Education has definitely shaped my goals and has given me a sense of direction. From a young age I have always enjoyed reading. My love for reading lead me to learn about airplanes and automobiles. I loved learning about how they worked and how they were built. The many parts of these huge machines has always intrigued. As I attended school my vocabulary continued to grow, and I was able to read more complex books about aerospace and different types of machines. This lead me in the direction of knowing I wanted a job that involved building and designing complex machinery. This is why I decided to pursue mechanical engineering. Not only has education opened the door for me to discover my interest, but it has also taught me discipline and a love for learning. My teachers gave us educational goals, and I enjoyed striving to meet them. In elementary school I enjoyed learning about various things. I believe this is when my love for learning began. I used to love taking multiplication tests. It was so encouraging to learn my multiplication tables and be able to use them in math problems. This gave me a great sense of accomplishment and confidence. High school definitely helped me gain a sense of direction. My teachers in high school pushed us to be our best. Not only did the encourage my classmates and me to do our best academically, but they also pushed us to get involved in other aspects of our school. For example, I had a teacher continue to encourage my friend group and me to join the high school swim team. I finally gave in and joined. It was by far one of the hardest things physically I have ever done. It was even mentally hard. I wanted to quit after the first practice, but my coach encouraged me to stick with it. The first year was tough. In the end I absolutely loved it and even qualified for state two years in a row. This helped my confidence so much. I will forever be thankful for the teacher that encouraged me to join the swim team. My high school teachers also instlled a sense of pride in me as well. They encouraged my classmates and I to think about our futures and what we wanted to do. They pressed us to think about how we wanted to impact the world and how we could make a difference. As I entered college, I was hit with major academic challenges. School work had always come easy to me. College math was extremely challenging academically. I ended up needing a tutor and highly doubted my intelligence. It helped to know that several other engineering students were struggling through the challenging math classes as well. Not only was I struggling through Calculus, but I was struggling with being away from home as well. I'm a fairly quiet person and have struggled socially at times. My mom encouraged me to make it through the first semester. I made it through with not much confidence. As I entered the Spring semester I was unsure if I even wanted to pursue engineering. The classes needed for engineering were extremely hard, and I also missed home. As time went on I learned to make good use of the free tutoring that was available. I began to gain some confidence, but still wasn't sure of my ability to make it through and obtain an engineering degree. Over the summer after my first year I took two classes at a junior college. This helped boost my confidence some because the classes were easier to understand, and I felt like I was getting some courses under my belt. As soon as I went back to Auburn I shadowed an engineer at an electric company. It was good for me to get out in the field and see what an actual job as an engineer would be like. This helped me step out of my comfort zone socially too. My second year at Auburn has been much better. The classes are still extremely challenging, but now I know that I can do it if I give it my best. I've learned that it's okay to fall and that I can get back up and try again. I've also come a long way socially. As I stand in line at the cafeteria or at career fairs I find myself talking to the people in line with me. My experience with education has been both challenging and rewarding in so many ways.

I plan to "build" my future and help my community by getting a degree in mechanical engineering so I can work in a field that involves my interests. I hope to make a positive impact in our country with my future career. I feel like I can contribute to the design and building of safer and more efficient aircraft as well as other machinery. If I get to design military aircraft I hope to make airplanes that will benefit our military greatly. For example, I hope to build aircraft that are more stealthy, fast, and sturdy. I plan to continue attending Auburn University and work hard to obtain my career goals. As soon as I graduate I will start applying to multiple job applications in hopes that I will get an interview. I hope to be able to live my lifelong dream of working with machines and make a positive difference in both military and civilian life. I am not sure exactly what kind of machines I will end up building and designing. I plan to apply to many different internships while I am in college. I believe this will help me narrow down exactly what kind of machines I want to build while also giving me experience. I have realized that obtaining my mechanical engineering degree will take a great deal of work and commitment in order to obtain my childhood career dream. My community service ambitions once I obtain my degree and maybe even before include attending local schools to mentor students who are interested in engineering, and I also plan to design solutions to local problems within my community. I have also been involved with Engineers Without Borders. My goal is to give back in ways that better my community. As I work to "build" my career in mechanical engineering not only will it have a positive impact on my community, but also on myself. Being able to obtain my degree and get a fulfilling job will be very rewarding. Knowing that I can help people in my community will make my career even more self fulfilling.

