With $1,000, I would pay a portion of this semester's tuition bill. I currently have a hold on my account, preventing me from registering for my Practicum courses for next semester, as I have not been able to pay my bill in full. I work full time as a Study Hall teacher at a public high school and am taking 15 credits of courses at University of Northern Colorado. I take night classes in order to tackle both responsibilities and lifestyles of mine. I work very hard, stay on top of my responsibilities, but ultimately, struggle to make an Instructional Para's hourly wage while paying rent, utilities, bills (wifi), gas, groceries, tuition, books, etc. I am responsible for paying for all of my schooling on my own. I do not receive any federal grants or help. In all honesty, I would probably shed a few less stress tears knowing that I have some stability and comfort in the future of my education (being able to register for next semester) and in my current financial situation. I appreciate your consideration and donation to current students looking to better themselves and the community. With $1,000, I would find comfort in knowing that I will be able to better my community and continue to work passionately in the world of Special Education.

When in high school, I was an active member of my high school's community and made one of the mot positive changes possible. When in my sophomore year of high school, I met J, one of my peers that has Autism. J and I were paired to work together in our US History class as he did not have a PARA assigned to the class. Our teacher decided that I would be the most patient and helpful fit for him. Once I got to know him, I joined peer a tutoring program, aided for his SPED Social Studies class, and joined the Unified Basketball team. We became friends and teammates. When I first joined the Unified Basketball team, I was the only peer helper. I notices how much this brought the team down as many of the players that needed assistance did not get a lot of playing time. They also noticed that the other teams had so many peer helpers- friends, to assist them. From then on, I worked hard to recruit many others in my high school to participate. Eventually, the community of unified team at my high school got so large, our team attended a Unified Basketball tournament and the entire school- marching band, other sports teams, all students, teachers, and administrators gave us a wonderful send off. Then, as the community of Unified Sports began to spread, our school was able to participate in Unified Bowling as well! When I graduated, the teachers and coaches that I worked with closely thanked me for making the positive changes in our school that only a student could make, and for being a great inclusion advocate. The school's Unified Sports teams are still going strong years later! Becoming involved in one's school/community is one of the best things you could do for yourselves, and for others. I learned that I wish to be a Special Education teacher and my peers gained a positive, loving, supportive extracurricular experience.

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I believe that it is important for people to be involved in their communities because when in high school, I was an active member of my community and made one of the mot positive changes possible. When in my sophomore year of high school, I met J, one of my peers that has Autism. J and I were paired to work together in our US History class as he did not have a PARA assigned to the class. Our teacher decided that I would be the most patient and helpful fit for him. Once I got to know him, I joined peer a tutoring program, aided for his SPED Social Studies class, and joined the Unified Basketball team. We became friends and teammates. When I first joined the Unified Basketball team, I was the only peer helper. I notices how much this brought the team down as many of the players that needed assistance did not get a lot of playing time. They also noticed that the other teams had so many peer helpers- friends, to assist them. From then on, I worked hard to recruit many others in my high school to participate. Eventually, the community of unified team at my high school got so large, our team attended a Unified Basketball tournament and the entire school- marching band, other sports teams, all students, teachers, and administrators gave us a wonderful send off. Then, as the community of Unified Sports began to spread, our school was able to participate in Unified Bowling as well! When I graduated, the teachers and coaches that I worked with closely thanked me for making the positive changes in our school that only a student could make, and for being a great inclusion advocate. The school's Unified Sports teams are still going strong years later! Becoming involved in ones community is one of the best things you could do for yourselves, and for others. I learned that I wish to be a Special Education teacher and my peers gained a positive, loving, supportive extracurricular experience.

I am passionate about becoming a teacher because I am passionate about Special Education. I am passionate about Special Education because I know Josh. Josh has Autism. Josh is the kindest, sweetest, funniest person I know. Josh and I were paired to work together in our US History class as he did not have a PARA assigned to the class. Our teacher decided that I would be the most patient and helpful fit for him. Once I got to know him, I joined peer a tutoring program, aided for his SPED Social Studies class, and joined the Unified Basketball team. We became friends and teammates. Being a part of the Special Education classes, creating connections and learning from the Special Education teachers, watching and participating in the unified games, and creating relationships with all of my other peers that have disabilities, I was sure that the world of Special Education is where my heart lies. I decided that I would become a High School Aide SPED PARA for the after school childcare program at the elementary school down the street from my school. I looked after a 5 year old boy named Tristan. Tristan taught me SO much about working with students with special needs. I learned about First...Then..., about safety procedures, kindness tailored to individual students, and most importantly, patience. I then worked with a 3 year old boy named Bentley. I learned about behavior management, schedules and routines, aggression, and classroom management. Then, 10 year old Cooper. I learned more about relationship and trust building. From these programs, I gained so much experience and did all I could to experience as much as possible and to learn from the role models around me. Now, I am currently taking online and night classes at University of Northern Colorado, the top teaching school in the state. I am an entire year ahead because I simply can not wait to get into a classroom as a teacher as soon as possible. I complete my classes online at night because during the day, I work at a public high school as an Instructional Para- Study Hall Supervisor. I have my own classroom, 8 classes with an average of 30 students in each, and relationships with administrators and other staff members. My goal is to be an empathetic, patient, and knowledgable teacher, case manager, unified sports coach, inclusion advocate, and leave many more positive impacts on the school that I will work at.