When my phone buzzed telling me I had been elected as the president of National Honor Society at Neville, I was both elated and incredibly nervous. I was excited by the possibility of helping my community and terrified by the many speeches I would have to give. I was also fearful that I would horribly mess things up and become a mockery. With both my elation and apprehension in mind, however, I pressed forward with the great torch of National Honor Society in hand with the aim of illuminating problems and helping the community in any way possible. I organized new events, changed rules to eliminate loopholes, and ran multiple food and coat drives for the less privileged in our community. As a result, this year National Honor Society has boasted a shocking and record-breaking 1201 hours of active community service by all of its members combined. This is equivalent to one individual working day and night everyday for over 50 days. Many problems, not just one, were fixed in our city. All of this is to say that volunteer work is not simply a job for me, it is a challenge. It is a goal to meet; a quest to finish. But what lies at the end of this quest? The treasure at the end of one’s service includes bringing communities together, moral edification, and a great sense of satisfaction. Despite the messiness of attending the annual river-sweep for example, I find myself returning every year because it is an incredibly necessary and morally rewarding thing to do. I find these sentiments extend to all forms of volunteer service I participate in, from organizing and conducting fall festivals at J.S. Clark, Lexington, and Clara Hall to helping setup pinewood derbies at the Church of the Redeemer. The smiles on the faces of those you help are truly unforgettable. With these lessons and experiences in mind, I have decided that I would like to spend my life in service to the country by becoming a political scientist and working to make America a more honest and equal country. I know that my experience in the National Honor Society has prepared me to take on service at this larger scale, and I am confident that I can make a positive impact on the world. I thank service for teaching me to challenge myself and to push forward towards new horizons.

My father is a historian who studies voodoo and teaches history at the University of Louisiana Monroe. As such, he has sought to instill a passion and understanding of history into me at a young age. His endeavors have apparently been successful as I am now obsessed with history and political science and desire to pursue both of them in college. One trip, however, stands apart in its importance to my love. Back when I was ten, my father had taken me on a research trip in Benin. His passage overseas had been paid for by the university, and he thought it a good idea for me to see the world, so he brought me along. In that time, I had the privilege of meeting many people unlike myself, both in thought and culture. One day in particular, we traveled to a town built on stilts in the middle of a lake called Ganvie. This village was beautiful and an amazing feat of architecture. They had made islands that rose out of the water, and they survived off of very little. Despite never having seen an American before, all of the town’s children came out to see me. We played games all day as one big group while my father interviewed people around town. As I left, I remembered thinking about how something like this would never happen in America. From this, I derived a particular appreciation for other cultures, and, therefore, the historical-cultural elements of political science. While this experience developed my passion for political science, the long discussions I had with my dad about the past as we traveled from place to place formed my passion for history. On one such drive, I remember asking him about what World War I and World War II were. Over the course of two hours in an under-ventilated car, he explained to me the tragedy of the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, the tragic rise of Hitler, and the world’s response to these events. He did not tell these stories to me like a textbook would, he told them to me like a story, and it was incredible. As such, I would like to pursue a degree in political science with a focus on history. My passions are deep and abiding, and I am certain they will continue far into the future.

Hello! My name is David, and I absolutely love camping, running, and playing board games with my friends. My greatest passion of all, however, is political science. I love learning about how our political system works and how different countries function. Some of the specific aspects of political science I care about are cultural differences, policy making, and civil service. As such, I am greatly interested in helping my community, and I strive to help in every way possible. Ever since elementary school, I have volunteered at the River Cities Cat Humane Society. There, I brushed cats, cleaned litter boxes, and played with undersocialized kittens. While this was my introduction to community service, my breadth of service has expanded far beyond that in recent years. When I led my Trail Life troop, for example, I oversaw our assistance in annual river sweeps, hazardous waste cleanups, and pinewood derbies, among other things. As the President of Neville’s chapter of the National Honor Society, I help organize and oversee volunteer events for over a hundred people. I have organized and overseen multiple fall and spring festivals at most every elementary school in the area. I have also put together and assisted in multiple community cleanups, events at the local university, and even worked with a movie production committee at the local African American History Museum. All of these experiences have helped expand my leadership skills and bring smiles and love to my community. As part of leading these clubs, I work to actively combat bullying. On campouts in Trail Life, people would be a bit irritable at times. As such, I made sure that people did not act rudely to each other by calmly disentangling arguments and helping where help was needed. I remember a specific time when Loki, a younger member, was not trying very hard at doing dishes. People were getting annoyed with him and speaking to him harshly. As soon as I found out about the situation, I rushed over and broke up the crowd so that I could talk to Loki alone. I kindly told him that he needed to work harder because it takes a team to run a properly functioning campout. I then talked to the annoyed individuals, telling them to apologize to Loki and encouraging them to speak to him more kindly next time they are annoyed. As a community leader in National Honor Society, I act both as a confidant for many and a buffer against bullying. People often come to talk to me about their problems, and I always make sure to act as a safe space for them. One of these people, for example, has been having trouble with an ex, who has been stalking them online. I told them that I would be happy to get involved, and I offered advice on what they should do, encouraging them to take screenshots, get an adult involved, and make sure trusted people know. Since then, the situation has gotten far better, and for that I am very grateful. In terms of my financial profile, my father is a teacher, my mother works part time, and my brother is currently in college. As such, we do not make a ton of money, and college will be very expensive for me. I would greatly appreciate any help I can get from scholarships. While I have worked to help the community, the community has also helped me. The experience and sense of belonging that it offers makes me so incredibly grateful. I will always work to help and give back to others because everyone deserves love.