My father has had the biggest impact on my life. He has always been an extremely hard worker. Since I was born and even before, he has gotten up early every week day to go to work. He has even worked weekends as well. He is a lineman and helps restore power. If money was tight he would even work side jobs. I knew growing up that my dad would may sure we had everything that we needed. Not only did he work, but he worked to the best of his ability. He put forth his best in our community everyday. My father also would spend lots of time with me even though he worked hard everyday. One of my earliest memories of him spending time with me was when he made me wooden toys. He made me a wooden helicopter, a car, and a tugboat. He also repaired my toys if they ever broke. Another way he spent time with me was volunteering in the the extracurricular activities that I was a part of. He helped with boy scouts. I remember we made a small toy boat during my time in boy scouts. My dad was also a volunteer coach for little league baseball. I played little league baseball for about four years. Every year he dedicated his time to helping the other boys and me. Not only did he spend time helping me learn to bat and catch, but he also helped the other kids. I will always remember him treating the other kids just as fairly as he did me. This stood out to me and meant a lot to me. My dad treated people with respect and helped other people when they needed it. This has had a big impact on my life. I believe that my dad taught me how to have compassion for others regardless of who they are. My dad helped countless people when they needed repairs done. I often came along with him and helped. He definitely helped out the elderly and less fortunate. I can also remember him helping people out financially as well. Because of this, I want to make sure that I give to others when they are in financial need. Another way that my father impacted my life was that he displayed great patience. He was very patient with other people, my siblings, and me. He didn't shout or say harsh words when he was frustrated. I hope I can be patient like him throughout my life. My father greatly impacted me, and I hope I can make him proud by following in his footsteps.

My field of interest is Mechanical Engineering. I have had a love for machines since I was a small child. I had several toy airplanes and knew their specific names as well as several books on aircraft. I also collected Hot Wheels cars and was fascinated by the many different names. I loved learning that they all had different engines and parts. I can remember my mother reading several books about all different types of airplanes, cars, and large machines. Through the years of being read to and reading on my own, I learned the many different parts of automobiles and machines. I also enjoyed and still enjoy going to museums with aircraft. I also have an extreme interest in military machinery and weapons. I plan to get a degree in mechanical engineering so I can work in a field that involves my interests. I hope to make a positive impact in our country with my future career. I feel like I can contribute to the design and building of safer and more efficient aircraft as well as other machinery. If I get to design military aircraft I hope to make airplanes that will benefit our military greatly. For example, I hope to build aircraft that is more stealthy, fast, and sturdy. I plan to continue attending Auburn University and work hard to obtain my career goals. I will also apply to internships over the next few years. I hope that those internships will not only teach me the skills I need and give me experience, but also open up doors for a future job. As soon as I graduate I will start applying to multiple job applications in hopes that I will get an interview. I hope to be able to live my lifelong dream of working with machines and make a positive difference in both military and civilian life. This scholarship would help me greatly. Tuition is expensive, but college housing is where the main expense is. I am striving to complete college loan free. I plan to do that by applying to numerous scholarships and working when I can. I am also spending a great amount of time studying my current course work so I can keep my current scholarship. I go to any extra help that my university offers. For example, sometimes one of my professors offers extra help during the week. I also schedule appointments with the tutors in our engineering department. I have realized that obtaining my mechanical engineering degree will take a great deal of work and commitment.

My field of interest is Aerospace Engineering and Mechanical Engineering. I grew up in the small town of Brewton, AL and graduated from T.R. Miller High School. I have had a love for airplanes since I was a small child. I had several toy airplanes and knew their specific names. I also had several books on aircraft and enjoyed reading them to learn the purposes of different aircraft. I can remember my mother reading several books about all different types of airplanes. Through the years of being read to and reading on my own, I learned the many different parts of an airplane and how they work. I also enjoyed and still enjoy going to museums with aircraft. I live about an hour from NAS Pensacola, and visit it quite frequently. I also had the experience of getting to see the Blue Angels perform every so often growing up. Between the Blue Angels, aircraft and war museums, books, and toy airplanes my love for aircraft grew throughout my childhood. Designing and building aircraft is something I would find fulfilling as a future career. I am interested in all types of aircraft so I would be happy designing any type. I do have more of a specific interest in military aircraft though. I have always found stealth aircraft fascinating. I can remember telling my parents about them all the time when I was growing up. It is so intriguing that they are designed to go undected by radar. I hope to make a positive impact in our country with my education and future career. I feel like I can contribute to the design and building of safer and more efficient aircraft. As I mentioned previously, I have always been interested in military aircraft. If I get to design military aircraft I hope to make airplanes that will benefit our military greatly. For example, I hope to build aircraft that is more stealthy, fast, and sturdy. I am currently attending Auburn University and am working hard to obtain my career goals. I hope to be able to live my lifelong dream of working with aircraft and make a positive difference in both military and civilian life. This scholarship will help me greatly in obtaining my educational and career goals. I am doing my best to graduate with minimal loans. I'm also trying to save money and contribute to my education as much as possible.

