I sympathized with my mom because she never asked to have a single-mother life. If anything she desired to be a great mother and wife, but she longed to do this under one roof, with one family. Building off her broken desires, I took it upon myself to be the backbone of our family. Little did I know that being the backbone of my family would be one of my greatest strengths and challenges, but also a furnace for the burning desire to be an aiding factor in other aspects of my life. Taking on this role came with a lot of responsibility and resilience. Managing my academic and personal life, while also relieving some of the stress from my mom's plate by taking care of my sisters can be a heavy weight to hold. Taking my sisters to and from school, getting them to practice, helping with homework, running my mom's errands so she can be at work, making dinner, taking care of my grandma, and more can be much to manage when my personal and academic life is just as busy. Nonetheless, I kept pushing myself to do it all because, at the end of the day, I knew my mother had much more to handle. I take pride in my role of helping my mother because knowing I can make a difference within our home made me want to be an impacting factor in any aspect of my life, which led to my heavy involvement in my academic and personal life. I’m an early college student who attends college and high school. I am part of many leadership roles within my high school, such as being part of multiple honor societies, a Superintendent's Student Advisory Council member, an Active Minds Club Officer, a School Family Representative, and a Service Leader. To add the cherry on top, I also have a job at Urban Air and tutor for a past teacher of mine, which I work weekly, while also managing to help take care of my sisters within the same time constraints. I don’t have an ounce of loathing for any of these commitments, if anything I find gratification within these duties. They’ve helped me be irrepressible while also building a name for myself. Being the backbone has made me a remarkable daughter, older sister, student, employee, and human being. It may sometimes be a struggle, but I can’t help but appreciate the experience because it built my hardiness for the real world while also allowing me to help my mother who I admire so much. I’ve gained my strength through her and she is my greatest inspiration. I aspire to be equivalent to her greatness. Seeing her strength of character only made me want to be just as strong as her, driving me to work harder in life to make her proud. Living up to her expectations of me, and most importantly being a role model for my sisters whom I’ve helped raise. I use my resilience as a portrait of inspiration to my sisters so that they can see that with strong will and passion, they can do anything. I aim to be someone they look up to and can come to for advice when needing to take their next steps. Watching me manage all that I do inspires them to keep going in school, sports, performing arts, and all that they do so they can exceed further in greatness just as I did. How I am inspired by my mother to uphold excellence, I inspire my sister to do so as well, and more.

Mental Health is a significant factor in my life. It is important to me because I believe that if you are unhappy, struggling, or down, life is much harder to bear. Although I also understand that one can not be at 100% all the time. For me, maintaining a stable mental health is important because my one goal in life is to find peace and balance within myself and life, also mental health issues run deep within my family and I do not want to repeat the cycle of negative downfalls in this aspect. Contributing to supporting my mission, I have many healthy habits that I utilize to help me manage my mental health, while also being an advocate in my community for Mental Health. For starters, my most comforting mechanism when aiding my mental health is to get dressed up and go out, whether it be with friends or family. Being around those I love is most comforting because it allows me to leave my space of loneliness. When I am out and about it heals me, allowing me to forget my chaos for a while, later putting me in a headspace that’s ready to battle my challenges. Another mechanism I use is service and outreach. I am an officer for my national nonprofit organization at school called Active Minds as well as a committee member on the Mental Health Committee in Humble ISDs Superintendent's Student Advisory Council, and for both groups I do community service and outreach for Mental Health. In these two groups I am able to organize and do community service at events in my community such as our annual Mental Health Fair, as well as spread awareness around my school about mental health and its significance. Doing community service and helping others is a core value of mine so when engaging in it, I feel at peace. Outreach is also very helpful because being able to advocate about mental health to others and ways to manage and understand it makes me feel just as good because I am able to help others battle mental health, which I know is sometimes difficult to manage. Ultimately, I am a person who manages my mental health by being and engaging in public settings and human interaction. Being cooped up inside and alone allows my mind to wonder and stress, so when I am in public having fun or serving others, I can escape and feel relief. I take mental health very seriously, and will continue too as it keeps a positive balance in my life. The mechanism I have shared today or only a few of the many that I have. As I take on this journey to adulthood with greater stressors, I will carry on by doing my best to maintain a healthy mental health. This is my promise to myself and to all that are giving me the opportunity to apply to this scholarship. I will continue to utilize my mechanisms that help me and my mental health, as well as continuing to be an advocate for mental health to help the lives of others who unbeknownst to us are struggling.

