For a long time, I became an expert at pretending. I smiled when I was supposed to. I spoke when I needed to. I got the grades. I showed up. On the outside, I looked fine. But inside, I was drowning in depression and tangled up in an eating disorder I didn’t yet have the words for. I was hurting, but I made sure no one could tell. Growing up as one of five children raised by a single mother, I didn’t have the option to fall apart. With my mom working late nights to keep our family afloat, I became the second parent. Doing hair, helping with homework, making dinner, and holding in my own tears so I could wipe someone else’s. From a young age, I was told I was “so mature for my age”, and for a while, I wore that as a badge of honor. But behind the maturity was exhaustion far too heavy for a child to carry. I used to think that if I just kept performing, kept being dependable and strong, then maybe the pain would fade into the background. But it didn’t. And because mental health was never something we talked about, I convinced myself that asking for help was weakness. Looking back, I know that part of me believed I was worthless. I couldn’t see a future. I couldn’t see myself as someone who mattered. But now, standing on the other side of it, I know better. I know that strength isn’t about carrying everything alone. It’s about the courage to heal and to let people in. This realization has shaped everything since. I’m pursuing a path in design and advertising because I want to change the industry with work that stops people in their tracks, but not just because it’s clever or beautiful. I want to create branding that makes people feel seen and heard. Work that affirms. Work that reminds the overlooked, the insecure, the exhausted, the struggling that they are not alone. But even deeper than that, this career will serve as the funding behind something bigger. My true purpose is philanthropy. I want to pour into the lives of the people I once saw in the mirror: the depressed girl, the fat girl, or the Black girl. I want to build programs for girls like her, especially those growing up in underprivileged communities like mine. I want to be the person I needed. This desire comes from what I’ve walked through, but also from what I’ve learned about who Jesus is to me. I used to seek love and validation in everything and everyone else. I thought I had to earn worth. But I’ve learned that my identity and worth comes from Him. And without Him, I am nothing. Sometimes, I still struggle with the instinct to suffer alone. That old voice still whispers that I have to keep it together, no matter what. But now I recognize it for what it is: fear disguised as strength. And when it shows up, I fight back with truth. I speak up. I ask for help. That’s how I know I’m healing. My journey with mental health didn’t break me, it built me. It made me more compassionate. It made me stronger. It made me a visionary. And now, I get to use all of it to build something beautiful. Not just for myself, but for others like me.

In the short term, my goal is to pursue a career as a graphic designer for advertising campaigns. This is important to me because, while I build my portfolio by creating brand identities, I always feel dissatisfied at the end of each project, knowing that these brands aren't real and I can't take them to greater heights through advertising. I want to be the bridge between a concept and a finished product, whether that be a billboard, commercial, or social media post. I also plan on going back to school after 1-2 years in my career to get my master's in graphic design or advertising because I want to continue learning how to perfect my craft. I want to explore new methods and stay on top of design trends, and being in a learning space with individuals who have the same mindset is where I thrive! My plan to continue to open doors for my community lies in 2 areas: mentorship and education accessibility. Firstly, mentorship. One of my favorite quotes is by J Loren Norris, "If you cannot see where you are going, ask someone who has been there before." The strongest resource that has gotten me to where I am today intellectually and creatively is mentorship. Whether from my mom, teachers, professional mentors, or pastors, I have had people guiding me, advising me, and helping me believe in myself when I felt uncertain. These experiences have shaped me, and I know that I wouldn’t be where I am today without the counsel of others who have walked this path before me. I’m committed to paying that forward. I want to start a nonprofit organization that will mentor children and provide them with all the resources they need to develop their skills in the arts, from graphic design to music. Children and teens are incredibly imaginative and creative, yet too often, their potential gets stifled because they lack someone who can show them how to nurture and use their skills to move forward. This organization will not only teach them the technical aspects of art but also encourage them to embrace their creativity, to keep pushing boundaries, and to see the value in their own voices. We will also focus on helping them build strong ties to their community, with the aim of creating a cycle of raising the next generation of creatives. In addition to mentorship, one of my primary goals is to tackle the issue of education accessibility. As a designer, I know how expensive the tools and resources required to succeed in this field can be. One of my dreams is to open a design school specifically for individuals who cannot afford the high costs of premium design software and equipment. I want to provide a space where students, regardless of their financial background, can explore their potential without the burden of financial stress standing in their way. This is deeply personal to me because I understand what it’s like to worry about whether you’ll ever be able to make an impact simply because you lack the resources. I know what it feels like to have a dream but not the means to chase it. I want the generation that follows me to have ten times the resources I had, to be able to step into their passions without feeling like they have to make a choice between pursuing their dreams and surviving.