Books teach an unlimited amount of information in a vast number of ways. I've learned facts from books and on the other hand I've learned to use my imagination in ways I never imagined. From a young age I enjoyed books that contained facts. I learned about many types of machines and their many parts. I learned about trains, large machinery, cars, trucks, and airplanes. Reading books is where my love for aircraft and war museums comes from. My mother read to me as a very young child. I couldn't read yet, but I still had a love for books which gave life to my love for airplanes and everything about them. I was fascinated by aircraft and learned about the many different types. I also learned about the many parts of aircraft from books. The amazing thing is that I found in the pages of books what I want to do with my life. My desire is to become a mechanical engineer so I can build and design aircraft. My love for books may have started with non-fiction books, but as a got older and began to read on my own I grew to love fiction as well. The books that stick out the most in my mind are the Harry Potter series. I began to read these in 3rd grade. I couldn't put them down. The creativity in these books had me hooked. I admit I am pretty much a facts type person, but these books helped me open up to being more imaginative. I began to write more creative stories when my teacher told us to use our imagination to make up a story. Books also play a very important role in helping me deal with my anxiety now and back when I was younger. At night my mother always allowed me to read for about thirty minutes before she made me turn out my light and go to sleep. As a 5th grader and until I was in the 8th grade school was very hard for me socially at times. Books allowed me to escape in a good way and get my mind off my problems. I also learned in books that problems were normal. For example, I read about other kids who were around my age and how they dealt with their anxieties. I believe this helped me tremendously. I didn't feel so alone. I am very thankful for the role that books have played in my life when I was younger and the role they still play today.

My field of interest is Mechanical Engineering. I have had a love for machines since I was a small child. I had several toy airplanes and knew their specific names as well as several books and videos on aircraft. I also collected Hot Wheels cars and was fascinated by the many different names. I loved learning that they all had different engines and parts. I can remember my mother reading several books about all different types of airplanes, cars, and large machines. Throughout the many years of being read to and reading on my own, I learned the many different parts of automobiles and machines. I also enjoyed and still enjoy going to museums with aircraft. I also have an extreme interest in military machinery and weapons. I plan to get a degree in mechanical engineering so I can work in a field that involves my interests. I hope to make a positive impact in our country with my future career. I feel like I can contribute to the design and building of safer and more efficient aircraft as well as other machinery. If I get to design military aircraft I hope to make airplanes that will benefit our military greatly. For example, I hope to build aircraft that is more stealthy, fast, and sturdy. My dad and I also worked on different mechanical projects around the house when I was growing up. We worked on our lawnmower often. We also worked on our golf cart's brakes. My favorite project my dad and I did together was working to restore his old Toyota pick up truck. We are still working on it and hope to finish it one day. I plan to continue attending Auburn University and work hard to obtain my career goals. I will also apply to internships over the next few years. I hope that those internships will not only teach me the skills I need and give me experience, but also open up doors for a future job. As soon as I graduate I will start applying to multiple job applications in hopes that I will get an interview. I would love to have a job building and designing aircraft, designing weapons for our military, or building and designing automobiles. I hope to be able to live my lifelong dream of working with machines and make a positive difference in possibly both military and civilian life.