Being the backbone of my family while also being heavily involved within my school district, home campus, and community has helped me embody a gritty mindset, as well as a strong force of resilience. Managing these responsibilities is one of my greatest strengths and challenges, but also a furnace for the burning desire to be an aiding factor in other aspects of my life. Managing my academic and personal life, while also relieving some of the stress from my mom's plate by taking care of my sisters can be a heavy weight to hold. Taking my sisters to and from school, getting them to practice, helping with homework, running my mom's errands so she can be at work, making dinner, taking care of my grandma, and more can be much to manage when my personal and academic life is just as busy. Nonetheless, I kept pushing myself to do it all because, at the end of the day, I knew my mother had much more to handle. I take pride in my role of helping my mother because knowing I can make a difference within our home made me want to be an impacting factor in any aspect of my life, which led to my heavy involvement in my academic and personal life. I am an early college student who attends college and high school. I am part of many leadership roles within my high school, such as being part of multiple honor societies, a Superintendent's Student Advisory Council member, an Active Minds Club Officer, a School Family Representative, and a Service Leader. To add the cherry on top, I also have a job at Urban Air and tutor for a past teacher of mine, which I work weekly, while also managing to help take care of my sisters within the same time constraints. I don’t have an ounce of loathing for any of these commitments, if anything I find gratification within these duties. They’ve helped me be irrepressible while also building a name for myself. Being the backbone has made me a remarkable daughter, older sister, student, employee, and human being. It may sometimes be a struggle, but I can’t help but appreciate the experience because it built my hardiness for the real world. Juggling my double life not only built my character and persistence but also molded my passion for education and teaching, guiding me toward my chosen career, an Algebraic Math Teacher. I aspire to create a classroom that allows students to prosper in whatever passions they choose to endeavor. No matter how heavy their baggage is, they can manage it with determination and a strong will for a brighter future. Because with passion and ambition, I believe anything is possible, and I want every child that I teach in the future to be aware of that. Having this scholarship will take me to great lengths about my academic goals, career desires, and most importantly, my financial need. I will utilize this scholarship to pay for a bachelor's degree in Teaching Mathematics, furthermore in the future to inspire young children through education.

Throughout my years of high school, I have been very active throughout my district and campus. I do this through my Student Advisory Council in which I engage with the Board of Humble ISD. I contribute to the planning and decision-making of future plans for all of Humble ISD campuses and do so in the best interest of my peers. In addition, I am a part of the Mental Health committee which ties into my core value of mental stability, we also organize annual events for the district community such as our Mental Health Fair and Summer Family Resources Night. Both events mean a lot to me being I get to service my community while also informing them of healthy habits to maintain mental health. I also volunteer on other campuses such as Summer Creek High School with the Mama Dawgz football support group and Autumn Ridge Middle School's Gator Band and PTO. I not only heavily represent my district and community but also within my home campus. I am very active on my campus, Guy M. Sconzo Early College High School, where I am an Active Minds Club Officer, School Familly Representative, and Service Leader, as well as being a part of multiple honor societies and volunteering committees. I take pride in my duties on campus, as I learn every day how to be a better leader, and how to understand others. These great responsibilities may be much to handle but they have helped me gain many leadership characteristics, such as being selfless, kind, virtuous, responsible, and most importantly resilient. However, these aren't the only experiences that have built my character and impacted me for my future. Being a product of a single mother has also shaped me and my aspirations. While managing my very compact academic and service life, I also take it upon myself to help my mother take care of my sisters. She is a single mother and I understand the difficulties that come with it, so I take on the responsibilities such as taking my sisters to and from school, getting them to practice, helping with homework, and running my mom's errands so she can be at work, making dinner, taking care of my grandma, and more. Being the backbone has made me a remarkable daughter, older sister, student, employee, and human being. It may sometimes be a struggle, but I can’t help but appreciate the experience because it built my hardiness for the real world while also allowing me to help my mother who I admire so much. Juggling my double life not only built my character and persistence but also molded my passion for education and teaching, guiding me toward my chosen career, an Algebraic Math Teacher. I aspire to create a classroom that allows students to prosper in whatever passions they choose to endeavor. No matter how heavy their baggage is, they can manage it with determination and a strong will for a brighter future. Because with passion and ambition, I believe anything is possible, and I want every child that I teach in the future to be aware of that. Having this scholarship will take me to great lengths about my academic goals, career desires, and most importantly, my financial need. This scholarship would help me greatly and ease the worry from me and my mother about having to pay for college. I will utilize this scholarship to pay for a bachelor's degree in Teaching Mathematics, furthermore using my gained education in the future to inspire young children through teaching, while continuing my devotion to academics and community service.

