On my journey to higher education, I have faced many challenges that have tested both my resilience and determination. One major challenge that I have faced has been balancing academics with my personal and financial responsibilities. I have had to work long hours to cover my school tuition, while keeping up with my demanding coursework. With the ever changing school dynamics, I didn’t have a clear roadmap or support system to guide me through everything. My parents attended college a long time ago and the landscape has changed since then. So my parents were left figuring out the landscape along with me. Finding an available mentor at my school has also been a challenge as my work and studies have taken up most of my time. These challenges affected me as I felt like I was behind the curve and had to play catchup with my peers. I felt like I missed out on many opportunities on scholarships and other school amenities. Despite these obstacles, I have stayed focused and on course with my goals as I pushed through the setbacks, and used each challenge as extra motivation to keep me going. I call that my turn it up to 11. I believe these experiences have made me stronger as a person and more adaptable to adversity. It is a tool I intend to use as I mentor and guide my younger sister through her college years. I would love to have the opportunity to mentor others through Inspire11 as well as be a part of the mentorship program. I feel like there are others students who are in a similar situation as mine and my story can be quite motivating for them. The biggest lesson that I can teach others is being resilient. Having an optimistic view on a situation can help put your mind at ease to figure out solutions. Through mentorship I would gain valuable perspectives from experienced individuals who have traveled similar paths. Being surrounded by a community of forward-thinking, innovative professionals would be an incredible opportunity to learn, grow, and stay resilient. Resiliency gives you confidence to continuously improve and test boundaries, which seems infeasible when you are faced with challenges. With guidance, I would be able to accelerate my personal growth and expand my toolkit of forward thinking that would eventually enable me to pay it forward to others in my community and in the world.

Opening Scene: The scene fades into view of a nice suburban home in a small neighborhood. A crisp dewy morning with robins chirping in the air. The camera zooms into an open window where the sound of bacon sizzling on a frying pan can be heard and the smell of freshly made pancakes in the air. Scene switches to a hand grabbing a plate from the cabinet and laying it out on a table next to the open window. The bacon and pancakes slide onto the plate and a cup of lemonade is poured into a glass. As they are about to pull their chair out from under the table the person looks over to their side. A girl with tightly coiled hair walks up to a bookshelf of a variety of genres, still with her back facing the camera. She scans the bookshelf of fantasy, nursing, and self help books until her fingers land on a photo album titled “Forever Beating”. She picks this book up off the shelf and returns to her seat at the table. The book drops on the table, falling on a random page of a picture of the girl–me–and her older sister hugging at the older siblings' kindergarten graduation. The camera switches to my face and I smile in remembrance of previous promises to follow her everywhere. A soft voice comes from my throat: “If only life were that simple again.” The camera switches back to the photo album zooming in on the photo. With my continued voice over the pages of the album begin to flip to a different picture. The album lands on a picture of me in middle school, the sixth grade, when I tried out for cheerleading and made the team along with my friends and sister. Cue the voiceover– I have always had a lack of confidence in myself and my abilities. I would never join any clubs or sports teams, so trying out for cheerleading was a huge step for me. I was self conscious about my appearance so I would be scared to walk out in my cheer uniform and I was very inflexible so the exercises were hard for me. I constantly felt like I wanted to quit, but I knew I needed this experience to develop myself. So I desired to see it out to the end, and that’s just what I did. The book flips again to another page, this time high school, junior year, of me in my scrubs next to another picture of me at my white coat ceremony for my nurse aid class. Cue the voiceover– This was my first big step towards my future career. I always had a penchant for taking care of people, especially children so getting into this class was very important to me. I even took classes over the summer to help myself get into the class. Children need to be protected and guided so I want to be that person that makes their lives easier. Remembering the skills taught to me was the most difficult thing during this class and my teacher, although wonderful, was strict. I sometimes contemplated whether I actually wanted to go through with this as a career and put myself through the grueling work. When I was in doubt I would remind myself that life is never easy. That I would need to work hard for the things that I wanted. I’m glad I stuck around because I finished the class with an “A” for every marking period and aced my final. The photo album flips one last time to an empty pocket titled “My Graduation”. Cue the voiceover– I was nearing the climax of my life where I would finally be an independent person. I haven’t even scratched the surface of my future possibilities. This event will mark a moment in my life where all my academic achievements have brought me to. I now know what I need to do. I will keep pushing as hard as I can because my heart is forever beating. The photo album closes and I clean up my dishes as the title “Forever Beating” floats off of the book into a fading black screen.