My field of interest is Mechanical Engineering. I have had a love for machines since I was a small child. I had several toy airplanes and knew their specific names as well as several books on aircraft. I also collected Hot Wheels cars and was fascinated by the many different names. I loved learning that they all had different engines and parts. I can remember my mother reading several books about all different types of airplanes, cars, and large machines. Through the years of being read to and reading on my own, I learned the many different parts of automobiles and machines. I also enjoyed and still enjoy going to museums with aircraft. I also have an extreme interest in military machinery and weapons. I plan to get a degree in mechanical engineering so I can work in a field that involves my interests. I hope to make a positive impact in our country with my future career. I feel like I can contribute to the design and building of safer and more efficient aircraft as well as other machinery. If I get to design military aircraft I hope to make airplanes that will benefit our military greatly. For example, I hope to build aircraft that is more stealthy, fast, and sturdy. I plan to continue attending Auburn University and work hard to obtain my career goals. I will also apply to internships over the next few years. I hope that those internships will not only teach me the skills I need and give me experience, but also open up doors for a future job. As soon as I graduate I will start applying to multiple job applications in hopes that I will get an interview. I hope to be able to live my lifelong dream of working with machines and make a positive difference in both military and civilian life. This scholarship would help me greatly. Tuition is expensive, but college housing is where the main expense is. I am striving to complete college loan free. I plan to do that by applying to numerous scholarships and working when I can. I am also spending a great amount of time studying my current course work so I can keep my current scholarship. I go to any extra help that my university offers. For example, sometimes one of my professors offers extra help during the week. I also schedule appointments with the tutors in our engineering department. I have realized that obtaining my mechanical engineering degree will take a great deal of work and commitment.

My field of interest is Mechanical Engineering. I have known that I wanted to build and "make" machines ever since I was young. As soon as I was old enough to know that an engineer builds and designs machines I realized that is what I wanted to be. I have had a love for machines since I was a small child. I had several toy airplanes and knew their specific names as well as several books on aircraft. I also collected Hot Wheels cars and was fascinated by the many different names. I loved learning that they all had different engines and parts. I also liked the many different designs of the Hot Wheels. I can remember my mother reading several books about all different types of airplanes, cars, and large machines. Through the years of being read to and reading on my own, I learned the many different parts of automobiles and machines. I also enjoyed and still enjoy going to museums with aircraft. I also have an extreme interest in military machinery and weapons. I plan to get a degree in mechanical engineering so I can work in a field that involves my interests. I hope to make a positive impact in our country with my future career. I feel like I can contribute to the design and building of safer and more efficient aircraft as well as other machinery. If I get to design military aircraft I hope to make airplanes that will benefit our military greatly. For example, I hope to build aircraft that are more stealthy, fast, and sturdy. I plan to continue attending Auburn University and work hard to obtain my career goals. As soon as I graduate I will start applying to multiple job applications in hopes that I will get an interview. I hope to be able to live my lifelong dream of working with machines and make a positive difference in both military and civilian life. I am not sure exactly what kind of machines I will end up building and designing. I plan to apply to many different internships while I am in college. I believe this will help me narrow down exactly what kind of machines I want to build while also giving me experience. I have realized that obtaining my mechanical engineering degree will take a great deal of work and commitment in order to obtain my childhood career dream. My community service ambitions once I obtain my degree and maybe even before include attending local schools to mentor students who are interested in engineering, and I also plan to design solutions to local problems within my community. I have also been involved with Engineers Without Borders. My goal is to give back in ways that better my community.

My field of interest is Mechanical Engineering. I have known that I wanted to build and "make" machines ever since I was young. As soon as I was old enough to know that an engineer builds and designs machines I realized that is what I wanted to be. I have had a love for machines since I was a small child. I had several toy airplanes and knew their specific names as well as several books on aircraft. I also collected Hot Wheels cars and was fascinated by the many different names. I loved learning that they all had different engines and parts. I also liked the many different designs of the Hot Wheels. I can remember my mother reading several books about all different types of airplanes, cars, and large machines. Through the years of being read to and reading on my own, I learned the many different parts of automobiles and machines. I also enjoyed and still enjoy going to museums with aircraft. I also have an extreme interest in military machinery and weapons. I plan to get a degree in mechanical engineering so I can work in a field that involves my interests. I hope to make a positive impact in our country with my future career. I feel like I can contribute to the design and building of safer and more efficient aircraft as well as other machinery. If I get to design military aircraft I hope to make airplanes that will benefit our military greatly. For example, I hope to build aircraft that are more stealthy, fast, and sturdy. I plan to continue attending Auburn University and work hard to obtain my career goals. As soon as I graduate I will start applying to multiple job applications in hopes that I will get an interview. I hope to be able to live my lifelong dream of working with machines and make a positive difference in both military and civilian life. I am not sure exactly what kind of machines I will end up building and designing. I plan to apply to many different internships while I am in college. I believe this will help me narrow down exactly what kind of machines I want to build while also giving me experience. I have realized that obtaining my mechanical engineering degree will take a great deal of work and commitment in order to obtain my childhood career dream.