I always gained close relationships with my teachers and was always the helping hand in the classroom, while also being a top student academically. It was all too easy, I was never challenged to my fullest potential. That was until I was placed in Mrs. Falker and Mrs. Curry's class in my fifth-grade year. Both teachers sought way more potential within me than I did myself, but I never noticed until one particular situation. It was around winter when our workload had become a little more than I was used to. I was managing learning four subjects, my gifted and talented project, and more. As a fifth grader, this felt like too much to handle, so I would often complain and fall into lazy habits. It was the day of our holiday stations, and it was one of the most fun activities, but it was cut short for me. I was at the Smores station we had but just as I began to do mine, I was called out of the classroom for my Gifted and Talented workshop. As a fifth grader, I was beyond irritated because I was constantly being pulled for my Gifted and Talented Workshop, and to me, it felt like it was always at the wrong times. As I was called, I blew a big huff rolled my eyes, and walked out towards the group. I was leaning against the wall with a visible face of irritation when all of a sudden Mrs.Falker and Mrs.Curry came out of the class. Mrs. Falker proceeded to shout at me to stand up straight and remove my attitude. She explained to me how I should be grateful that I am qualified for Gifted and Talent, and that I need to stop being lazy and wasting my potential. At that moment I didn't realize that they were only expressing tough love, so it was just words to me. I cried from embarrassment, feeling nothing but anger at my two teachers. However, towards the end of the year, after my Gifted and Talented Expo, I had a moment of realization. The joy I felt for everything I had accomplished, made me realize that leaving class to do workshops, and sometimes missing fun events, was all worth it. I had worked so hard to complete this project, and every word that Mrs. Falker and Mrs.Curry spoke to me that day made sense. I had too much potential to waste on laziness and fun times 24/7. They made me realize that I was worth more than a smore or stations, that if I put my all into everything and worked my hardest I was capable of way more. I had a love for academics and they helped me realize that it was a true passion of mine. Furthermore, they impacted me to be the person I am today. Currently, as I am an early college high school student, I face challenges daily as I take rigorous college and high school courses. But in my toughest times, I replay that very day in my head, pushing me to not give up and fall into my lazy habit. Now as a senior, graduating with my associate's degree and a high school diploma, I am striving to pursue a career in math education where I can impact students just as I was. In my future classroom, I want all my students to work to their fullest potential and discover the passions they wish to pursue. I want to inspire students so that they can find their purpose within education, leading them to bigger and brighter futures.

Growing up in a single-parent home watching my mom work so hard to take care of me and my three siblings, keep food and money on the table, and obtain her education to the Master’s Degree molded me into the student I am today because seeing how hard my mom worked for us only made me want to work harder in school to make her proud. I remember the day I came home from school and I got the alert that report card grades and ranks were up, and I’ll never forget the excited, and proud face my mom had when she saw I was #10 in my class and had all 100’s and one 98. At that moment I knew that I wanted to keep that smile on her face, and it has motivated me to be the high academic achiever I am today. My greatest influence and support would be my mother. She is the most hardworking, and selfless person I know. I aspire to be equivalent to her greatness. She is a single mother of four children and has been taking care of me and my siblings on her own, which is far from easy. Though while taking care of us, she achieved many great things. She managed to obtain her associate's degree, bachelor's degree, and master's degree back to back all while taking care of us and managing to make ends meet. It was a rough patch to overcome but she did it and even now has her dream job of being a school social worker. She influences and supports me to be the greatest I can be. She makes me believe that anything I set my mind to is possible, it just takes dedication, hard work, perseverance, and faith. Watching her achieve all the things she did while growing up made me want to do better than ever in school. She is the reason I strive and continue to get all A’s and high academic achievements. Watching my mother struggle and fly in the end made me realize that with success come hardships but it’s worth it in the end. And that’s what keeps me going every day. She’s my greatest influence because she pushes me to be the best version of myself, she’s the motivation behind my success. Being that I have shared this, I hope you put me into consideration when choosing a candidate for this scholarship because with all my life experience, financial needs, and motives I know I would use this scholarship to its fullest potential, and later impact others with what I gained from it.

