Cancer, it’s a disease you hear about, but never one that you would expect to show up at your front door. Last year, my mother was diagnosed with stage 4 metastatic breast cancer. When she first told me this, I was sad for her but angry with the hospital. Months prior, we had been celebrating her beating cancer; now everyone was asking what had happened. The sense of responsibility I felt towards my family was overwhelming, and it became the driving force behind my actions. The biggest challenge I have faced in life is supporting my mother with her battle against cancer while keeping up with my own mental health. Months before her second diagnosis, my mother had taken some scans, and it seemed like her recovery from her bout with cancer was almost finished; however, things quickly started changing. Then, one day in the middle of the night, my father rushed my mother to the hospital. Her breast cancer had spread to her bones, causing three compression fractures in her spine. Moreover, football, my primary coping mechanism for stress, and the most socialization I get as a homeschool student, had just ended. This was usually the worst time of the year for me, but my mom’s worsening condition made it an extra difficult end to the season. In the months after her return from the hospital, I felt no desire to do my schoolwork. Consequently, I finished the school year barely managing to maintain my clean academic record with a 3.85 GPA, which was a significant drop from my usual performance. One day, my mom drove me to a local organization to fulfill my community service hours commitment. The only problem was that no one was in the office because I had not told them I was going to be there. My mom was so overwhelmed with disappointment in me at that moment that she broke down in her minivan in the office parking lot. She pointed out how my siblings and I had become increasingly unfocused since she had gotten sick again. She exclaimed, “Maybe I should die because it seems like none of you care about your future, and the only reason I am even trying to live is for you all to make something of yourselves!” I cried on the spot; her words hurt more than any injury I had ever experienced. I realized that I had been selfish by not handling my business. This event was a catalyst for a renewed inherent sense of responsibility. I knew, despite my own feelings, that I had to play a greater role in the well-being of my family. After this, I searched for more ways to help around the house. I did not shy away from taking on more chores and responsibilities, regardless of whether they were assigned to me. This helped support not only my mother but my family as a whole, and in the process, helped distract me mentally from my feelings. I also made sure to go the ‘extra mile' when taking care of my mom, by driving her to doctor’s appointments, preparing nutritious meals, praying for her daily, and doing my best to keep her spirits lifted. This experience has taught me that tomorrow is not promised and that true strength is found in showing up for the people you love, even when it is hard. I am still learning how to balance my own mental health, but I continue pushing forward in school and leaning on my close circle of friends. Most importantly, I now understand what it means to serve others with patience and consistency. In college, I will bring the same persistence and sense of responsibility that I have developed at home, determined to contribute to my community and carry forward the resilience my mother has shown me.

Since the beginning of this nation’s founding, it seems that African Americans have always had a complicated relationship with law enforcement. Nowadays, more than ever, it seems that this relationship is even more complicated than when things began. African Americans wonder if they can trust the people whom they pay through tax dollars to protect them from threats, without being deemed a threat themselves. I feel that law enforcement agencies can improve relationships with the African American population in the United States by providing better education in addition to their current training. As a child, I was always wary of law enforcement, but I never feared them. Still, whenever interacting with an officer of any kind, I always made sure I used my best manners, articulated my words as clearly as possible, and made no sudden movements until I felt I was deemed not a threat. In these moments, I thought about Tamir Rice, who was only 12 when he was shot and killed without warning. I am thankful to say that all of my interactions with police have been positive or neutral; however, the eerie fear that something could go wrong in these situations always lingered in the back of my mind Unfortunately, we live in a world where many people push the idea that it is African Americans who are the problem, and it is law enforcement who should fear for their lives. These people like to create skewed statistics that inaccurately misrepresent what happens in our streets and argue them as if they are the whole truth. While we live in an era of body cam videos and recordings from bystanders to help refute such accusations, these racist ideas are still subliminally being accepted by our law enforcement. I feel that these people are the most dangerous people of all, because they can set preconceived notions into the minds of law enforcement who are too ignorant or misinformed to read through such asinine claims. I feel that part of the training to become a law enforcement officer should involve teaching officers and training to act on the facts that are given at the time of an incident, and not what they have heard or their personal past experiences. If we can debunk preconceived notions that these law enforcement agents already come in with, then we can prevent future altercations from escalating into serious problems in which officers act on their emotions rather than on what their heads tell them to do. The last thing I think should be added to the training to become a law enforcement officer is interacting with people from all communities. Often, I feel this fear and stigmatism that is subliminally exemplified in all escalated activities between police and African Americans, because both sides have a preset idea about the other. If police came to more events hosted in African-American communities in particular, then maybe their perspective on African Americans would change, and vice versa for African Americans.

