Community service is much more than just helping others, it’s also about personal growth. I first began volunteering at my church, where I helped run the sermon livestream, which involved setting up the camera and broadcasting to social media. After volunteering for a couple of months, however, I saw an opportunity to volunteer for Vacation Bible School, and I decided to sign up to help run the games section. I had so much fun building obstacle courses for the kids to run through, and it was so satisfying seeing them race each other. This experience showed me how fun serving others can be, and I decided to participate in a volunteering fundraiser for my school’s band at Top Dog Fireworks. Here, I worked three different positions during each season: Cashier, Salesperson, and Stocker. Volunteering here helped me hone my communication skills, as I constantly had to speak with customers, and it taught me to have patience, since sometimes customers would take a while to decide between products. Regardless, community service taught me many important life skills that I will be able to apply later in life as I head on to study engineering at Texas A&M University.

“Just a trip,” my mom said. We would return to Venezuela any day now, though I was enjoying spending time with my newly met family members. Little did I realize that we were here to stay, and that I had to abandon my old life. When I was enrolled at school in America, I felt lost, not just because I had no friends, but also because of the language barrier. It was just me and my mom, since my dad had stayed behind, which made supporting ourselves difficult. However, there was a positive from this experience. Being able to live at my aunt Arelina’s house while we settled down showed me what life was like outside of poverty. Back at home, we often had to wait in long lines just to have a chance at entering a supermarket, and I recall that my mom boiled water weekly, as clean water was a rare luxury. I even remember hearing about a time that an armed person robbed several students on a school bus that went to my school. This sudden shift in living conditions gave me hope for a better future, and to this day, it is my motivation for my academic performance. Nearing the end of high school with a 4.25 GPA, having taken many difficult classes, and having achieved nearly 400 volunteering hours, I have been motivated to be successful throughout my educational career and hope to achieve my dreams of studying engineering at Texas A&M University. Taking advanced classes was always more than just boosting my GPA. The classes I took helped me learn more about how the world around us works and explore my curiosity for different topics. AP Computer Science, for example, helped me learn about how software works, and it even inspired me to create little game projects, especially after we recreated one of my favorite childhood videogames, Super Mario Bros. AP Physics C, on the other hand, gave me more insight into how motion works, and helped me understand why objects move downhill, if gravity pulls them straight down. Lastly, Dual Credit Economics helped me learn how economics is not just about money, but about choices, and the opportunity cost behind them. Additionally, my academics often go beyond my classes. Being in Mu Alpha Theta gave me the opportunity to tutor others in math, and nothing is more satisfying than seeing a concept click for someone else. Tutoring others has helped me expand my own knowledge of mathematics, while helping others improve their grades and encouraging them to continue their education. Being so fortunate to receive a proper education in America, I was also motivated to give back to my community. I first began volunteering at church, helping run the livestream. The tasks were simple: set up the camera, start the livestream, and broadcast the service to social media. However, this was just the start, as this service eventually allowed me to branch off into more areas of volunteering at church, like volunteering in Vacation Bible School, where I got to set up games for the kids, and helped run them. Volunteering taught me many important lessons like patience, and helped me improve my confidence in speaking, lessons which I can apply later in college and in a career. Having gotten many opportunities for growth in America, I hope to use my story to inspire the idea that regardless of your background, it is possible to grow to be a scholar, and I hope I’ll have many opportunities in the future to mentor others, as it is one of my favorite hobbies.

Moving to the United States from Venezuela was a major change in my life, which brought forth many obstacles, like the language barrier, and my mom particularly struggled finding a stable job. Year after year, we always had to rent an apartment. I recall walking on the side of the roads to try to reach stores, since we had no reliable transportation, and because of the lack of sidewalks. Always having to live in the cheapest places we could find, sometimes we had to live in shady areas, and my mom worried for our safety. It was also particularly difficult for me to make friends in school, since our housing situation resulted in us moving after each school year, which had a negative impact on my social life. Living like this, however, only motivated me to work harder, to create a better future for me and my family, and ultimately be able to repay my mom for opening so many doors for me while giving up her whole life for me. Having the privilege to receive a proper education in the United States made me realize how fortunate I was, which inspired me to give back to my community. Every week at church, I volunteer in the livestreaming team, where I help set up the livestream camera, push graphics for the online service, edit the service podcast, and public livestreams to social media. After volunteering for a whole year, I gained the opportunity of training new people for the livestreaming team, which helped me hone my leadership skills and my teaching skills. Furthermore, I was invited to help run the games section of Vacation Bible School (VBS), which was a great experience where I worked in a team to set up fun games for the kids. On top of church, I have also taken part in fundraising volunteering for my school’s band program, by volunteering at Top Dog Fireworks, where I got valuable experience as a salesperson and as a cashier, giving me opportunities to interact with strangers, and work on my communication skills. All of my volunteering experience also allowed me to join my school’s 2025 chapter of the National Honor Society, giving me new opportunities to volunteer around my school district. I have approximated that by the end of my senior year, I will have over 500 hours of volunteer work completed. My interactions with other people have not just been limited to volunteer work. I have a deep passion for programming, and have started several passion projects where I coded Minecraft servers, which allowed me to create online communities, with one reaching around 100 members. While I mostly program for fun, being able to create new communities is a fun way to connect with others. Having positively impacted several people who played on my servers, I realized that I wanted the same for my career, and I seek to study Computer Engineering. I seek to explore my interests in game design or potentially artificial intelligence, because I both enjoy creating new communities and interacting with them, but I also believe in the potential of AI to optimize many aspects of society, and wish to contribute to its growth. With all my experiences in volunteering and connecting with online communities, I hope I can contribute to advancements in artificial intelligence, while continuing to make meaningful connections, both in real life and in a digital space.