After reflecting on my childhood, and comparing my younger self to my current self, I noticed that I am a very closed-off person. I don't usually share my emotions, and when I do I feel embarrassed, unheard, or dismissed. Lecture over comfort never did anything for me but made me become quiet and submitted. Therefore I wish the adults in my childhood created a more comfortable, and less judgmental environment for me to express my emotions. I wish they would've asked or told me "Why do you feel this way?" As a child, all I wanted to be was heard or understood. Had I been asked this as a child, I believe I would be more easygoing. I would be more comfortable in my own skin, with less self doubt. The overthinking I do now about every little emotion I feel would be no more. To be heard and understood as a child would've meant everything, I'd feel valued. My emotions would've felt valid. Now as a young adult, I question every little emotion. I keep my feelings locked in the vault in the back of my mind. Afraid to share for I might be judged or lectured into a world of negative possibilities discredititng the way I feel. The absence of this question and an accepting environment influences me to always make those around me feel comfortable. To always be a listening ear whenever my friends and family need someone to talk to. This has shaped one of my personal goals to never let someone in my presence feel unheard, unwanted, unvalued, discredited, or invalid. I want to be the most accepting person to others to fill the void that was left in my childhood. Even though I was raised in a loving, caring home, it still doesn't replace the pain of feeling unheard. The stomach curling feeling I get when I try to express myself but it feels like every eye in the room is judging and disapproving me. It pained me to have so many locked-up emotions and not be able to express them, but over time I slowly learned to open up. I learned that as long as I come to terms with how I feel it doesn't matter what anyone else has to say. I am me and I have the right to feel as I do. As learned this, I also grew an interest in Social Work. If I am to become a school social worker I will devote my time to making sure all my students feel heard, and most comfortable. I want them to be able to share how they feel and be okay with the way they feel.

I had a cousin who had passed due to violence. He was arrested and tased by an officer, sending him into a heart attack, thus causing his passing on the scene. I understand that people can do bad things, but ultimately no one deserves to die that way. I wasn't as close to him as my other cousins, but his death still had an impact on me. To be able to know someone that close to you blood-related at that, die in such a violent, and heartbreaking way was shocking. I vividly remember the day it happened. I remember hearing the constant ringing from my mother's phone as all of our cousins and aunties called her warning her of what had happened. The shocked look on my mom's face and the sudden jump she made as she heard the news. At that moment all I could hear was the agonizing and heartbreaking cry of my aunt from other members past funerals, but to know that this time it was her son, I could only imagine how much worse, and piercing her cry must've been. My face frowned, and I felt saddened and pitied, and everything felt unreal. After the fact, I continued to think about my cousin's death. He had a child he left on this earth alone and fatherless. The entire situation ate at my mind. All of this is because of an act of violence. As the situation passed on it was still steady on my mind, so I began to use coping mechanisms such as meditation to music. I would sit in silence and play calming music such as James Arthur, or Lewis Capaldi, and as I listen to the tune of their songs I'd let my mind fall into a quiet place. This method slowly became a remedy for me and my everyday life. It used to help me remain calm when stressed with school because I am an early college student. I will utilize this to continue my education at the collegial level. I want to continue my education because school and education are very dear to me, I've always valued education since I was little and it would mean everything for me to obtain the highest degree awarded, a doctorate. My greatest influence would be my mother. She is the most hardworking, and selfless person I know. I aspire to be equivalent to her greatness. She is a single mother of four children and has been taking care of me and my siblings on her own, which is far from easy. She managed to obtain her associate's degree, bachelor's degree, and master's degree back to back all while taking care of us and managing to make ends meet. She makes me believe that anything I set my mind to is possible, it just takes dedication, hard work, perseverance, and faith. Watching her achieve all the things she did while growing up made me want to do better than ever in school. She is the reason I strive. Watching my mother struggle and fly in the end made me realize that with success come hardships but it’s worth it in the end. She’s my greatest influence because she pushes me to be the best version of myself, she’s the motivation behind my success. Being that I have shared this, I hope you put me into consideration when choosing a candidate for this scholarship because with all my life experience, financial needs, and motives I know I would use this scholarship to its fullest potential, and later impact others with what I gained from it.

