I believe I should be awarded this scholarship because I have fought through bullying and ridicule. The biggest hurdle faced is that my family had no idea what was going on. For years, it was tough bearing the weight of bullying and hiding it and I'm not sure which was worse. However, I knew I wanted to make a change. The day my mother found out about the bullying was when I mustered up the courage to ask her to show me how to fight. I needed to know because I was threatened to be beat up the next day. She was shocked! However, all night we practiced how to fight. She taught me how to talk smack and defend myself. I showed up to school ready and willing to fight for myself and stop having my education affected by my terrible bullies. I had enough! Truthfully, once I stood up to that bully, I knew I had the courage to do more, and I never had to fight. My mother signed me up for karate lessons to help me better understand and maintain my new found courage. This activity has made me into the strong and young person I am. Karate has taught me mental and physical strength and has allowed me to improve my grades. I have also begun involving myself instead of hiding. I wish I found this courage sooner but I have learned that things happen when they are supposed to. Having the courage to ask for help was the best decision to make. As a college graduate, I plan to work with local high schools in mentoring programs surrounding the next step of schooling. I want to make sure every student has an equal opportunity of success, even the students with lower GPA's or, unfavorable background or no extracurricular activities. I have witnessed many students in my school and partially myself miss opportunities for scholarships or certain college preparations simply because they weren't deemed a competitor. I want to be an example that you can overcome assumptions about what type of student you are and how much that determines your future success. I plan to use the money I make further down the line to hopefully start my own scholarship for students, especially for students with similar backgrounds to me, single parent household, average grades, busy schedules, through it all, you can still reach high and achieve those goals. Every student deserves a full or second chance at greatness even if they need an extra push.

Receiving this scholarship will help me reach my goals of exploring my curiosity and passion to the fullest. On paper, I am an average black female coming from a single parent household that faced financial insecurities throughout my life. Which is hard in a community like Cheltenham where lots of students come from two parent households. Beyond that I am so much more, I am highly intellectual, caring and eager for knowledge. I feel as though people would look at my statistics and academic background and assume poorly of me, maybe that I am careless or complacent. In reality, I strive to achieve learning and personal growth in everything I do. A major interest of mine is human anatomy, pursuing this interest so far has been one of my best choices in life. In college, I plan to major in biology and one day become a general surgeon. I see myself living a life of consistent education, helping others, and being a role model to people who have had similar upbringings. This scholarship would open my options on where I could attend university and allow me to include myself in opportunities I may have been excluded from. At Cheltenham, I am a varsity cheerleader, junior prom queen and junior varsity soccer player. Each of these activities have taught me to exude positive energy, a supportive nature and school spirit. This school year in particular was challenging during football season due to the sport being suddenly cancelled. There were unfavorable accusations for the team but I made it a priority to be a positive student cheerleader regardless of what the team, band, cheerleaders were enduring. I would send daily affirmations to my fellow students, encourage the dissolution of rumors, and speak positively on those responsible being held accountable. Often, my peers would talk with me when they needed a daily pick up of positive feedback. This occurred often after videos of the incident and news reports would air. I would remind students of our true school community where we are very good students who work hard with fine teachers and facility who would do anything they can to help us be successful and supportive counselors who make our mental wellness a priority. Cheltenham High School faced scrutiny after what occurred with our football team but we are so much more than that isolated incident. I strive daily to remind my peers that our school is strong and well respected throughout Montgomery County. Most importantly, I strive to be a role model to underclassmen by having a positive attitude and being a classmate they can look up to. We are a special school that produces successful members of society. I feel proud to call Cheltenham my school and feel deeply about protecting my peers and our resilience.