My interest in mechanical engineering has been inspired by my love of machines. From a very young age my mother read books to me of all kinds. I remember having a very strong interest in aircraft and all of their different parts. My family visited war museums, naval museums, a battleship museum, and also an aircraft carrier museum during my childhood. I also had several Hot Wheels cars. I was familiar with the names of them and was fascinated with how each one worked. I also remember going to the library and checking out books about construction vehicles and heavy farm equipment. My dad also taught me how to work on engines throughout my childhood. I can remember breaking down the different parts of the engine in our lawnmower. Also , we had an old Toyota truck that my dad and I worked on. We planned to get it running so I could learn how to drive a stick shift vehicle, but it was very costly so we never finished it. It is still at my house so hopefully one day we can get it running. It's hard to pinpoint exactly when my passion for machines that led to my decision to major in mechanical engineering began. One time that stands out in particular that helped solidify my decision to major in mechanical engineering is when I visited the airport to watch the airplanes take off. I was mesmerized with how big they were. It also amazed me how a machine that big could stay in the air that long. I already knew about the landing gear on aircraft, but it was amazing to see it in action. After visiting the airport I became even more interested in aircraft. I couldn't wait to learn and see more. Another experience I had was when my mother took my siblings and I to see the Blue Angels fly at Pensacola Beach one summer. I grew up about an hour from this beach. I will never forget seeing them fly. The sheer power, noise, and size of the jets flying overhead was amazing to me. In my head I realized that those jets are just very powerful machines. I'm very thankful for all the experiences that have inspired my desire to major in mechanical engineering. I desire to build and design aircraft or design and build weapons for our military.

Social media can have negative or positive effects on a person's mental health and self-esteem. I personally believe that the bad outways the good for most people. Social media is time consuming, causes people to compare themselves to others, and may cause people to base their self worth on how people respond to them on social media. Social media can be extremely time consuming. I have talked to numerous friends and acquaintances that mention scrolling for an hour before they realize how much time has passed. We need to do more than sit mindlessly looking at a screen for hours. I feel like when we spend a great deal of our time looking at social media we are damaging our mental health and self-esteem. Being productive and meeting goals is good for our mental health. If we are spending all of our time looking at social media we are less likely to be productive. It's very important for a person to monitor how much time they spend on social media. Most people compare themselves to others on social media. This can be bad for a person's mental heath and self-esteem. For example, I once heard one of my mother's friends say that it seemed like when she got on Facebook that everyone is posting their newly remodeled houses or extravagant vacations. Seeing social media can also make a person feel leftout or like they are missing out. An example of this would be a teen getting on Instagram and seeing several of his or her friends at a gathering and realizing he or she didn't get an invitation. This can be devastating to some people. They may start to question why weren't they invited and wonder what they did wrong to be left out. Another reason that social media can be detrimental to a person's self-esteem and mental health is that a person may find their self worth in how others respond to them on social media. For example, a teenage girl may feel inferior to other girls when their posts get more likes than her posts. That definitely isn't a measure of self worth as people tend to like posts of different people for various reasons. Besides that a person's worth isn't based on other people's opinions of them. Also, some people use social media to send harmful messages to others. There is a study that shows that teenage girls use this as a bullying tactic sometimes. This hurts a person's self-esteem greatly. I believe that social media use should be limited and also taken at face value. People should be careful with social media in order to protect their mental health and self-esteem.

