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Anaya Diaz

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Winner

Bio

Hi, I’m Anaya Diaz, a senior at Carteret High School pursuing computer science and film-making/television production. I am an honors and AP student, involved in multiple extracurriculars such as a captain in our school’s marching band, a founding member of our braiding club Braiding Beauty, and a long-standing member of our school’s drama club, in a wide range of roles in crew. I am passionate about providing education and resources to underprivileged and underrepresented communities. Making these things accessible to people are so important to me. In the age of technology, it is so easy for uneducated people to be scammed or hacked, with their private information being released to the wrong people. Teaching people about the dangers of cybersecurity and how to better protect themselves, will create a safer community against those who wish to target vulnerable groups. I am and have always been a huge fan of TV and movies. The ability to tell a story within multiple mediums has always been fascinating to me. To see characters you adore and respect go through struggles you yourself have experienced, to see how they handle their adversity, it builds connections. For so long, performances have connected and resonated with people of all kinds. It is a form of communication. Going to college/university in pursuit of these topics will help me and others alike who are looking for that someone to help them understand and protect themselves the way that they should be, in ways they can understand.

Education

Carteret High School

High School
2020 - 2024

Miscellaneous

  • Desired degree level:

    Master's degree program

  • Majors of interest:

    • Computer and Information Sciences and Support Services, Other
    • Film/Video and Photographic Arts
    • Drama/Theatre Arts and Stagecraft
    • Library and Archives Assisting
  • Not planning to go to medical school
  • Career

    • Dream career field:

      Technology

    • Dream career goals:

    • CEO, Designer, Clothesmaker

      AnayaDCreations
      2022 – Present2 years

    Arts

    • Drama Club

      Theatre
      Puffs, Pippin, CJHS Highlights, Faculty Follies, Curtain's Up 2022, Curtain's Up 2023, 2022 Fall Talent Show
      2021 – Present

    Public services

    • Volunteering

      Pathway’s PALS — An active volunteer and event planner
      2020 – Present

    Future Interests

    Advocacy

    Philanthropy

    Goobie-Ramlal Education Scholarship
    Winner
    My name is Anaya Diaz, and my parents are from the Dominican Republic. My father immigrated to New York City when he was 18, following his mother who had come a year earlier to establish a stable life. He hoped that his efforts would pay off for his children one day. I am proud to say that my brother and I have had many opportunities thanks to our parents' hard work. We are honors and AP students with a passion for music, surrounded by kind and intelligent people in a community that our parents could only have dreamed of. We grew up in the Bronx, NY, in an area that was beautiful but deteriorating. My parents moved us to a small town in New Jersey, where my brother and I discovered our passions; he found physics, and I found computer science. I took computer science seriously for the first time in high school. Though my middle school had offered an elementary level class, I didn't understand the importance and impact of computer science on our world. But now I do. I have learned multiple coding languages in high school, and just this past summer, I discovered the various branches of the computer science industry. Cybersecurity particularly fascinated me; it's the effort to defend and protect people against cyber crimes. Unfortunately, some people misuse their cybersecurity knowledge for unethical purposes, such as hacking. I want to fight against that. My parents, who grew up without the technology we have today, are vulnerable to the dangers of the cyber world. My family in the Dominican Republic and my old neighborhood in the Bronx don't have access to the same educational resources I was lucky to receive. I moved to New Jersey and realized the advantages that so many people had from the start, advantages I never would have had if my parents and their parents never immigrated here. In college, I hope to get the education and opportunities that everyone deserves. No one should be vulnerable to a growing threat just because they were never given a chance. Too often, lack of resources is taken advantage of because people don't know any better. I want to educate, give back to my communities, and advocate for the importance of computer science and the need for diversity in the industry. Someone needs to be the voice and the open door for those who are just waiting for an opportunity to come but need a little help to get there. I want to be that person for my parents, grandparents, and the generations that will come after me. I am the product of my parents' progress and triumph.