At a young age, I always dreamed of making a major impact on the world no matter how big or small. Being able to change the mindset or demeanor of someone has always been a mini superpower of mine and I later concluded that this was something I intended to continue in my future aspirations. This dream of mine led me to develop a love for mental health and the importance of it. Pushing into the path of becoming a mental health specialist and becoming a vessel for any and every kind of mental turmoil. I now wish to become a youth mental health specialist and advocate due to the lack thereof in my and my peer’s adolescence. Understanding that the only way for me to pursue my passions I must attend a post-secondary educational institution, I wish to study psychology and social work, getting a wide range of knowledge to be qualified as a specialist. In obtaining my degree I will be able to not only contribute to society but I hope to break generational struggles in the process. By obtaining my degree I will have the credibility to not only impact society but create programs impacting the youth. I aspire to target children in low-income families who have suffered from mental and traumatic disorders and/or experiences. Along with the children who are I want children to see that I am a product of the same environment they are in and that things can always become better no matter the obstacles they are faced with. Knowing that low-income communities typically don’t take in the severity of mental health or even the impact it leaves on our children, I want to be one of the pillars of the community that the children can look to for help and clarity. Children are typically looked down on and are often told they aren’t having battles of their own because of their age. I want to instill a system that promotes mental health awareness for children is often overlooked. Oftentimes adults are overcome by their current struggles and forget that stress and hardship have no age limit. By obtaining my degree I will work on building up this foundation and bringing a larger insight into the effects of mental health and promotion for the children who are being overlooked. In receiving this scholarship my dreams are a step closer to being achieved. Unfortunately, I and my family aren't established enough to support my financial needs with this education direction I am taking. And due to the funds not being present to assist me, I look to scholarships and grants in order to make this educational opportunity obtainable for myself. In receiving this scholarship I will have a more established and secure system where I can ensure my financial crisis is averted. I look forward to being considered for this amazing opportunity as it will be a major asset to me.

Hello, my name is Jaylah Hall. I am pursuing my degree in psychology next year as I am a senior in high school. Obtaining a degree in psychology will be a milestone for me as I hope to promote mental health and wellness within my community as it is often overlooked and deemed as a myth. I hope to shed light on the ignorance of my peers and push them to understand the importance of mental health and wellness. My aspirations for the community is to set up a cost efficient therapy firm that is sustainable for the community. I aspire to target children in low income families that have suffered from mental and traumatic disorders and/or experiences. Being that I grew up in a low income household and suffered from mental challenges along with enduring a multitude of traumatic experiences with one of them being sexual assault, I want to cater to the children who have suffered the same as me. Also with the children who are just looking for help and a way out of their mental prison and are unsure of what is happening. Often times in the black community children are overlooked by their elders who aren’t educated in emotional intelligence, and with me pursuing my career I hope to shed light on this hardship. I want children to see that I am a product of the same environment they are in and things can always become better no matter the obstacles they are faced with. Knowing that low income communities typically don’t take in the severity of issues that mental health produce or even the impact it leaves on our children, I want to be one of the pillars of the community that the children can look to for help and clarity. Children are typically looked down on and are often told they aren’t having battles of their own because of their age. And I want to instill a system that promotes mental health awareness and the different abuse the children endure that is often overlooked. Oftentimes adults are overcome by their current struggles and forget that stress and hardship has no age limit. Which leds to their own struggles being bigger than their children. By obtaining my degree I will work on building up this firm and bringing a larger insight of the affects of mental health and promote for the children who are being overlooked.

My aspirations for the community is to set up a cost efficient Therapy firm that is sustainable for the community. I aspire to target children in low income families that have suffered from mental and traumatic disorders and/or experiences. Being that I grew up in a low income household and suffered from mental challenges and endured a multitude of traumatic experiences with one of them being sexual assault, I want to cater to the children who have suffered the same as me. Along with the children who are just looking for help and a way out of their mental prison and are unsure of what is happening. I want children to see that I am a product of the same environment they are in and things can always become better no matter the obstacles they are faced with. Knowing that low income communities typically don’t take in the severity of mental health or even the impact it leaves on our children, I want to be one of the pillars of the community that the children can look to for help and clarity. Children are typically looked down on and are often told they aren’t having battles of their own because of their age. And I want to instill a system that promotes mental health awareness and the different abuse the children endure that is often overlooked. Oftentimes adults are overcome by their current struggles and forget that stress and hardship has no age limit. Which leds to their own struggles being bigger than their children. By obtaining my degree I will work on building up this firm and bringing a larger insight of the affects of mental health and promote for the children who are being overlooked. I will be a voice to and of the children. Being that I am a product of public school education bullying has been something I have endured and been surrounded with my whole years of K-12 schooling. I know that speaking from experience and allowing students who don’t and won’t have a voice to be heard will help bring awareness to the harmful effects of bullying in school. My advocacy for students who are falling victim to being a bully and bullying someone else will be a major factor in my future aspirations. Providing the necessary resources along with my support to aid the students who are suffering will be a high priority task I will hold dear to my heart.

In high school you are faced with many obstacles and challenges throughout your 4 years there. I have been placed in a multitude of occasions where my kindness was evoked and I had to choose what was right. One of the most prominent situations this took place would be my Junior Year on the cheerleading team. I was in my second year of varsity cheerleading for my high school cheer team and I was placed into a stunt group with a teammate of mine who wasn’t often kind to others. She would always make snarky remarks and send out harsh comments towards her peers and teammates. When I was placed into our stunt group I fell victim to her harshness and was faced with with a troubling decision. I could either retaliate and show her the same behavior she was presenting or chose to be kind. And in turn I took the kindness route. I felt as if I fought her nasty remarks and harsh emotions with love instead of retaliation I could break a barrier no knew was needed. Oftentimes people are lashing out through hate because they don’t know how to express love properly. So I took it upon myself to build her up all while she chose to tear others down because I felt as if she needed something she wasn’t expressing. Throughout the season I decided to learn her and build her up to the point she was comfortable enough with me to express herself. As time went by I decided to have a heart to heart conversation with her and unveil the initial root of her anger. She was finally able to open up about her troubles and expressed that she was going through a great deal of pain at home which in turn made her lash out in public. Being able to get her to communicate her hidden emotions broke down her tough barriers and made me see behind the anger and hurt she was pushing out. And with me helping her talk through her emotions we were able to apply the necessary resources in her life that she needed to help. So without me deciding to be the bigger person that put my pride aside and break down the bitterness I was receiving she would’ve continued to fight a silent battle on her own. Me giving out kindness and placing it in her heart saved her from the internal battle she was fighting alone and produced a positive outcome for not just me but her and the people she was being harmful to as well.