In the fast-moving and rapidly evolving hospitality industry, I envision that I’ll manage to create an immediate and substantial positive impact on local and global communities over the next 5 years, and here’s how. I believe everyone loves food, so creating a positive impact when a meal is involved isn’t that complicated. One of the things I love most about food is how there’s always a story behind it. Food is a celebration of culture. In terms of the hospitality industry, I feel that people visit restaurants/places more than just for what they have to offer food-wise. For example, my mom and I frequently visit a restaurant here in the Dallas area called El Fenix. On Wednesdays, they serve enchiladas for $5.99. When we eat there, my mother is transported back to the times when she was a kid eating with my great-grandmother/great-grandpa. My point is that the nostalgia that can come from a place can spark positivity all in itself. Now, as I grew up eating there with her, if I were to visit with my friends. I would be transported back to my childhood as well. One way I aim to create a positive impact is by challenging the narrative that owning a restaurant is doomed from the start. I emphasize this as the failure rate is alarmingly high, and I plan to overcome that. People find this very discouraging, but I believe if people see I can do it, it can make them believe they can too. I plan to spread positivity in my community wherever I decide to open my business by providing fundraising/and scholarship opportunities to high schoolers to help them overcome the financial burden college has on too many. Another way I believe I can impact global communities is by finding a solution to a somewhat insolvable problem in the food industry today: “food waste”. It’s honestly horrendous how much food is thrown out each night at the end of a shift. As I’m a hospitality major, I believe that creating a positive impact on people’s lives, whether local or global, is the main mission of what we do. In the world of hospitality, it is our main goal to make a personalable relationship with our customers. Good customer service skills, being consistent, smiling, and attention to detail are all the core foundations for what hospitality is. Omotenashi, which is the Japanese word for hospitality, is my favorite way to describe it. Omotenashi means the focus is always on providing the best service and hospitality, despite receiving nothing in return. This is the very reason our hospitality department uses this word as the core definition of our degree. I want to open a restaurant one day, and I feel that if I’m able to treat my local community with these actions that I just described, I’ll make a positive impact on customers' lives. The possibilities of what I can do to make a positive impact with my restaurant are endless.

In the fast-moving and rapidly evolving hospitality industry, l believe that I’ll manage to create an immediate and substantial positive impact on local and global communities over the next 5 years, and here’s how. I believe everyone loves food so creating a positive impact when some type of meal is involved isn’t that complicated. One of the things l love most about food is how there’s always a story behind it. Food is a celebration of culture. In terms of the hospitality industry l feel that people visit restaurants/places more than just what they have to offer food-wise. For example, me and mom frequently visit a restaurant here in the Dallas area called El Fenix. On Wednesdays, they serve enchiladas for 5.99. When we eat there my mother is transported back to the times of when she was a kid eating with my great-grandmother/great-grandpa. My point is the nostalgia that can come from a place can spark positivity all in itself. Now as l grew up eating there with her, if l were to visit with my friends. l would be transported back to my childhood as well. As I’m a hospitality major, l feel that creating a positive impact on people’s lives whether local or global, is the main mission of what we do. In the world of hospitality, it is our main goal to make a personable relationship with our customers. Good customer service skills, being consistent, smiling, etc. are all the core foundations for what hospitality is. Omotenashi, which is the Japanese word for hospitality, is probably my favorite definition to describe it. Omotenashi means the focus is always on providing the best service and hospitality despite receiving nothing in return. This is the very reason our hospitality department uses this word as the core definition of our degree. I want to open a restaurant one day and l feel that if I’m able to treat my local community with these actions that l just described, I’ll make a positive impact on customer lives. Another way l want to create a positive impact is by beating the narrative/stigma that owning a restaurant is doomed from the start. I emphasize this as the failure rate is alarmingly high and l plan to overcome that. People find this very discouraging, but l believe if people see l can do it, it can make them believe they can too. I also can spread positivity in my community wherever l decide to open my business by providing fundraising/and scholarship opportunities to high schoolers to help them overcome the financial burden college has on too many. A way l believe l can impact global communities is by finding a solution to a somewhat insolvable problem in the food industry today “food waste”. It’s honestly horrendous how much food is thrown out each night at the end of a shift. If there was a way to find a practical solution for food corporations to end up using that food to go to people in need or at least their co-workers who need food in treacherous times. That would be able to help people around the world. Again, my goal is to own and operate a "successful" restaurant one day. Earning this scholarship will help me do so as I've been financially challenged paying tuition this past academic year. Thank you for reading this and l hope you choose me as one of your honorable winners.

