"Creating Connection" Junior year, I was granted the opportunity to lead GQ, a pageant spotlighting 10 students at Leland with talents, acts, and entertainment. I was in charge of managing show members, contestants, and sponsorships. As a redeeming chance at my event, I strived to re-center underlying Leadership values to center involved leadership to encourage community. When the process began, contestants felt immediately disconnected seeing GQ as simply an obligation they signed up for on a whim, creating a lack of connection and low effort. To rectify this, I digitally communicated with members regarding details and deadlines. Realizing that contestants felt anxious, additional rehearsals were something I advocated for to help contestants with their performances individually. Moreover, by introducing the idea of online donations, it helped create friendly competition and promotion pre-show, raising over $8,000. This steady build-up of excitement and safety continued into show day where crowds of students, teachers, and adults lined up to watch the show. Laughter and gasps filled the room as the audience reacted to corny cooking jokes, impressive magic tricks, and a drum performance. As I watched the show I helped create, I realized the individual growth from each member and the community fostered from it. Through bonding from shared experience and growth, it created experiences worth remembering for everyone. This continues currently, where I earned the leadership position of ASB Officer. Members approach me for assistance and feel safe enough to reach out to others. This confirmed that leadership is about impactful organization and involvement to create environments where others feel safe to flourish. I want to continue creating spaces in lives where people always feel seen, supported, and celebrated in their growth. "Kindness in Action" In the heart of Silicon Valley– competition and rigor took priority over students' well-being. The term “burning-out” was no stranger to students at Leland High. Students would cut class to study or leave school more stressed than ever. I struggled to navigate the overwhelming workload also. Knowing how many of my peers struggled silently with stress, anxiety, and depression this early into our sophomore year, I felt compelled to take action. Mental health was something often overlooked in schools, and I wanted to create a space where students and youth could find support without stigma and judgement. Here, I started a student-led nonprofit, OASIS, with other like-minded individuals, hosting discussions and connecting peers with outside resources to improve well-being. However, as passion grew, ideas became endless. It became difficult to narrow down ideas and execute larger goals without larger funds or a large platform. While navigating this problem, I realized how truly powerful community and collaboration could be; with the right amount of passion, research, and extensive outreach, many people were open to supporting my goals. This realization prompted me to expand the team to include students and licensed therapists, hosting in-person and online workshops and support calls on stress management and peer support. Students who had once kept quiet now were able to reach out for help and my advisors and teachers boasted about how our workshops have opened conversation in classrooms. By reaching out and collaborating with communities, visions came to life. When communities band together, we create vital spaces where people feel heard and less isolated. Through this work, I continued the mission to improve the well-being of others, creating a sense of community that many students lacked. I carry this lesson forward, continuing to build spaces where openness and support are not the exception, but the norm.

"And I can't say I'm a perfect ten / But I am the girl I’ve always been." Listening to Olivia Rodrigo, her melancholy and upbeat nature to her songs had always made me feel connected to her music and her as a person. Specifically as I was waiting for her album "GUTS (spilled)," I felt as if she had understood the feelings of every teenage girl in the world. In the deluxe song "girl i've always been," Olivia reveals her challenges in standing firm with her identity. As an Asian American girl in the US, I had felt exactly the same. Growing up, I felt extremely out of place with my environment. The need to mask my thoughts in order to feel assured by others had slowly eaten at my identity and the subtle implicit biases I'd experience had made way for more insecurity. Rodrigo's lyrics feels like a statement of stability and identity yet also reflects something more complicated: holding onto who you are while navigating a world that often tries to define you through gendered expectations and racial bias. I felt the need to hide myself, rather than embrace my heritage and identity. I realize my hesitations and insecurity now and accept them with empathy rather than push it away with hostility. Rodrigo's admission that she "can't say [she's] a perfect ten" allows room for imperfection and flaws. Societal pressures is the exact reason why young women experience violence, harassment, and constant judgement on the daily. Rodrigo addresses that "perfection" doesn't exist, admitting that she's "the girl [she's] always been." Growing up, I became increasingly aware of how differently girls are perceived and treated in subtle but