Moving to the United States from Venezuela was a major change in my life, which brought forth many obstacles, like the language barrier, and my mom particularly struggled finding a stable job. Year after year, we always had to rent an apartment. I recall walking on the side of the roads to try to reach stores, since we had no reliable transportation, and because of the lack of sidewalks. Always having to live in the cheapest places we could find, sometimes we had to live in shady areas, and my mom worried for our safety. It was also particularly difficult for me to make friends in school, since our housing situation resulted in us moving after each school year, which had a negative impact on my social life. Living like this, however, only motivated me to work harder, to create a better future for me and my family, and ultimately be able to repay my mom for opening so many doors for me while giving up her whole life for me. Having the privilege to receive a proper education in the United States made me realize how fortunate I was, which inspired me to give back to my community. Every week at church, I volunteer in the livestreaming team, where I help set up the livestream camera, push graphics for the online service, edit the service podcast, and public livestreams to social media. After volunteering for a whole year, I gained the opportunity of training new people for the livestreaming team, which helped me hone my leadership skills and my teaching skills. Furthermore, I was invited to help run the games section of Vacation Bible School (VBS), which was a great experience where I worked in a team to set up fun games for the kids. On top of church, I have also taken part in fundraising volunteering for my school’s band program, by volunteering at Top Dog Fireworks, where I got valuable experience as a salesperson and as a cashier, giving me opportunities to interact with strangers, and work on my communication skills. All of my volunteering experience also allowed me to join my school’s 2025 chapter of the National Honor Society, giving me new opportunities to volunteer around my school district. I have approximated that by the end of my senior year, I will have over 500 hours of volunteer work completed. My interactions with other people have not just been limited to volunteer work. I have a deep passion for programming, and have started several passion projects where I coded Minecraft servers, which allowed me to create online communities, with one reaching around 100 members. While I mostly program for fun, being able to create new communities is a fun way to connect with others. Having positively impacted several people who played on my servers, I realized that I wanted the same for my career, and I seek to study Computer Engineering. I seek to explore my interests in game design or potentially artificial intelligence, because I both enjoy creating new communities and interacting with them, but I also believe in the potential of AI to optimize many aspects of society, and wish to contribute to its growth. With all my experiences in volunteering and connecting with online communities, I hope I can contribute to advancements in artificial intelligence, while continuing to make meaningful connections, both in real life and in a digital space.

Moving to the United States from Venezuela was a major change in my life, which brought forth many obstacles, like the language barrier, and my mom particularly struggled finding a stable job. Year after year, we always had to rent an apartment. I recall walking on the side of the roads to try to reach stores, since we had no reliable transportation, and because of the lack of sidewalks. Always having to live in the cheapest places we could find, sometimes we had to live in shady areas, and my mom worried for our safety. It was also particularly difficult for me to make friends in school, since our housing situation resulted in us moving after each school year, which had a negative impact on my social life. Living like this, however, only motivated me to work harder, to create a better future for me and my family, and ultimately be able to repay my mom for opening so many doors for me while giving up her whole life for me. Having the privilege to receive a proper education in the United States made me realize how fortunate I was, which inspired me to give back to my community. Every week at church, I volunteer in the livestreaming team, where I help set up the livestream camera, push graphics for the online service, edit the service podcast, and public livestreams to social media. After volunteering for a whole year, I gained the opportunity of training new people for the livestreaming team, which helped me hone my leadership skills and my teaching skills. Furthermore, I was invited to help run the games section of Vacation Bible School (VBS), which was a great experience where I worked in a team to set up fun games for the kids. On top of church, I have also taken part in fundraising volunteering for my school’s band program, by volunteering at Top Dog Fireworks, where I got valuable experience as a salesperson and as a cashier, giving me opportunities to interact with strangers, and work on my communication skills. All of my volunteering experience also allowed me to join my school’s 2025 chapter of the National Honor Society, giving me new opportunities to volunteer around my school district. I have approximated that by the end of my senior year, I will have over 500 hours of volunteer work completed. My interactions with other people have not just been limited to volunteer work. I have a deep passion for programming, and have started several passion projects where I coded Minecraft servers, which allowed me to create online communities, with one reaching around 100 members. While I mostly program for fun, being able to create new communities is a fun way to connect with others. Having positively impacted several people who played on my servers, I realized that I wanted the same for my career, and I seek to study Computer Engineering. I seek to explore my interests in game design or potentially artificial intelligence, because I both enjoy creating new communities and interacting with them, but I also believe in the potential of AI to optimize many aspects of society, and wish to contribute to its growth. With all my experiences in volunteering and connecting with online communities, I hope I can contribute to advancements in artificial intelligence, while continuing to make meaningful connections, both in real life and in a digital space.

