For most of my academic life, I believed my struggle in school was about effort. I assumed that if I worked harder, paid more attention, and pushed through assignments, I would eventually become successful. But over time, I realized that my real challenge was not the difficulty of my classes—it was that I had no direction for what I was actually working toward. Without a clear goal, school often felt repetitive and disconnected from anything meaningful. I completed assignments, studied for tests, and met expectations, but it all felt temporary, like I was finishing work for the sake of completion rather than building toward a future. Because of that, even my strongest efforts felt empty. I began to assume that college would be more of the same—more school without a reason that truly mattered to me. That mindset stayed with me until I took biology and chemistry. At first, I expected them to be just like any other classes. But something was different. In biology, I found myself genuinely interested in how living systems function and interact. In chemistry, I became curious about the processes behind reactions and how matter behaves at a deeper level. Instead of just trying to get through the material, I started actually wanting to understand it. For the first time, learning felt engaging rather than required. What I originally thought was me becoming better at school was actually something deeper. I realized I was not struggling with the difficulty of my classes—I was struggling with a lack of direction. The problem was never my ability to learn; it was that I had never found something that made me want to learn. Biology and chemistry did not make school easier—they made it meaningful. That realization changed how I viewed everything going forward. Instead of seeing college as an obligation, I began to see it as an opportunity to study subjects I was genuinely interested in. I started exploring fields like zoology and environmental science, areas that combined my interest in science with a growing curiosity about the natural world and animals. For the first time, I began making decisions with purpose instead of uncertainty. I was no longer just going through school—I was actively shaping a direction for my future. The motivation I had been missing was never something I needed to force; it came naturally once I found something worth focusing on. The greatest achievement I have made is not simply improving academically, but changing my mindset. I went from believing I had no direction to realizing that direction is something you build through curiosity and exposure. Once I found subjects that truly interested me, I understood that my biggest obstacle had never been school itself, but my own lack of purpose. Today, I plan to attend Miami University and study Zoology and Environmental Science. What once felt like aimless effort has become intentional pursuit. Overcoming my mindset was my greatest challenge, and through it I learned that success does not begin with knowing everything—it begins with finally understanding why you want to learn at all.

Animals of all kinds have been a passion of mine for as long as I can remember. I really cannot point to one single moment in my life that sparked my interest because its always been a part of who I am. In fact, when I was two years old, my cousin gave me the nickname "Turtle" because I was always digging in muddy puddles and in ponds finding turtles. If I had to choose a few moments that really made my passion for animals grow and showed my what i wanna do with my life, one of the biggest would be frogging with my dad. Almost every summer morning, we would go to this pond in the middle of nowhere. We would hike through the woods, listening to the birds chirping and breathing the cool morning air. When we reached the pond, we would sit in this old duck blind and eat breakfast watching the frogs. I was always intrigued on how each frog was perfectly adapted to the environment. The bullfrogs where dark brown with green to match the murky pond waters, while the grey tree frogs looked exactly like the bark that they sat on. This heavily influenced my interest in Zoology and environmental. One time when I was eight years old, on the way home from school, I found a baby bird that had fallen outta a tree and was hurt. I remember taking him home and my siblings and cousins calling me crazy and nasty, saying that thing might have lice or bugs. I didn't care all I wanted to do was help it. I had this book that was very large and green with a chipmunk on the cover that I had gotten from the library, I flipped through it until I saw the bird he was a sparrow. I then took him to the garage and gave him a blanket and heating mat to keep him warm. Unfortunately, the next day, I came out and he had passed away. I knew then that I wanted to help animals any way I can and be a veterinarian. After college, I plan to make a positive impact in the animal world by working in animal conservation. My goal is to help protect endangered species and contribute to efforts focused on habitat preservation and responsible breeding programs. I am also interested in eventually attending veterinary school and becoming a veterinarian. This would allow me to directly care for injured and sick animals while also contributing to their long-term health and survival. I am going to be double majoring in Zoology and Biochemistry. I chose these majors because they allow me to understand animals on the macro and micro scale. Zoology focuses on the outer level of how animals behave and interact while Biochemistry focuses on the internal processes of living organisms, including how their bodies function at a cellular and molecular level. This relates to my interest in understanding how animals heal, develop, and respond to injury or disease. Together, these majors will give me a strong foundation for working with animals in the future, whether in conservation or veterinary medicine.

I spent most of my life watching and listening rather than speaking. I avoided starting conversations, worried that my words would come across as foolish or I would seem awkward. Throughout my early years of highschool, I kept to myself and focused on my schoolwork, making only two friends during my first three years. While those friends were great, I still wasn't very social. In my senior year, I decided I wanted to break out of my comfort zone and become more involved with my community. being from Xenia, Ohio, there weren't many options, so I joined a volunteer club at my school called Chemistry Club. We put on a science themed play for all the elementary students to show that science is fun. This year our theme was Toy Story, we dressed up as the characters while performing experiments and teaching the kids how to make fog, slime, and teaching them various science concepts. I played a significant role in the play as Rex. My character was taken and the rest of the characters had to rescue me using the power of science. Having multiple speaking lines in front of a large group of elementary students pushed me far outside my comfort zone. I was nervous about being laughed at. The lines such as "Roarrrrrr! guys help im in here" I had required energy, confidence, and a willingness to appear a little foolish the very thing I have always been scared of. At first I said the lines with no confidence and no energy, but the support from my fellow cast mates helped me keep going and get comfortable to say the lines with the required energy and ease. Getting help with my lines allowed me to connect with my classmates and I've even made some good friends that I don't think I would have if I hadn't join. When the day came, we went into the classrooms we did hands-on experiments, showing the kids how to make slime, create fog, and make elephant toothpaste. We explained the chemical reactions behind each experiment and taught them about states of matter and elements. Afterward, a couple of students came up to me to ask questions, it felt amazing to teach them about something I'm passionate about. Finally when it was time to preform, everyone nailed their roles. I even got laughed at when I said my "Roarrrr!" instead of feeling foolish or embarrassed, I felt proud. For the first time, laughter wasn't something I feared, it was something to be proud of. Knowing I gave those kids something to laugh at and enjoy made every uncomfortable step worth it.

Math has always been my favorite subject. In 6th grade I had math 7th period throughout the school day, I would sit in class and watch the clock, waiting for 7th period. Later I realized why I loved math class because it matches the way I think. I am a logical thinker, and math just clicks with me there are rules to follow and you can self check rather your right or you wrong unlike other subjects where the teacher just tells you to "follow your heart" when writing a essay. I tend to think logically and step by step, my thinking matches match perfectly which has always allowed me to be good at it. I enjoy the clarity that comes from taking a huge complex problem and breaking it down into a small simple one. Each step connects and builds on to the previous one and when you finally find the answer, it feels earned like a misson accomplished. Unlike other subjects, math rewards effort and reasoning over memorization, Which makes it more meaningful. Math has also taught me wonderful traits I can use in everyday life such as perseverance. Some problems do not yield answers the first go around, I don't know how many times I've gotten error in a calculator, but failure is only the first step in learning. Working through my mistakes and changing my approach has showed me the value of persistance. The moment when you get the answer to a difficult problem is incredible satisfying because it represents growth rather then luck (English).