persistent ways. There is an unspoken pressure to be agreeable, composed, and emotionally controlled, while still excelling academically and socially. When mistakes are made, they are sometimes judged more harshly or interpreted through stereotypes rather than individuality. Over time, these experiences can make you question whether you are being seen for who you truly are or for what others expect a girl to be. With that, listening to Rodrigo's song reminds every time of the necessity for growth, self-assurance, and staying true to your identity despite barriers and bigotry. It is an anthem of authenticity to address growth, critics, and toxicity in the world. This lyric reminds me that I haven’t lost myself and I’ve been revealing who I’ve always been. The resilience I rely on now didn’t suddenly appear; it was built through years of navigating challenges. My ability to support others, stay committed to my goals, and push forward even when things feel overwhelming has always been a part of me, even before I had the words to describe it. At the same time, my journey hasn’t been perfect. There have been moments of doubt, where I questioned whether I was doing enough or becoming the person I wanted to be. But looking back, I can see that growth doesn’t mean abandoning who you are—it means understanding yourself more deeply. Every challenge I’ve faced hasn’t changed my identity; it has clarified it. “I’m the girl I’ve always been” reflects a quiet confidence that I’ve come to value. It’s not about claiming that I’ve had everything figured out, but about recognizing that my core; it reveals my determination, my empathy, and my drive has remained constant. As I move forward, I carry that realization with me: I am not defined solely by the obstacles I face, but by the strength within me that has always been there and Olivia Rodrigo reminds me exactly of that.

I have recently been accepted to University of Washington Seattle. While I am deeply honored to have been accepted, the current aid package makes it difficult for my family and me to afford the cost of attendance without significant financial strain. It is close to $60,000 a year. After reviewing my financial aid offer from them, I was surprised to learn that I did not qualify for sufficient aid to meet my financial need. My family’s income has recently changed due to job loss, medical expense, and the cost of living in San Jose. My father was unemployed during 2024-2025 and my mom struggles financially, living paycheck to paycheck to provide for the family (4 children and herself). We are currently managing additional responsibilities such as supporting my grandfather who is ill, supporting my two younger siblings who are in middle and high school, and completely supporting my older brother at San Jose State University (tuition, food, expenses), also covering mental health bills for him. Moreover, we support my grandma who lives in San Jose— helping her with groceries costs and rent time to time. Through this, I learned the art of saving and mindful spending. It has helped me become organized and structured in my decision making, which is something I believe is crucial to any college student. Despite my financial limitations and barriers, I am impassioned to attend University of Washington because of its incredible and unique academic experience, specifically in psychology and social sciences. It has been my dream school since I was younger as I had an underlying connection to the city where UW lies. My dad was a refugee from Vietnam coming from the aftershocks of the Vietnam War and he laid his roots in a completely different world. This was Seattle, Washington. My dad would tell me stories about how despite his difficulties adapting to a new environment (learning a new language, adapting new customs, or developing navigational abilities), he was welcomed by the community in Seattle. Hearing stories of this, Seattle’s appreciation for culture and openness led me to my growing interest in the social sciences, like community building and psychological research. Although I do not live with my father anymore, these stories continue to motivate my passion for community, academics, and hard work— specifically at UW Seattle. UW Seattle cultivates the exact care and supportive experience that I hope to bring to communities, especially those are are marginalized and underprivileged. Whether that be through great commitment to groundbreaking research and academic achievement, or simply by creating a space where peers feel safe to use their voice. This is why University of Washington has been my number one goal. I worked hard academically and personally to earn this opportunity at UW, and I am determined to contribute to the campus community through joining student government, an onslaught of clubs involving STEM, volunteer work in the clinical psychology field and social welfare, research, or overall want to generate a positive and strong college environment. Moreover, I know I will be able to contribute past my undergraduate education and have a lifelong passion to help others who are underprivileged and of marginalized communities. I want my passion and commitment towards community to manifest in my goals of a further education (a Masters or P.H.D.). However, I hope to do this in a way that won’t strain my family further in financial burden. I respectfully hope you consider me as a worthy candidate for this scholarship.