I got my first phone at 9, and with it, a newfound obsession with graphic design. I began with PicsArt, and while my "edits" at the time were more charming than polished, they brought me undeniable joy. Since then, I’ve graduated to the big-league applications such as Photoshop and After Effects, and each project ends with me having learned new skills and a reinforcement of why I want to do this for the rest of my life. For example, recently, I’ve been doing a lot of brand identity designing to broaden my portfolio, and in this process, I take a brand from just a name to a collection of its “DNA,” from the mission statement to merchandise. It requires me to look at my work from both a designer’s and a consumer’s perspective. I have to ask myself stimulating questions that a consumer subconsciously asks themselves when viewing a brand’s advertising campaigns for the first time. What is the brand trying to communicate? What emotions does it invoke? Does it stand out in the crowded market? The constant questions and experimenting with new styles are what keep me falling in love with graphic design all over again every day. In the short term, my goal is to pursue a career as a graphic designer for advertising campaigns. This is important to me because, while I build my portfolio by creating brand identities, I always feel dissatisfaction at the end of each project, knowing that these brands aren't real and I can't take them to greater heights through advertising. I want to be the bridge between a concept and a finished product, whether that be a billboard, commercial, or social media post. I also plan on going back to school after 1-2 years in my career to get my master's in graphic design or advertising because I want to continue learning how to perfect my craft. I want to explore new methods and stay on top of design trends, and being in a learning space with individuals who have the same mindset is where I thrive! In the long term, I want to move up from being a graphic designer to being the senior creative director of a team. The best way to be a leader is to be a follower first, so I’m confident that my time as a graphic designer will shape me well for a higher position. I look forward to gaining experience in leading projects and collaborating with talented individuals from different creative disciplines. Lastly, I want to open up a design school aimed at those who can’t afford an education at expensive universities. This aspiration is especially important to me because I believe dreams shouldn’t be suppressed because of things like lack of money and resources. I know what it’s like to worry if you’ll be able to make an impact because you may not have it all, but I want the generation that comes after me to have 10 times the resources I have. Education, in whatever form, is the key to success, and everyone should have equal access to it, regardless of their financial background.

I think there comes a time in every Black person’s life when you truly realize you are the minority. For some, it’s when they watch television and subtly pick up on the lack of melanated characters across multiple shows, or when the leaders in your industry seem to share a uniform look that doesn’t quite match yours. For me, it was when I was surveying which colleges to apply to. I am a creative, and my medium is graphic design. So, I needed schools that offered the best learning opportunities for me, and it wasn’t until I was making my list of prospects that I realized just how scarce my community is at these universities. This realization was jarring. As someone who has always been passionate about the arts, I had spent years honing my skills, but it became clear that finding a space where I could thrive as a Black creative was going to be more challenging than I had anticipated. This lack of representation in higher education and the arts speaks volumes about the barriers underrepresented communities face. It isn’t just about being physically present in a classroom. It's about being seen, heard, and supported in a system that was not designed with our needs in mind. At Florida Gulf Coast University, I plan to not only further my own creative journey but to begin building the foundation for a future where young Black creatives, regardless of their financial circumstances, have access to the tools and opportunities they deserve. One of my primary goals is to open a design school specifically for individuals who cannot afford the high costs of premium design software and equipment. I want to provide a space where these students can explore their potential without the burden of financial stress standing in their way. This is deeply personal to me because I understand what it’s like to worry about whether you’ll ever be able to make an impact simply because you lack resources. I know the feeling of having a dream but not the means to chase it, and I want the generation that follows me to have ten times the resources I had. Supporting underrepresented communities is important to me because I want those who look like me to know it is possible for them, no matter where they come from. It is also important because the idea that success is limited and must be earned at the expense of others is a mentality that has held many of us back for far too long. This belief, which is rooted in centuries of oppression, has made toxic competition within our communities, where people fear that someone else’s success means there’s less room for their own. But success is not a pie. It’s not finite. It grows when we work together. In the end, it’s not enough to just chase our own dreams. We must also work to make sure that others can chase theirs too. By lifting each other up, we all rise together. And that’s the kind of difference I want to make.