My love for STEM started in my early childhood. On my seventh birthday, one of my friends gave me a couple of LEGO sets. I had only ever played with LEGO once before, and I wasn't able to put together the set, which made me feel like I wasn’t smart. Because of my prior experience, I remember the LEGO sets sat on my dresser for quite a while. One day, I told my mother I was bored, and she reminded me about the LEGO sets on my dresser. I opened the first set, thinking maybe I could do it this time, and picked up the instructions optimistically. That day, I completed all three sets I had received in less than two hours. Sometime after I had finished building, my mother came back to my room’s doorframe with a smile. “I see you like LEGO’s,” she said. I coyly responded, “Yeah,” wondering why I had let the sets sit on my dresser for so long. While this was only a blink of time in my life, it sparked my interest. This interest led me to build more LEGO, which eventually turned into robotics kits, which eventually led me to join robotics teams. Eventually, it became more than just an interest, but a true passion for STEM. Currently, I plan on studying mechanical engineering in college. What really solidified the decision for me was taking a class called Introduction to Engineering Design. It taught me about the different disciplines in engineering and the work available in each field. Since I was young, I knew that I was not a desk job person, and I loved robotics and cars. I also had an uncanny knack for math. After further research, I decided that mechanical engineering aligned best with my interests. Over the course of my career, I want to work on projects that tackle sustainability, community, and societal issues. For instance, a dream of mine has always been to innovate current appliances so that they are powered by a renewable energy source, preferably using some form of electrochemical energy. I was introduced in depth to hydroelectric, geothermal, and nuclear energy when I was in ninth grade by my engineering teacher. As soon as I learned what these forms of energy were and how they worked, I immediately wondered why these forms of energy were not used more in our day-to-day lives and in what instances could these forms of energy be used. I want to make more mechanical devices that are powered by renewable sources of energy so that future generations do not have to pay the consequences for the mistakes of the past. I hope to have an impact in the STEM field as a person of color by being so exceptional that I can be an inspiration to others who look like me. Growing up in East Orlando, I can count on one hand the number of engineers I met who looked like me. While they were few in number, they were reminders that I could do well in whatever I put my mind to. These extraordinary individuals were recognized and respected nationally, and cherished and admired by the African- American community. I want to be so great at what I do that I can be to a child in the future what they were to me.

My love for STEM started in my early childhood. On my seventh birthday, one of my friends gave me a couple of LEGO sets. I had only ever played with LEGO once before, and I wasn't able to put together the set, which made me feel like I wasn’t smart. Because of my prior experience, I remember the LEGO sets sat on my dresser for quite a while. One day, I told my mother I was bored, and she reminded me about the LEGO sets on my dresser. I opened the first set, thinking maybe I could do it this time, and picked up the instructions optimistically. That day, I completed all three sets I had received in less than two hours. Sometime after I had finished building, my mother came back to my room’s doorframe with a smile. “I see you like LEGO’s,” she said. I coyly responded, “Yeah,” wondering why I had let the sets sit on my dresser for so long. While this was only a blink of time in my life, it sparked my interest. This interest led me to build more LEGO, which eventually turned into robotics kits, which eventually led me to join robotics teams. Eventually, it became more than just an interest, but a true passion for STEM. Currently, I plan on studying mechanical engineering in college. What really solidified the decision for me was taking a class called Introduction to Engineering Design. It taught me about the different disciplines in engineering and the work available in each field. Since I was young, I knew that I was not a desk job person, and I loved robotics and cars. I also had an uncanny knack for math. After further research, I decided that mechanical engineering aligned best with my interests. Over the course of my career, I want to work on projects that tackle sustainability, community, and societal issues. For instance, a dream of mine has always been to create some sort of vehicle powered by a renewable energy source, preferably using some form of electrochemical energy. I was introduced in depth to hydroelectric, geothermal, and nuclear energy when I was in ninth grade by my engineering teacher. As soon as I learned what these forms of energy were and how they worked, I immediately wondered why these forms of energy were not used more in our day-to-day lives and in what instances could these forms of energy be used. I want to make more mechanical devices that are powered by renewable sources of energy so that future generations do not have to pay the consequences for the mistakes of the past.

My love for STEM started in my early childhood. On my seventh birthday, one of my friends gave me a couple of LEGO sets. I had only ever played with LEGO once before, and I wasn't able to put together the set, which made me feel like I wasn’t smart. Because of my prior experience, I remember the LEGO sets sat on my dresser for quite a while. One day, I told my mother I was bored, and she reminded me about the LEGO sets on my dresser. I opened the first set, thinking maybe I could do it this time, and picked up the instructions optimistically. That day, I completed all three sets I had received in less than two hours. Sometime after I had finished building, my mother came back to my room’s doorframe with a smile. “I see you like LEGO’s,” she said. I coyly responded, “Yeah,” wondering why I had let the sets sit on my dresser for so long. While this was only a blink of time in my life, it sparked my interest. This interest led me to build more LEGO, which eventually turned into robotics kits, which eventually led me to join robotics teams. Eventually, it became more than just an interest, but a true passion for STEM. Currently, I plan on studying mechanical engineering in college. What really solidified the decision for me was taking a class called Introduction to Engineering Design. It taught me about the different disciplines in engineering and the work available in each field. Since I was young, I knew that I was not a desk job person, and I loved robotics and cars. I also had an uncanny knack for math. After further research, I decided that mechanical engineering aligned best with my interests. Over the course of my career, I want to work on projects that tackle sustainability, community, and societal issues. For instance, a dream of mine has always been to create some sort of vehicle powered by a renewable energy source, preferably using some form of electrochemical energy. I was introduced in depth to hydroelectric, geothermal, and nuclear energy when I was in ninth grade by my engineering teacher. As soon as I learned what these forms of energy were and how they worked, I immediately wondered why these forms of energy were not used more in our day-to-day lives and in what instances could these forms of energy be used. I want to make more mechanical devices that are powered by renewable sources of energy so that future generations do not have to pay the consequences for the mistakes of the past. For me, the biggest obstacle I think I will face is coping with being far away from my family. My siblings and I have a very close bond, so leaving them feels very bittersweet because while they get on my nerves sometimes, I still love them. As for my parents, I will miss not being able to talk to them face-to-face daily, as I usually go to them a lot for guidance on life. Leaving my mom specifically will probably be excruciatingly hard for me, because she has stage four cancer, and the threat of her condition worsening while I am away scares me to death. Most importantly, for as long as I can remember, my parents have always been there for me and helped support me through every phase of my childhood.