A mountain top moment is defined as “an experience that rises above our day-to-day.” Clinging to a rock with 360 views and nearly 360 sharp drop-offs, I rose much higher, beyond my day-to-day toward greater perspective. Mountain tops are defined by the valleys and challenging assents, sometimes with seemingly no end. To reach our mountaintops, we have to be willing to step out of a comfortable valley and make an uncertain upward journey. Two summers ago, my parents and I took one of our seemingly classic national park road trips. Visiting Shenandoah National Park was an exciting bucket list item for an outdoorsy girl like me. However, this trip's primary purpose summoned challenging ideas about my future: a national park and college tour road trip. We would only see Shenandoah after stopping at the University of Kentucky, University of Virginia, and William and Mary. Through a winding road of academic considerations, we eventually reached the leisure portion of our vacation. With rushing waterfalls, stunning views, and lovely foliage, I unwound from the first half of my trip. Nearing the end of our time in the park, we deliberated on whether or not to pursue one more journey. Ultimately, I decided that a “rock scramble,” no matter how challenging, was something I couldn’t pass up. Starting my way up the trail, I soon realized why it wasn’t a traditional hike. I, as the name implied, scrambled up rock faces, straining my legs, arms, and mind. Without a harness, the wrong footing would send me tumbling down, making it a stressful exercise. At a certain point, my dad and sister turned back to return to the car; my dad took my phone with him. My fear of the upward path became even more clear, but I soon saw the eggs of my scramble. Just as my sister turned back, a light presence landed on my hand. A monarch butterfly fluttered its wings on my hand. With a scene that felt straight out of a princess movie, my labors began to feel purposeful. But there was still more to go. The rest of my journey led me on the most harrowing aspect, but also the most rewarding. Looking over the land for miles to go, I saw beauty in the simplicity of nature, a sense of peace, in contrast to the uncertainty of my future, washed over me. Without my phone, I was forced to mentally catalog this moment. Much like my rock scramble, my college search process has left me on unsure footing, fearing the journey to come. However, seeing the meaningful outcomes of this uncertainty left me with a sense of satisfaction. By being unafraid to pursue new opportunities at whatever school I attend, I will be gaining a new view of my life and adding a bit more beauty to my experience. Reading about Jake’s life, I’m inspired by the way he looked toward the next journey, especially through his motto “just one more.” With my inspiring mountain-top experience and his story, I hope to see a climb and not be afraid to conquer one more passion, dream, or opportunity.

While my career mindset has shifted over the years, my divergent aspirations for the future have always shared a common goal: impact others through scientific breakthroughs, writing, and creating innovative solutions to problems weighing on communities. Achieving this passion has created a unique angst for me. Do I approach my goal through public policy or engineering? While I consider this issue an inner struggle between my passions, I realized recently that I might better serve my community by combining these fields. Studying engineering and minoring in public policy will equip me with problem-solving skills and knowledge to develop and implement solutions that better the community. To serve a broader group and fulfill my passions, I shouldn’t concentrate on one career path; instead, my combined love for written expression, advocacy, and STEM problem-solving will play key roles in my future career path. At the basic level, engineering challenges and further develops my mathematics and science knowledge while providing the opportunity to apply theoretical concepts to concrete futures of discovery, all of which excite me. As a Kentucky Governor Scholar, over the past summer, I had the opportunity to more thoroughly understand engineering’s functionality by visiting the Army Corps of Engineers and East Kentucky Power; these trips opened my eyes to avenues of impact through engineering. When I visited the Army Corps of Engineers, I was enthralled with the McAlpine Locks and Dam on the Ohio River. This immense system remains a striking image of the challenges that civil engineers face and overcome to maintain what the public takes for granted. From the largest doors of a lock to the smallest microchip in the East Kentucky Power control room, our world is built on engineering infrastructure; therefore, engineering will allow me to explore fields and optimize my future impact. However, by pursuing a minor in public policy-related studies, I’ll merge my secondary passions for written communication and public policy, which I discovered through my experiences leading mock government conferences. Civil engineers create prosperous communities through the built environment, and the government sector can be a tool for creating uplifting infrastructure that fulfills my vision for improving the future. On the other hand, engineering offers opportunities in other fields I am passionate about. I greatly desire to continue pursuing topics that have sparked my academic passions in high school like public health and the interplay between biology and chemistry. In my junior year, I conducted a semester-long research project on GLP-1 receptor agonist medication’s role in treating the obesity epidemic in America. I investigated not only the drug’s efficacy but also its pharmaceutical manufacturing. Looking forward to an engaging and impactful career, I could use chemical engineering and public policy to solve pressing public health problems with drug development and public health advocacy. Ultimately, developing an engineer's mindset and expertise will serve me in passionately applying such skills to policy development. Whether I decide to work in civil engineering and develop more resilient urban infrastructure or chemical engineering and recommend public health approaches to new medications, technical understanding is crucial to working with the government to solve pressing issues facing local, state, and national communities. I want to be at the forefront of the innovators driving our nation forward, and I know engineering and public policy will propel me toward this future.

While my career mindset has shifted over the years, my divergent aspirations for the future have always shared a common goal: impact others through scientific breakthroughs, writing, and creating innovative solutions to problems weighing on communities. Achieving this desire has created a unique angst for me. Do I approach my goal through public policy or engineering? While I consider this issue an inner struggle between my passions, I realized recently that I might better serve my community by combining these fields. Studying engineering and public policy will equip me with problem-solving skills and knowledge to develop and implement solutions to better the community. To serve a broader group, I shouldn’t concentrate on one career path; instead, my combined love for written expression, advocacy, and STEM problem-solving will play key roles in my future career path. At the basic level, engineering challenges and further develops my mathematics and science knowledge while providing the opportunity to apply theoretical concepts to concrete futures of discovery, all of which excite me. As a Governor Scholar, over the past summer, I had the opportunity to more thoroughly understand engineering’s functionality by visiting the Army Corps of Engineers and East Kentucky Power; these trips opened my eyes to avenues of impact through engineering. When I visited the Army Corps of Engineers, I was enthralled with the McAlpine Locks and Dam on the Ohio River. This immense system remains a striking image of the challenges that engineers face and overcome to maintain what the public takes for granted. From the largest doors of a lock to the smallest microchip in the East Kentucky Power control room, our world is built on engineering; therefore, engineering will allow me to explore fields and optimize my future impact. However, by pursuing a minor in public policy-related studies, I’ll merge my passions for written communication and public policy, which I discovered through my experiences leading mock government conferences, to fulfill all aspects of my vision for the future. Striving to attend universities that offer highly rated engineering and public policy programs is crucial; therefore, I actively pursue scholarship assistance to open doors to academic opportunities at these schools. As a curious and dedicated student and community member, I will balance a major, minor, internships, and other personally developing engagements for my goals. Ultimately, developing an engineer's mindset and expertise will serve me in potentially applying such skills to policy advocacy. Whether I decide to work in civil engineering and develop more resilient urban infrastructure, biomedical engineering and recommend public health approaches to new medications, or mechanical engineering and refine requirements for fuel-effective cars, technical understanding is crucial to working with the government to solve pressing issues facing local, state, and national communities. I want to be at the forefront of the innovators driving our nation forward, and I know engineering and public policy will propel me toward this future.