My field of interest is Mechanical Engineering. I have had a love for machines since I was a small child. I had several toy airplanes and knew their specific names as well as several books on aircraft. I also collected Hot Wheels cars and was fascinated by the many different names. I loved learning that they all had different engines and parts. I can remember my mother reading several books about all different types of airplanes, cars, and large machines. Through the years of being read to and reading on my own, I learned the many different parts of automobiles and machines. I also enjoyed and still enjoy going to museums with aircraft. I also have an extreme interest in military machinery and weapons. I plan to get a degree in mechanical engineering so I can work in a field that involves my interests. I hope to make a positive impact in our country with my future career. I feel like I can contribute to the design and building of safer and more efficient aircraft as well as other machinery. If I get to design military aircraft I hope to make airplanes that will benefit our military greatly. For example, I hope to build aircraft that is more stealthy, fast, and sturdy. I plan to continue attending Auburn University and work hard to obtain my career goals. I will also apply to internships over the next few years. I hope that those internships will not only teach me the skills I need and give me experience, but also open up doors for a future job. As soon as I graduate I will start applying to multiple job applications in hopes that I will get an interview. I hope to be able to live my lifelong dream of working with machines and make a positive difference in both military and civilian life. I am striving to complete college loan free. I plan to do that by applying to numerous scholarships and working when I can. I am also spending a great amount of time studying my current course work so I can keep my current scholarship. I go to any extra help that my university offers. For example, sometimes one of my professors offers extra help during the week. I also schedule appointments with the tutors in our engineering department. I have realized that obtaining my mechanical engineering degree will take a great deal of work and commitment.

My interest in mechanical engineering has been inspired by my love of machines. From a very young age my mother read books to me of all kinds. I remember having a very strong interest in aircraft and all of their different parts. My family visited war museums, naval museums, a battleship museum, and also an aircraft carrier museum during my childhood. I also had several Hot Wheels cars. I was familiar with the names of them and was fascinated with how each one worked. I also remember going to the library and checking out books about construction vehicles and heavy farm equipment. My desire to become a mechanical engineer has been inspired by the experiences that were provided to me during my childhood. My dad also taught me how to work on engines throughout my childhood. I can remember breaking down the different parts of the engine in our lawnmower. Also , we had an old Toyota truck that my dad and I worked on. We planned to get it running so I could learn how to drive a stick shift vehicle, but it was very costly so we never finished it. It is still at my house so hopefully one day we can get it running. It's hard to pinpoint exactly when my passion for machines that led to my decision to major in mechanical engineering began. I feel that I was born with these interests. I just had to be introduced to different machines. One time that stands out in particular that helped solidify my decision to major in mechanical engineering is when I visited the airport to watch the airplanes take off. I was mesmerized with how big they were. It also amazed me how a machine that big could stay in the air that long. I already knew about the landing gear on aircraft, but it was amazing to see it in action. After visiting the airport I became even more interested in aircraft. I couldn't wait to learn and see more. Another experience I had was when my mother took my siblings and I to see the Blue Angels fly at Pensacola Beach one summer. I grew up about an hour from this beach. I will never forget seeing them fly. The sheer power, noise, and size of the jets flying overhead was amazing to me. In my head I realized that those jets are just very powerful machines. I'm very thankful for all the experiences that have inspired my desire to major in mechanical engineering. I desire to build and design aircraft or design and build weapons for our military.

My field of interest is Aerospace Engineering and Mechanical Engineering. I am very passionate about designing and building machines. I have had a love for airplanes since I was a small child. I had several toy airplanes and knew their specific names as well as several books on aircraft. I can remember my mother reading several books about all different types of airplanes. Through the years of being read to and reading on my own, I learned the many different parts of an airplane. I also enjoyed and still enjoy going to museums with aircraft. I also have an extreme interest in military machinery and weapons. I plan to get a double major in Aerospace Engineering and Mechanical Engineering so I can possibly work in a field with both of my interests. I hope to make a positive impact in our country with my future career. I feel like I can contribute to the design and building of safer and more efficient aircraft. If I get to design military aircraft I hope to make airplanes that will benefit our military greatly. For example, I hope to build aircraft that is more stealthy, fast, and sturdy. I plan to attend Auburn University in the fall and work hard to obtain my career goals. I hope to be able to live my lifelong dream of working with aircraft and make a positive difference in both military and civilian life. My upbringing has definitely molded me into who I am today. The great times have helped, but the hard times have also molded me in positive ways. As I mentioned before, my mother reading to me helped develop my love for machines. On the other hand, hard times have helped me adapt to college life and will help me not give up as I continue into my career. For example, one of the most difficult life experiences I had was changing schools in the 8th grade. I struggled so much with social anxiety and change. My English teacher recognized how badly I was struggling and did everything she could to help. Eventually I made lifelong friends that I go to college with now. Those hard days made me realize that life may be hard, but it can get better. I learned from my teacher to help others when they are struggling. She changed my life by helping amd supporting me. She made me want to do that for those in my life that I encounter who are struggling. My experience with social anxiety and my battle with change has definitely impacted the person I am today. I know that it has helped me overcome the hardships I've faced in college, and I know it will serve me well in my future career.

