I can still vividly remember that moment like it was yesterday. I had just completed seventh grade and as I was planning my summer trips to the waterpark, my parents made this absurd declaration: my brother and I would be spending the summer in Nigeria – yes, Nigeria! They wanted us to connect with our family and appreciate our roots. My first thought was, “Family roots! What about the waterpark?!” But my brother and I just looked at each other, silently, in utter disbelief. As the initial shock wore off, I began to realize that going to Nigeria would make for a much more interesting summer vacation story than the waterpark. I didn’t know it at the time, but this unexpected jaunt halfway across the world, would forever change my life. After a long, thirteen-hour flight we landed in Lagos, Nigeria where we were greeted by the most intense heat I have ever experienced. I instantly wished I was at the waterpark. Visiting my family and forming relationships with my relatives, observing the bustling of the immensely packed cities, and seeing the breathtaking landscape of the countryside, was amazing and I savored every moment. At the same time, I was struck by seeing children hawking goods on the dangerous roads for money so they could eat; college students roaming the streets because their teachers were on strike for working without pay; and how I was constantly jolted out of my seat as the car drove over endless potholes. It was starkly different from America. As the summer came to an end, I was excited to be going home, yet a little sad to be leaving this country I had grown to love. I had no time to ponder my conflicting emotions; my parents sprung one of their last-minute declarations informing us that we would be staying in Nigeria to attend boarding school! Once again, stunned, I was forced to quickly deal with my mixed feelings and prepare myself for my new adventure. Before I knew it, one month turned into a year and a year turned into two years and it was time to return to America. Reflecting on what I had seen and experienced, I had many questions. Why were so many people going hungry? Why were those responsible for fixing roads and paying teachers so corrupt? Why was I surrounded by the smartest people I have ever known, but many ended up jobless? Though I had so many questions and had many ideas on how I wanted to go about solving them I decided to focus on one. I decided to focus on the environmental aspect. I knew very well that many Nigerians were not mindful of their carbon footprint and though fast food wasn’t popular, many don't eat as healthy as they should have. I also knew that if I wanted to help tackle other issues such as corruption I had to start with health and make sure that the mental and physical well-being of the people was realized. So immediately I started doing research on ways I could make Nigeria better environmentally and joined programs such as YES! (Youth Environmental Summit) in Delaware where we worked to spread awareness about environmentalism. I currently plan on studying environmental engineering in college and have plans on starting a business in Nigeria that bring awareness to health and environmental issues. I am creative, I am hardworking, and I have a goal. I believe these three things will carry me far and with the help of this scholarship I know I will be able to make a difference.

I can still vividly remember that moment like it was yesterday. I had just completed seventh grade and as I was planning my summer trips to the waterpark, my parents made this absurd declaration: my brother and I would be spending the summer in Nigeria – yes, Nigeria! They wanted us to connect with our family and appreciate our roots. My first thought was, “Family roots! What about the waterpark?!” But my brother and I just looked at each other, silently, in utter disbelief. As the initial shock wore off, I began to realize that going to Nigeria would make for a much more interesting summer vacation story than the waterpark. I didn’t know it at the time, but this unexpected jaunt halfway across the world, would forever change my life. After a long, thirteen-hour flight we landed in Lagos, Nigeria where we were greeted by the most intense heat I have ever experienced. I instantly wished I was at the waterpark. Visiting my family and forming relationships with my relatives, observing the bustling of the immensely packed cities, and seeing the breathtaking landscape of the countryside, was amazing and I savored every moment. At the same time, I was struck by seeing children hawking goods on the dangerous roads for money so they could eat; college students roaming the streets because their teachers were on strike for working without pay; and how I was constantly jolted out of my seat as the car drove over endless potholes. It was starkly different from America. As the summer came to an end, I was excited to be going home, yet a little sad to be leaving this country I had grown to love. I had no time to ponder my conflicting emotions; my parents sprung one of their last-minute declarations informing us that we would be staying in Nigeria to attend boarding school! Once again, stunned, I was forced to quickly deal with my mixed feelings and prepare myself for my new adventure. When I started school, I was placed into a class that was two grades ahead of where I should have been, and my classmates felt like they were years ahead. Fitting in presented its own problems. Besides sticking out with my American accent, my lack of knowledge about their customs made life difficult. Over time though, I became a natural; I learned how to fetch water for baths, how to hand-wash clothes, and even how to speak with a Nigerian accent. Nigeria had finally begun to feel like home. Before I knew it, one month turned into a year and a year turned into two years and it was time to return to America. Reflecting on what I had seen and experienced, I had many questions. Why were so many people going hungry? Why were those responsible for fixing roads and paying teachers so corrupt? Why was I surrounded by the smartest people I have ever known, but many ended up jobless? It was at TeenSHARP that I first started to grapple with the painful consequences of African colonization that continue to rob the continent of its natural wealth. Taking college courses every Saturday beginning in 10th grade, I read the works by our contemporaries such as Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie and Sophie Oluwole, as well as Africa’s intellectual giants such as Kwame Nkrumah and Patrice Lumumba. As a Social Change Fellow, I have been applying these theories of African Reconstruction to design a blueprint for Nigeria’s economic prosperity. Coming back from Nigeria showed me that not everyone is as fortunate as I am and I should use the resources I have and my voice to make a big difference. That is why I have taken up a project where I research and document experiences of women and children in displacement camps in Nigeria. These camps are made as safe houses for people who are refugees or victims of terrorism or internal strife and is a shelter they can stay at until it’s safe to go home but unfortunately they don't get the support they need to reintegrate back into society and get back to a sense of normalcy. I plan to be of aid to this situation by publishing an article that will bring awareness to this issue and crowdsource funding to support these people as they find their way back home. I also have future goals and dreams to advance environmentally sustainability in Nigeria so I plan to study environmental engineering in college. This scholarship will be a big help and will bring me one step closer to my goal. Proving the saying that your parents know best, I will be forever grateful for the absurd declaration they made many years ago. Connecting with my roots and experiencing the beauty and socioeconomic inequity of my birth country, gave me a sense of purpose, direction, and a challenge to conquer. In due time, I will return to my birth country with knowledge and skills ready to make a change in my community.

