“Double it and give it to the next person.” That TikTok phrase comes to mind when I hear “philanthropy.” Typically, a street interviewer approaches individuals and offers them money to answer questions. If the interviewee successfully answers the question, the interviewer either gives them the money or "doubles it and gives it to the next person." Some take the money while others would reserve it for the following person that is interviewed. It is an act of kindness; for both the person doing the interview and the person getting interviewed. It shows the mindset of doing good deeds without the thought of getting it returned back to you. This mindset reminds me of my mom. Whenever she is given something, she tries to give back to other people. She wants the best for everyone which inspires me to do the same. For instance, she donates a portion of her monthly earnings to family in The Gambia so they can purchase things they need for their well-being. I wanted to help in that way so I decided to help improve my local community. As one of the most famous cities in the world, NYC has its perks as well as its flaws. It has Wall Street, Times Square, and Rockefeller Center, but there are places in Midtown and Downtown Manhattan that have a huge homeless problem. There are about 9 million people living in the five boroughs combined so it's not shocking there's a huge homeless population. However, a lot of the money present does not go into assisting the people who need it the most. This is why in December 2021, I decided to raise money to donate to a children’s shelter through the Student Ambassadors Program at my school. Since my school is a uniform one, we get dress-downs (days where you don't have to wear a uniform) occasionally. I decided, with the help of my peers, that we could save a week where students could either bring in $2 or a new, unopened toy to buy a dress-down ticket. The money was then used to purchase toys so they could be given to a children's shelter of our choice. I was in charge of writing down the names of the students that bought the dress-down tickets. At the end of the week, we raised over 200 dollars and were so happy. I’m also an avid volunteer at “Room to Grow” which is a company that supports parents by giving out infant and toddler items such as clothes, shoes, and toys. I remember the first time I volunteered there, early this January, and was in shock at all the knowledge I received. Many parents in NYC struggle to buy baby clothes for their children because of the growing economy. I knew I needed to help and so I helped fold and package the child clothes that Room to Grow received. By the end of my time there, I and a few other volunteers finished packing up around 20 boxes full of items. In the near future, I would like to create and be on the front lines of opportunities like these to further assist my community. Seeing how we improved the children’s day at the shelter, I would like to increase this tenfold. In college, I plan to join student organizations and unions such as the Orange Seeds Club at Syracuse University which help students become active and get involved around the campus. I also plan to share my journey and hopefully inspire others to help out their communities.

3.14159… The endless numbers of pi. Whenever I think of math, I think of those ellipsis. The emission of words or numbers showcasing unfinished thoughts. Math is just that. We may not realize it day to day but math surrounds us. As I’m writing this, my fingers go toward the rectangular keyboard keys and my eyes shift toward the different shapes on my screen. Math is simple but complex at the same time. It just makes sense to me. When I moved to the U.S. at the age of 5, I was surrounded by inconsistencies. I was enrolled in kindergarten and was struggling. Struggling to make friends. Struggling to learn a new language. Struggling to make my own direction. Everything around me was changing except for one single thing: school. Every day I woke up, got ready, and went to school. First, the counting began. The study of addition and subtraction succeded. Following that, I began to understand how multiplication and division were just reiterations of the previous operations. From the uncertainty of other areas, math offered and continues to offer reassurance. It soon became my favorite subject because there was always a correct answer. There may be multiple ways of getting towards that answer but I knew that if I tried, I was bound to find the right answer. Moreover, math forms the foundation for a vast array of other disciplines. Fields like physics, economics, computer science, and even art rely heavily on mathematical principles. Math provides the framework for understanding and advancing these subjects. Mathematics invites me to perceive the world with deeper insight and appreciation. In a world full of change, chaos, and disaster, math is something that stays the same and continues to grow at the same time. And that’s how I want to be - staying true to my core values but being accepting of change.

I’m from coconut palm trees, whose leaves shaded the kids who read there. From going to “madrassa” every weekend, and reading the Qur’an daily. I’m from staying up with my cousins and picking up fresh mangoes from our grandma’s tree. So when I heard my mom and I was moving to America, I was fearful. My little 5-year-old mind couldn’t comprehend that the village of Tabanding was getting too small for us. With the money my dad made from being a security guard, I was on a plane before I knew it. Situating to the American lifestyle was not easy. The toilets were different, the living quarters were different, the people were different. Kindergarten was a time to adjust. When the new kid came along, my teachers situated her with me because they believed we spoke the same language. She spoke Fulani while I spoke Soninke. I dealt with the usual bullying of my darker complexion and when the Ebola virus came along, I was in for a ride. Everything was different except for the mosque. Going there every weekend brought a feeling of familiarity to me. When I started going, everything came together slowly. I started understanding the English language through the phonetics that Arabic shared. Between those moments, I knew I wanted to repay my family back home for all the sacrifices they gave. I was always raising my hand, asking the teacher for help. The next thing I knew, I was graduating valedictorian in elementary school. I kept it up these past years, serving as a student ambassador and planning toy drives for underprivileged children because I knew that if someone had done the same for me, I would have been grateful. I am from plastic pages, clear, but flimsy, that held me throughout these years.