Last year, a tree fell on my home, destroying the roof and much of the interior. I was at a friend's house when my father called to tearfully relay the bad news to me. I rushed home in a shocked stupor, hoping that all was well. The scene I witnessed was horrific: the tree, still sitting on top of the house, had broken in the roof completely in multiple places. Thankfully, my brother, who was the only person inside, was completely okay. My dad and I, however, still had a job to do. Our cats were inside, and we intended to save them. Upon entering, we unceasingly worked to find my cats and grab sentimental items. As we went from room to room, I saw the devastation the tree had wrought on my home. I saw the destruction of many things I held dear as well as a dozen potential ways I could have died when the tree fell, and I imagined the various ways I could still die as I moved through the house. These thoughts nearly broke my nerves, but I was determined. Eventually, we found our cats. As I lifted their stunned forms from the destruction, I embraced them, and we left. This was, in some ways, the death of my childhood. From this experience, I learned how to handle loss. This experience made me act with grit, and I still retain that toughness. I intend to bring said toughness to the career field I want to pursue. My travels around the world and notable understanding of history have culminated in my passion for political science. While others turn outward to look at the universe and the sciences that control it, I believe the secrets of the universe lie within the human mind. Despite our diminutive size, humankind is the most complex thing in the universe; we seem to be the completion of whatever great plan was set forth during creation. If humanity is the culmination and reason for our universe, then surely helping and studying humanity should teach us much about the nature of everything. For that reason, I wish to both study and benefit humanity by becoming an ambassador. Being an ambassador would allow me to accomplish the goal of furthering humanity while also enjoying myself through travel and learning. The connections I would forge as an ambassador would also allow me to further the ideals of civic duty and community service. I could promote said values by the means of speeches, leading by example, and diplomacy. Using the power of diplomacy, I would encourage foreign policymakers to establish monthly “green days” during which communities go out to clean up trash. Additionally, I would work to have the phrase “civic duty” become a household notion through various public education programs. Also, I would use my position to support studies looking into how different cultures affect ways of thought, and I would help publish these studies so as to promote understanding between various peoples. If love is killed by ignorance, it must thrive in the light of knowledge. Finally, I would use my position to encourage the positive treatment of neurodivergent people such as my brother. Oftentimes, neurodivergent people are denied jobs, but through careful diplomacy, I believe I can change that one step at a time. While this career field will be hard to achieve and likely isolating, the grit I have gained from seeing that tree fall on my house has steeled me for such a journey. As such, I am proud to set out in service of the world.

I remember my sophomore year of high school. I was overwhelmed due to the sheer amount of work a certain English teacher would assign. He would pile work on our class even when we were out of school simply because he would decide that more homework was needed. Since I was a bit of a try hard in sophomore year, I made it a point to do everything, even at the expense of my social life and mental health. As such, sophomore year descended into a mess of labor and stress. Obviously, one’s mental health should be valued over any kind of foolish work. While I’ve gotten better at managing loads of assignments and strain over the years, I still struggle at times. As such, one healthy habit I intend to adopt at school is not taking on more than I can handle. I will accomplish this goal by setting out a clear schedule for the day in advance. If something is added to this load midday, I will evaluate whether it is too much to do. If it is too much, I will save it the next day. Additionally, I will make sure to schedule a large amount of free time and time spent with friends. After all, I would rather have good mental health than perfect grades. As part of being a safe space for others, I will encourage them to value their mental health over work. If I see that someone is overworked, I will comfort them, offer to help, and encourage them to take a break. If they want to push forward to complete their work, I will once again offer to help and attempt to give advice, assuming they want it. I will also act as a person for others to confide in. Even at school currently, I have friends who come to me because they trust me. I will make it clear that others can come to me and talk about their problems without judgement. Everyone needs someone to confide in, and I would be honored to be that person. People obviously need comfort, help, and a safe person to talk to, but they also need someone to cheer them forward. I want to be that person. If one of my friends is sad, I will push them forward, reminding them of their amazing qualities. If one of my acquaintances is proud of an accomplishment, I will be that person congratulating them all the way. Even if someone is a stranger, I want to act as a helping hand. After all, everyone needs a cheerleader. As I have had the chance to grow older and learn from my mistakes, I have also been able to better emotionally regulate myself. With this in mind, however, I still have quite a ways to go. Specifically, I want to be able to manage workloads better, and I am currently working towards that goal. While I work to improve myself, I want to act as a safe space to others by comforting them when they are down, cheering them on when they are happy, and acting as a confidant whenever they just need someone to talk to. As my school's President of National Honor Society, I have worked and will continue to work to crack down on any sign of bullying or mistreatment. No matter what, all people should be given a safe space, and all people should strive to be that safe space. If everyone tried to fill that role, the world would be a far better place.