I can still vividly remember that moment like it was yesterday. I had just completed seventh grade and as I was planning my summer trips to the waterpark, my parents made this absurd declaration: my brother and I would be spending the summer in Nigeria – yes, Nigeria! They wanted us to connect with our family and appreciate our roots. My first thought was, “Family roots! What about the waterpark?!” But my brother and I just looked at each other, silently, in utter disbelief. As the initial shock wore off, I began to realize that going to Nigeria would make for a much more interesting summer vacation story than the waterpark. I didn’t know it at the time, but this unexpected jaunt halfway across the world, would forever change my life. After a long, thirteen-hour flight we landed in Lagos, Nigeria where we were greeted by the most intense heat I have ever experienced. I instantly wished I was at the waterpark. Visiting my family and forming relationships with my relatives, observing the bustling of the immensely packed cities, and seeing the breathtaking landscape of the countryside, was amazing and I savored every moment. At the same time, I was struck by seeing children hawking goods on the dangerous roads for money so they could eat; college students roaming the streets because their teachers were on strike for working without pay; and how I was constantly jolted out of my seat as the car drove over endless potholes. It was starkly different from America. As the summer came to an end, I was excited to be going home, yet a little sad to be leaving this country I had grown to love. I had no time to ponder my conflicting emotions; my parents sprung one of their last-minute declarations informing us that we would be staying in Nigeria to attend boarding school! Once again, stunned, I was forced to quickly deal with my mixed feelings and prepare myself for my new adventure. Before I knew it, one month turned into a year and a year turned into two years and it was time to return to America. Reflecting on what I had seen and experienced, I had many questions. Why were so many people going hungry? Why were those responsible for fixing roads and paying teachers so corrupt? Why was I surrounded by the smartest people I have ever known, but many ended up jobless? Though I had so many questions and had many ideas on how I wanted to go about solving them I decided to focus on one. I decided to focus on the environmental aspect. I knew very well that Nigerians were not mindful of their carbon footprint and though fast food wasn’t popular, many don't eat as healthy as they should have. I also knew that if I wanted to help tackle other issues such as corruption we had to start with health and make sure that the mental and physical well-being of the people was realized. So immediately I started doing research on ways I could make Nigeria better environmentally and joined programs such as YES! (Youth Environmental Summit) in Delaware where we worked to spread awareness about environmentalism. I currently plan on studying environmental engineering in college and have plans on starting a business in Nigeria that bring awareness to health and environmental issues. I am creative, I am hardworking, and I have a goal. I believe these three things will carry me far and with the help of this scholarship I know I will be able to make a difference.