I am Breonna Crockett and strongly believe that I embody the B.A.B.Y. L.O.V.E. spirit because of my selflessness, determination, and leadership. As an African American young lady, I take pride in being involved in my community, as well as leadership because representation for little black girls is significant. Representation for African Americans in general is important and I desire to be that representation for all the little African American girls in my community. I am an academic overachiever and am a part of multiple honor societies, as well as the district's Superintendent's Student Advisory Council. I currently maintain a 3.8 GPA and am number 20 in my class. I have been put in many leadership roles throughout my high school years, such as being a part of the Superintendent's Student Advisory Council as previously stated, Active Minds Club Officer, School Family Representative, and Service Leader. I am very determined, as seen through my leadership roles because it can be a lot to handle at times while attending an early college high school. However, I truly believe that education is a necessity and by all means, will do whatever it takes to reach my desired level of degree, a doctorate. After finishing my senior year of high school, I plan to pursue a career as an eighth-grade algebra teacher. I aspire to influence young African American students to want to build a brighter future for themselves. I will do so by providing my classroom as a safe space, where they have the opportunity to prosper in whatever passions they choose to endeavor. Because with passion and ambition, I believe anything is possible, and I want every African American child that I teach in the future to be aware of that. If awarded this scholarship, I would carry the remarkable legacy of Joyce Tolbert, ultimately making her and her family proud. I would use the scholarship money to get me through my bachelor’s degree where I’d major in Mathematics and minor in Education. I’ll continue with my academic excellence, high grades, and devotion to community service. I’d make you all who provide the scholarships proud, fulfilling the selfless and helpful character Joyce Tolbert had. I will then further my education to the highest degree awarded, my doctorate. I’ll use these years of experience in school to teach math at the secondary level, using my position to impact other African American little girls just as I was. I believe that I am your best candidate for this scholarship because I will not only use the money responsibly, but I will use it to gain knowledge that’ll help me impact the lives of others in the future. I have devoted most of my life and time to my academic career and having this opportunity to be awarded a scholarship would do me more than well. I would be more than honored to remember and carry Joyce Tolbert’s legacy fulfilling her desire to promote our shared passion for education and helping others.

"Be the roses that grow in concrete" -Angie Thomas. A quote from one of my all-time favorites, "The Hate U Give". Resembling the significance of resilience and perseverance amidst adversity. As an early college student, I often hit eras of adversity where I lost myself within the stress and pressure to be academically exceptional, causing me to burnout and slowly give up. They are some of the roughest patches of my life and I’ve been facing them for about four years now. However, reading books has helped relieve this feeling. Books often help me escape from that troubling sense of unworthiness while also teaching me how to be resilient in my toughest times. Reading books such as the Harry Potter series, “Love Rukhsana,” or even “Born a Crime” by Trevor Noah, etc, all shaped me to be the strongest, most ambitious person I can be. Every character had their own story, their own adversity, yet their books didn’t end until they got through it, and this allowed me to believe I had the strength to persevere, leading me to a lifetime goal to face my challenges head-on. No matter how unworthy life may feel I am not allowed to close my book just yet. Reading about the different characters in my books that face some of the greatest challenges taught me to be just like them. We may not be facing the same challenges and hardships but we both can and do decide to take the initiative to keep going. The characters from my books have taught me that no matter how rough my adversity may be, I can’t let it win, because I am the protagonist in my story and I have to remain strong to push past it all. It’s my story to write and read, and letting adversity win can not be the end of me. Now as I am entering my senior year, I am stronger than ever. I push past those obstacles, allowing me to grow not only as a student but as a person as well. Books have aligned my goal to finish strong for my senior year, and further my education, but as I do this I must have grit. Every day I must remind myself of how Harry defeated Voldemort, or how Trevor built himself a life despite being a “crime”. I have the strength to win in my future. As I write my story I will be the most ambitious, strong, resilient character there is to be. I will be the rose that can grow in concrete.