My field of interest is Mechanical Engineering. I have had a love for machines since I was a small child. I had several toy airplanes and knew their specific names as well as several books on aircraft. I also collected Hot Wheels cars and was fascinated by the many different names. I loved learning that they all had different engines and parts. I can remember my mother reading several books about all different types of airplanes, cars, and large machines. Through the years of being read to and reading on my own, I learned the many different parts of automobiles and machines. I also enjoyed and still enjoy going to museums with aircraft. I also have an extreme interest in military machinery and weapons. I plan to get a degree in Mechanical Engineering so I can work in a field that involves my interests. I hope to make a positive impact in our country with my future career. I feel like I can contribute to the design and building of safer and more efficient aircraft as well as other machinery. If I get to design military aircraft I hope to make airplanes that will benefit our military greatly. For example, I hope to build aircraft that is more stealthy, fast, and sturdy. I plan to continue attending Auburn University and work hard to obtain my career goals. I hope to be able to live my lifelong dream of working with machines and make a positive difference in both military and civilian life.

I know first hand about the struggles of mental heath problems. Personally I have struggled with extreme generalized anxiety and social anxiety. I began to struggle around the age of nine. I changed schools when I was ten and struggled so bad with the change. I didn't like change plus I struggled to make friends. I barely slept. Finally halfway through that year my parents took me back to my old school and got me counseling. The counseling helped me tremendously. Eventually I was able to make the school change and be successful. Not only have I struggled, but I have saw my mom's struggle with very debilitating anxiety. Medication and counseling has made all the difference for her. She is so happy and lives her life to the fullest now. It's amazing what treatment for a mental disorder can do in the life of a person. It can greatly improve their life as well as those around them. Black communities face many challenges with mental health. Two of those being the way it is stigmatized and the lack of accessible treatment. The stigma on mental health in the black community has caused them less likely to admit they are suffering and less likely to reach out for help. Black young adults face higher rates of mental health problems than older white and black adults. One reason there is a stigma on seeking treatment is the distrust of the medical community. African Americans have been midiagnosed at higher rates than white patients. The medical community has also exploited the black community in the name of medical advancement. Also, sadly during slavery it was thought that slaves weren't sophisticated enough to experience mental health disorders. This lead many to ignore their mental health problems or dismiss them as just being tired or stressed. Also, through the years in our country all ethnicities were taught that having a mental illness was a sign of weakness. This causes people to keep quiet about their mental pain and never seek help. Unfortunately there is also less access to medical insurance in the black community. There is also a lack of financial means for many in the black community. This leads to this community not getting the mental health treatment they so desperately need. It is my hope that the black community will seek out mental health care and be able to receive it when necessary. There are different ways that there access to mental health care can be improved. One way that our country can take away the stigma in mental health care in the black community is by talking about it in our public schools. When kids learn about something from a young age they are more likely to accept it and realize that they can get help. It makes it more normalized. Children are so understanding and accepting. Another way to promote mental health care and take away the stigma in the African American community is to bring the information to them at community events. Doctors and their staff can reach them by going to them and showing them they care. By doing this they can form relationships and build trust. This will therefore save many lives. I feel like the black community also needs more information on jobs that provide good financial stability and insurance. Good insurance is so important when seeking mental health treatment. I feel like our public schools could help our black youth in this area. Social media can also be a tool in promoting good jobs for the black community.

My field of interest is Aerospace Engineering and Mechanical Engineering. I have had a love for airplanes since I was a small child. I had several toy airplanes and knew their specific names as well as several books on aircraft. I can remember my mother reading several books about all different types of airplanes. Through the years of being read to and reading on my own, I learned the many different parts of an airplane. I also enjoyed and still enjoy going to museums with aircraft. I also have an extreme interest in military machinery and weapons. I plan to get a double major in Aerospace Engineering and Mechanical Engineering so I can possibly work in a field with both of my interests. I hope to make a positive impact in our country with my future career. I feel like I can contribute to the design and building of safer and more efficient aircraft. If I get to design military aircraft I hope to make airplanes that will benefit our military greatly. For example, I hope to build aircraft that is more stealthy, fast, and sturdy. I plan to attend Auburn University in the fall and work hard to obtain my career goals. I hope to be able to live my lifelong dream of working with aircraft and make a positive difference in both military and civilian life.