I can still vividly remember that moment like it was yesterday. I had just completed seventh grade and as I was planning my summer trips to the waterpark, my parents made this absurd declaration: my brother and I would be spending the summer in Nigeria – yes, Nigeria! They wanted us to connect with our family and appreciate our roots. My first thought was, “Family roots! What about the waterpark?!” But my brother and I just looked at each other, silently, in utter disbelief. As the initial shock wore off, I began to realize that going to Nigeria would make for a much more interesting summer vacation story than the waterpark. I didn’t know it at the time, but this unexpected jaunt halfway across the world, would forever change my life. After a long, thirteen-hour flight we landed in Lagos, Nigeria where we were greeted by the most intense heat I have ever experienced. I instantly wished I was at the waterpark. Visiting my family and forming relationships with my relatives, observing the bustling of the immensely packed cities, and seeing the breathtaking landscape of the countryside, was amazing and I savored every moment. At the same time, I was struck by seeing children hawking goods on the dangerous roads for money so they could eat; college students roaming the streets because their teachers were on strike for working without pay; and how I was constantly jolted out of my seat as the car drove over endless potholes. It was starkly different from America. As the summer came to an end, I was excited to be going home, yet a little sad to be leaving this country I had grown to love. I had no time to ponder my conflicting emotions; my parents sprung one of their last-minute declarations informing us that we would be staying in Nigeria to attend boarding school! Once again, stunned, I was forced to quickly deal with my mixed feelings and prepare myself for my new adventure. When I started school, I was placed into a class that was two grades ahead of where I should have been, and my classmates felt like they were years ahead. Fitting in presented its own problems. Besides sticking out with my American accent, my lack of knowledge about their customs made life difficult. Over time though, I became a natural; I learned how to fetch water for baths, how to hand-wash clothes, and even how to speak with a Nigerian accent. Nigeria had finally begun to feel like home. Before I knew it, one month turned into a year and a year turned into two years and it was time to return to America. Reflecting on what I had seen and experienced, I had many questions. Why were so many people going hungry? Why were those responsible for fixing roads and paying teachers so corrupt? Why was I surrounded by the smartest people I have ever known, but many ended up jobless? It was at TeenSHARP that I first started to grapple with the painful consequences of African colonization that continue to rob the continent of its natural wealth. Taking college courses every Saturday beginning in 10th grade, I read the works by our contemporaries such as Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie and Sophie Oluwole, as well as Africa’s intellectual giants such as Kwame Nkrumah and Patrice Lumumba. As a Social Change Fellow, I have been applying these theories of African Reconstruction to design a blueprint for Nigeria’s economic prosperity. Proving the saying that your parents know best, I will be forever grateful for the absurd declaration they made many years ago. Connecting with my roots and experiencing the beauty and socioeconomic inequity of my birth country, gave me a sense of purpose, direction, and a challenge to conquer. In due time, I will return to my birth country with knowledge and skills ready to make a change.

After two years of living in Nigeria where I completed my 8th and 9th grade education, I returned to the US as a sophomore. Though I took very rigorous courses in Nigeria, My high school assigned me to 9th grade math class to ensure I had the necessary foundation. Looking back, I am glad they did. Moving between schools and math curricula on two continents, I missed learning certain algebraic fundamentals. As a result, I had a hard time excelling in math in Nigeria; and it was harder to excel when I returned also. Even though taking Integrated Math 1 as a sophomore would not interfere with my graduating from high school on time, it surely would set me back when applying to college. I spoke to my guidance counselors and learned I could test out of sophomore math in the summer. TeenSHARP, a college prep program I participate in, helped connect me with a tutor who supported me throughout the summer as I worked to master a full year worth of math content in less than two months. I studied anywhere between five and eight hours a day. But I didn’t pass the test on the first attempt. Thankfully, my TeenSHARP advisor advocated for me and the school agreed to give me another chance. For a few more days, I studied incessantly. On the second attempt, I passed the test with flying colors. Spending so may weeks and hours understanding the subject that had been a point of confusion and frustration for so may years of my life made me realize that math wasn't so bad after all. Something that seemed like such a setback turned out to be the most transformative experience in my life as I put together my love for math and my curiosity for the way the world around us works and developed a passion for engineering. Understanding math also gave me a calculated clarity of the world around me and I learned to never let any setbacks remain permanent and when I fail once, to get up stronger.

During quarantine I started a business called African Accessories where the goal was to bring awareness to African culture through beautiful accessories made from African print. I saw a great opportunity to capitalize on the booming trend of using masks as a fashion statement. For days, I researched the best products, watched videos on shipping, and religiously recorded my spending on a spreadsheet. With the inspiration from my favorite podcast by Guy Raz about entrepreneurs and how they built their businesses, I found the strength to put many more hours into meticulously sewing each piece. When I launched in July, my business was a hit! My matching masks and scrunchies caught people's attention as they admired the beauty of African fabric and bought them up in droves. I felt huge satisfaction in the success because of all the work and time put into it. Currently, I have discontinued the business and have decided to instead focus on college applications and scholarships. A little more about my family background, my parents are both Nigerian immigrants that migrated to America in the 2000’s. We have never been wealthy but we always made enough to sustain our family. In November of 2019 my mom and one of her close friends started their very own walk-in clinic and the money poured into their business left a huge dent in our finances. Both of my parents emptied their retirement funds into the business. I knew they were looking for other sources of income and their jobs were not sufficient so I was very proud of them for taking that step. Unfortunately, it would take them years before they finally became profitable and so when I started applying to colleges my dad did not hesitate to tell me that they did not have enough money for my schooling. Hence my scholarship application journey. I currently aspire to be an environmental engineer but I’m very aware that that choice may change. I am very passionate about one day being in a position where I can be of service to people in need in my home country of Nigeria whether it be through environmental engineering or not. Commodities in America such as steady electricity that most people take for granted, is a big issue in Nigeria. Only those who are wealthy enjoy consistent access to electricity in their homes. Due to lack of education of the harm of littering on the environment many dispose of their product packaging on the roadside. I plan to use my knowledge of environmental engineering and build better machines and technologies that can process waste and produce enough electricity to continuously power homes and schools. I would also like to work to increase environmental awareness in Nigeria so Nigerians can be mindful of their carbon footprint. I am creative, I am hardworking, and I have a goal. I believe these three things will carry me far and with the help of this scholarship I know I will be able to make a difference.