My name is Jacarra Burden, I am a current high school senior and I aspire to become a Radiologic Technologist. I also have a passion for art and design, so if possible I would also like to create my own business surrounding those passions. I want to attend college because it is an essential part in preparing myself for my career interests. I have to complete all my prerequisite classes in a college or university to be able to apply for radiology programs. From my teachers and coworkers that are college students, I have learned how important it is to manage my time well. Life moves very fast so I cannot waste too much time procrastinating. If I put in the work now then I will be able to rest later on in life. They taught me that while it is important to focus on my career, I do not have to let go of my other passions and hobbies. College is just an experience and a small part of my life, my time there will not define what my entire life will look like in the future. So while I will remain on top of my studies and work, I will continue to have fun in my downtime. There is a severe lack of black creatives in the online space. The stories and creations that are already existing do not get any representation in the media, so they remain hidden. I want to become that mainstream media inspiration for people like me who are creatives. I will create a space for others to show off their works and shine. We will be able to uplift the talents of others and be a beacon for those who are struggling to find their courage to advocate for themselves. College will assist me in these goals by connecting me with people from different backgrounds and perspectives. We can become a team with our shared interests to bounce ideas off of each other and make my plan a shared success. I can also meet people who might need help getting started on their personal projects and assist them in that. College can also help me reach even more success with my passions than what I would be able to accomplish on my own. College is there to enhance the knowledge you already possess and make your skills stronger so I can not help but to only see the positives.

Heroes are defined by the selfless service that they give. I became a superfan of LeBron when he joined the Miami heat. I feel like this was the time that he grew into the greatest. I heard stories of Michael Jordan and the things he did on the floor, but I never heard any of the things he did for others off court. When LeBron opened his school to help underprivileged kids in Ohio, it reconfirmed him as the greatest. Through his social activism to being a voice of people of color, he has shown time and time again the type of person he is. Obviously the debate is between LeBron and Jordan. Through all of debates that I have, I counter the argument about Jordan being 6-0 in the finals to how many times he was eliminated before he got to the finals. In addition, basketball from a skills level has advanced throughout the years. There will always be debates on who is the greatest. But unquestionably, there is no debate on who is the best all around player. As an African American female, I recognize him as my greatest because it all goes beyond basketball. It is about life legacy.

My dad is a true American Hero. He was always a hero to me, but to see the admiration that he received from others when in public is what make me feel so proud. Growing up, I did not understand the sacrifices that he was making when he was away. I just knew he wasn’t there with us and our house felt a little empty. I was used to my dad tucking me into bed every night and showing up at my school assemblies. It often made me feel left out when seeing my friends with both of their parents. It made me envious of them. I was often left sharing letters and books that my dad sent to share with my class so they would know why they never see him. As I got older, my dad’s military occupation became clearer to me and I started to understand why he was always gone. My guidance counselor spent many days reminding me of my dad’s sacrifice and how she felt safe by the work that my dad and other soldiers do. Although I selfishly wanted my dad to return, I decided to be more supportive of his work. My sister and I sent many letters to him and stayed up late, waiting for his phone calls. Sometimes I felt like it was just my mom raising us. She had to help my siblings and I with our homework. We even had to share the responsibilities and tasks my dad often did around the house. Even though we were left feeling less than whole, we were resilient. Through our military support system, we were able to keep contact with other families with similar situations. It was not always easy being a military brat, but it taught me the meaning of selfless service and duty. Life lessons are the gifts that my dad gave me and motivated me to find my occupational path to help my community. It was not an easy time and I would have rather had my dad present more. However, I feel like his sacrifice helped us financially as well as keep us safe. I never really had a conversation with my dad to thank him for his service, but he knows how proud we are of him as we were present to every military event that we were able to attend with him. His legacy will be a constant testimony to how being a true servant to our community should look. He is my hero.