To me, success is more than just achieving goals or earning a degree. It is about using what I have learned to make a difference in the lives of others. Growing up, I saw how opportunities could change everything. My family left Venezuela and came to the United States looking for a better future. That experience taught me to appreciate every chance I have and to work hard for the ones I want. I have always been drawn to STEM because it combines creativity and problem-solving. I love the idea of using technology to solve real-world problems and make life easier for others. Whether it is designing tools to help people manage screen time or creating programs that improve accessibility, I want my work to have a purpose beyond myself. Success, for me, is about building something meaningful that can make an impact on the world. This scholarship would be a big step toward that dream. College is expensive, and my family has already made so many sacrifices to give me the chance to succeed. With this scholarship, I could focus more on my education and less on the financial stress that comes with it. Texas A&M or UT Austin are my dream schools because of their amazing engineering programs. Studying at one of these schools would give me the knowledge and opportunities I need to excel. Over the years, I have prepared myself for this path. With a 105.64 weighted GPA, I have worked hard to do my best in every class. Being the first-chair brass player in my school’s wind symphony taught me how to lead and how to work as part of a team. I have also put in almost 300 volunteer hours, helping others and learning how to connect with people from all kinds of backgrounds. These experiences have shaped me into someone who values persistence, collaboration, and service. Even with all my preparation, I know college will be challenging. That is why this scholarship is so important. It would open up opportunities like research, internships, and possibly studying abroad. I want to take full advantage of my time in college to learn as much as I can, not just from classes but also from hands-on experiences. I also hope to continue playing in a college marching band. Music has been a huge part of my life and has taught me discipline and focus. I think these qualities will help me as I work toward a degree in computer science or electrical engineering. More importantly, music has given me a community, and I look forward to finding that in college too. In the future, I see success as building a career where I can use my skills to help others. I want to work on projects that make technology accessible and inclusive so that it benefits everyone, not just a few. Coming from an immigrant family and as a Christian, I believe in lifting others up and using my blessings to create opportunities for others. This scholarship is not just financial help; it is a chance to take my next step toward success. It would let me pursue my education with fewer limitations and allow me to focus fully on my goals. I am excited about the future and ready to work hard to achieve it. For me, success is about learning, growing, and using what I have gained to make a lasting impact.

At first, I thought of math as just another class I had to take, even though I never struggled with it. That perspective changed when I started learning computer science and discovered how math connects to coding. I realized that math has countless incredible applications, and I was amazed by all the possibilities. One of my passion projects is coding a Minecraft server, where I use math concepts like vectors to create cool effects or write equations to calculate how much damage a player should deal to an enemy, factoring in their statistics and abilities. An interesting moment for me was using the sine graph to create a "bobbing" effect for objects in the game. Another reason I love math is because of my current experience in Calculus. The concepts we learn in class are fascinating and applying them to my physics class has made me appreciate physics even more, despite it making some problems significantly more difficult. Seeing real-world applications of derivatives and integrals has been especially exciting and has deepened my love for math. Math is a subject I believe more people should appreciate, so I try to help others reach their potential by offering math tutoring to my peers. Whether it is running an afterschool session or helping a friend prepare for a test, these experiences have shown me that teaching math can be rewarding, not just for myself, but for others. Tutoring has not only allowed me to share my passion but has also improved my communication skills and patience. To me, math is the most fascinating subject because of what it enables you to do. Whether it is creating unique features through code or applying it to other fields, math has shown me its true potential. It is a subject that will always inspire me and play a crucial role in my career goals.