I would say that my identity comes from a love of cooking. I'm always in the kitchen cooking for my family or even myself. Watching the Cooking Channel and Food Network with my mother when I was three is a fond memory from my childhood. Initially, I just found them entertaining, but now they have become a hobby for me. Even now, I enjoy watching people create recipes on Instagram and Youtube. I would say I'm a student of the craft always wanting to know more. Cooking also is an escape for me. At least when l have music to go with it though. It relieves stress for me, and the benefit is eating what you create. Sometimes the results aren't what I want, which can ruin my mood. Then you know that you don't like a recipe, and you scratch it off the drawing board. Some of my favorite celebrity chefs growing up were Alton Brown, Ina Garten, Chef Kenji Lopez Alt, and so many more chefs I've seen create on Instagram. One of the things l love most about food is how there's always a story behind it. It makes me interested to know that there's more to a plate of food than meets the eye. You learn the history behind how a recipe is created, whether good or bad. All of these creators listed, whom I've come to watch over time of many different ethnical backgrounds. Kenji is half Latino and half Japanese. As a result of his high intelligence, he was accepted to MIT, where he pursued a career in food science. Another thing l love about food is the science part of it. I know that sounds nerdy, but it really can help you create delicious meals. I own his book and he goes into great detail on why you should do certain methods, while others you should steer clear from. A lot of chefs make a recipe, and then give you the steps on how to do it. I particularly like Kenji because he explains why he does it. For example, he does a blind taste test to back his methods up. I specifically adore him for this reason. I want to be the first in my family to get a bachelor's degree. I also can't wait to work in the restaurant Skyviews that Texas Tech provides. It's similar to what l had in high school, but an advanced version of it. I plan to open a restaurant one day but not only open it, but also own a successful restaurant. I will become apart of whatever community my restaurant takes its place in. I will make meals for charity events and even host a scholarship of my own someday. To help someone not have to worry about student debt.

I would say that my identity comes from a love of cooking. I'm always in the kitchen cooking for my family or even myself. Watching the Cooking Channel and Food Network with my mother when I was three is a fond memory from my childhood. Initially, I just found them entertaining, but now they have become a hobby for me. Even now, I enjoy watching people create recipes on Instagram and Youtube. I would say I'm a student of the craft always wanting to know more. Cooking also is an escape for me. At least when l have music to go with it though. It relieves stress for me, and the benefit is eating what you create. Sometimes the results aren't what I want, which can ruin my mood. Then you know that you don't like a recipe, and you scratch it off the drawing board. Some of my favorite celebrity chefs growing up were Alton Brown, Ina Garten, Chef Kenji Lopez Alt, and so many more chefs I've seen create on Instagram. One of the things l love most about food is how there's always a story behind it. It makes me interested to know that there's more to a plate of food than meets the eye. You learn the history behind how a recipe is created, whether good or bad. All of these creators listed, whom I've come to watch over time of many different ethnical backgrounds. Kenji is half Latino and half Japanese. As a result of his high intelligence, he was accepted to MIT, where he pursued a career in food science. Another thing l love about food is the science part of it. I know that sounds nerdy, but it really can help you create delicious meals. I own his book and he goes into great detail on why you should do certain methods, while others you should steer clear from. A lot of chefs make a recipe, and then give you the steps on how to do it. I particularly like Kenji because he explains why he does it. For example, he does a blind taste test to back his methods up. I specifically adore him for this reason. I want to be the first in my family to get a bachelor's degree. I also can't wait to work in the restaurant Skyviews that Texas Tech provides. It's similar to what l had in high school, but an advanced version of it. I plan to open a restaurant one day but not only open it, but also own a successful restaurant. I can give back to my community by sponsoring events for my city. Also, l want to be able to provide a scholarship for my high school when l can be financially stable. I could make meals for people in need for charitable events. Food is life and l can use my restaurant as a vessel to make the world a better place.

I would value as much financial help as l could get. Being in debt is one of the things l don't want to worry about in the future. Money so l can eat and so l can buy my supplies, and a quality computer to get me thru school. I will take as much money as l can get. I want to own/operate a restaurant one day. I've already created a menu and even a restaurant name. I have a passion for cooking so l want to go into the hospitality industry. I would say that my identity comes from a love of cooking. I'm always in the kitchen cooking for my family or even myself. Watching the Cooking Channel and Food Network with my mother when I was three is a fond memory from my childhood. Initially, I just found them entertaining, but now they have become a hobby for me. Even now, I enjoy watching people create recipes on Instagram and Youtube. I would say I'm a student of the craft always wanting to know more. Cooking also is an escape for me. At least when l have music to go with it though. It relieves stress for me, and the benefit is eating what you create. Sometimes the results aren't what I want, which can ruin my mood. Then you know that you don't like a recipe, and you scratch it off the drawing board. Some of my favorite celebrity chefs growing up were Alton Brown, Ina Garten, Chef Kenji Lopez Alt, and so many more chefs I've seen create on Instagram. One of the things l love most about food is how there's always a story behind it. It makes me interested to know that there's more to a plate of food than meets the eye. You learn the history behind how a recipe is created, whether good or bad. A saying I created is "there's always a reason for the seasoning." It means that every component of the food you make has a reason for being there. It does sound cliche, but it's the truth. In my high school, we have a full-running restaurant called the 544 cafes. I earned my ServSafe manager's degree at 16 as one of the only 5 in my class to do so. I learned all the positions of a restaurant in my experience there. From the costing side to the more technical side of it like learning all the equipment used in the restaurant industry. It's my dream to own and operate a successful restaurant one day. Therefore, achieving this dream will be easier if you graduate with as little debt as possible.