As a society we have lost our personal selves. Everyone is overly concerned with what is new and trending, how they can seem relatable to others, and how they can fit in the scene. People are afraid to take the first steps to being their own person and becoming different from the norm. Society is uncomfortable with nonconformity and difference. Anyone who deviates from the common experience is met with harsh criticism and judgement. We need role models and safe spaces for people’s creativity and innovation to blossom. Which is why I plan to make a positive impact on my community by bringing back creativity and individuality to our society, rejecting conformity and pushing back against judgement, and becoming a safe space and inspiration for young kids like myself to pave their own path in life. In my generation everyone practically wears the exact same things, develops the same interests, and participates in the same activities. We need to be a lot more adventurous with our lives. I have a wide variety of interests myself and sometimes I also feel the need to suppress them so I can be received well by my peers, but with this kind of mindset we will lose all our unique traits in the world. So I aspire to be proficient in multiple kinds of art to show those in my age group that if they are willing they do not have to hide their personal dreams to impress other people. I will encourage my friends around me to try out new hobbies, a new style, or just switch up their routine. While there is a lot of judgement and rejection out in the real world, I believe the vitriol that comes from social media and other online spaces has a bigger impact on the current younger generations of people. Since the world is becoming increasingly more digital we consume a lot of ideas and mindsets from mainstream media. Specifically concerning cringe culture online, people are very quick to make fun and harass people that are not like them. This mentality that you cannot have other interests besides what most people know of has to end. You cannot control what other people do and say but you can control your reaction to it. So the best way to push back against their standards is to ignore and keep shining. If you do not let their words and opinions get to you then you cannot be changed. Staying true to yourself and never backing down is something everyone needs to learn. Navigating through the world can be super hard when you feel like no one can understand you or have your back. I would like to become someone people can rely on to be on their side. I personally know it is hard to continue being motivated when you do not have someone in your corner uplifting you when you are down. So when I see a friend or anyone trying their best to create something, I’ll let them know that I am rooting for their success and that they can reach their goal with consistency. I’ll also work toward making my artistic dreams a reality so I can become a living example of what following your aspirations can bring you.

As a society we have lost our personal selves. Everyone is overly concerned with what is new and trending, how they can seem relatable to others, and how they can fit in the scene. People are afraid to take the first steps to being their own person and becoming different from the norm. Society is uncomfortable with nonconformity and difference. Anyone who deviates from the common experience is met with harsh criticism and judgement. We need role models and safe spaces for people’s creativity and innovation to blossom. Which is why I plan to make a positive impact on my community by bringing back creativity and individuality to our society, rejecting conformity and pushing back against judgement, and becoming a safe space and inspiration for young kids like myself to pave their own path in life. In my generation everyone practically wears the exact same things, develops the same interests, and participates in the same activities. We need to be a lot more adventurous with our lives. I have a wide variety of interests myself and sometimes I also feel the need to suppress them so I can be received well by my peers, but with this kind of mindset we will lose all our unique traits in the world. So I aspire to be proficient in multiple kinds of art to show those in my age group that if they are willing they do not have to hide their personal dreams to impress other people. I will encourage my friends around me to try out new hobbies, a new style, or just switch up their routine. While there is a lot of judgement and rejection out in the real world, I believe the vitriol that comes from social media and other online spaces has a bigger impact on the current younger generations of people. Since the world is becoming increasingly more digital we consume a lot of ideas and mindsets from mainstream media. Specifically concerning cringe culture online, people are very quick to make fun and harass people that are not like them. This mentality that you cannot have other interests besides what most people know of has to end. You cannot control what other people do and say but you can control your reaction to it. So the best way to push back against their standards is to ignore and keep shining. If you do not let their words and opinions get to you, then you cannot be changed. Staying true to yourself and never backing down is something everyone needs to learn. Navigating through the world can be super hard when you feel like no one can understand you or have your back. I would like to become someone people can rely on to be on their side. I personally know it is hard to continue being motivated when you do not have someone in your corner uplifting you when you are down. So, when I see a friend or anyone trying their best to create something, I’ll let them know that I am rooting for their success and that they can reach their goal with consistency. I’ll also work toward making my artistic dreams a reality so I can become a living example of what following your aspirations can bring you.