve problems with precision and practical experience. In my long-term career goals, I intend to be a key player at the intersection of housing, policy, and justice, helping everyday people navigate systems too often stacked against them. This is not a hypothetical passion to me. I knew from experience that I should not expect to just remember the facts--the most difficult part about practicing law is being willing to stand beside someone when they are overwhelmed, and requiring the skills to assist them in a way that is useful. I have an interest in pre-law studies because I have witnessed the unfortunate realities of not having access to legal knowledge. I want to be a lawyer who breaks the boundary that keeps vulnerable people without legal support; I want to protect, explain, and empower individuals. I believe that the law should work for everyone, not just those who can pay for a lawyer or speak the language of contracts, which is not easy to learn. For me, the law is about justice, clarity, and service. It is not simply a career path, but a life journey. I believe that I am ready to pursue this commitment whole-heartedly and with integrity.