Imagine being raised in a community where you have a 35.7% chance of graduating with your high school diploma, then being told that you have approximately a 13.5% chance of graduating with your associates degree from the local community college. Then you decide you want to pursue a degree in nursing where you (a male) make up less than 12% of all registered nurses. Lastly, you factor in that you are a hispanic male, which means you would represent less than 1% of registered nurses who identify the same as you. You may think going against those odds would sway someone away from chasing their dreams, well not me. I see it as a challenge to be great, to motivate, and to prove that people from my community are more than a statistic and when given the chance, we can achieve anything we put our mind to. Being raised as a first generation Mexican American, meaning my parents migrated to the United States from Mexico, that alone gave me a sense of responsibility to strive for success. My parents risked everything just to give my siblings and I a better chance at life. My siblings have always motivated me and set the standard. For example, my brother became and engineer, my sisters became registered nurses, and I myself have accomplished a few things such as, becoming a firefighter, a paramedic, and now set to graduate from the same nursing school my wife and sisters graduated from. The desire to make my wife, my parents, and my siblings proud is what drives me each and every day. As a hispanic male nurse, I would be able to help the community that helped raise me. I would be someone in the hospital that the patients could relate to, not be intimidated by, and someone that they can confide in when they are at their most vulnerable state. I would also be able to bridge the language barrier gap for the hispanic patients. With Dallas being 71% minority now, I would be someone that can relate to the majority of the patient population. I take pride in my patient care and I know that my patients would appreciate having someone like me at their bedside. For the kids who may look like me, that come from a community like mine, that have to overcome poverty, that have to battle the everyday struggles of staying out trouble, and that have to fight the stigma of being educated isn’t “Cool”. I want to be a representation of who they can become, of my community, and of someone who never gave up on their dreams even if the odds were always stacked against them. I hope to someday be an advocate for the kids that don’t have the means to pursue a higher education. I hope to be proof that when a kid from an urban community is given the chance to succeed, they will exceed expectations and achieve their goals. I love the fact that this scholarship is geared towards helping minority students with the same goals as myself. If I’m fortunate enough to receive this scholarship, I’d use it to pay for my tuition, NCLEX preparation classes, and licensing expenses. It would relieve the stress of having to work extra hours all while attending clinical and trying to find the time study for exams. It would allow me to solely focus on the task at hand, which is graduating nursing school. I hope that my aspirations and dedication to help others was felt. It is what makes this profession so rewarding and enjoyable.