I had interest in a wide array of subjects from neuroscience to criminology. I ended up completing my undergraduate degree in Sociology with a double major in Criminology and am now working towards a M.S. degree in Clinical Mental Health Counseling. My undergraduate experience was quite intense, and I feel I navigated it in the dark. Because no one else had gone into higher education in my family, things like taking out loans, applying for scholarships, utilizing campus resources, and exploring institutions and programs were a trial-by-error situation. This resulted in being left with high interest, high balance loans. My father had finally found a job where he was making a comfortable amount of money, which left me at a disadvantage for financial aid even though I handled my finances completely independently. I was able to accept a couple thousand dollars' worth of federal loans annually, but upwards of $50,000 of student debt was acquired through private loans, with the average interest rate being in the double digits. I received very few grants or scholarships throughout my undergraduate experience because on paper, I was not disadvantaged. I was tasked with communicating with FAFSA, the financial aid department on campus, federal aid programs, and all other avenues you can imagine just to afford to live and pay tuition. One time, I even added the President of my university to an e-mail, along with other leadership staff of the institution, my advisors, and financial aid to express my concerns over the expenses I was struggling with. Over and over again I was declined further financial aid, including emergency funds that were reserved by the school I was attending. Luckily, letting these individuals know that I was worried I would have to drop out of my final year of school pushed them to help me with the cost of tuition. I had just applied for and receive SNAP benefits through Pennsylvania and couldn't find a way to make ends meet, but I wasn't willing to stop asking for help. I seldom, if ever, used campus resources because I didn't have the knowledge of them. For example, there was a writing center that would assist students with improving the quality of their assignments, reviewing applications, practicing interviews for jobs, and much more. I did not know this existed until my last semester, but by then I had already developed a strong foundation of those skills. I attended the first institution I applied to because they offered a scholarship, which ended up breaking down to about $5,000 per semester. I didn't understand how the offer worked, which left me footing the rest of tuition. I didn't have access to the same resources because I didn't have mentors or networks to educate me on them. I took a life-changing responsibility on at age 18 because my family knew nothing about private student loans. And still, I persevered, graduating a year early as Cum Laude. Now, as I continue my education into graduate school, I have learned some hard lessons but can improve my quality of education. I have much more knowledge on finances and options available to me, though still struggle to receive scholarships, grants, or other forms of financial aid that doesn't result in debt. I have transferred my private lender for a better interest rate. I am working full-time and paying off my debts across the board. I connect more with my professors and cohort for assistance. And I am achieving more than 18-year-old me could imagine.

My name is Jodi Custred. I am currently attending Indiana University of Pennsylvania, studying Criminology and Sociology in the dual baccalaureate program. I plan on also attending IUP's graduate school for both degrees. Personally, I feel as though I would not be a great fit for strictly law enforcement positions. However, I think I can make an active change in the community by working as a social worker or victim advocate, as well as advocating for change in our justice system. By becoming a social worker or victim advocate, I can comfort, protect, and serve children and families who are victims of violent crimes, such as abuse. And while I'm not opposed to becoming law enforcement, I do think that I am more skilled in a profession that uses counseling and goal-planning and skills-based communication and achievement rather than enforcing laws and protecting citizens, with the risk of my life being on the line. I am sorry to find that Jim Simonetti has passed. I'm sure he was an excellent police officer. I do find that in my profession I will be able to also work closely with law enforcement, as well as educate officer, both young and old, on the importance of being trauma-informed, domestic violence issues, substance abuse, and so many other sensitive topics. We frequently see victims of related crimes not liking police, even hating them. But I want to educate police officers to bring them closer to the community, as well as lobbying for protection of victims in legislature. I truly believe that by closing this gap between community and law enforcement, we would see far less crime, victimization, injury, and death. Furthermore, I have worked for Bethany Beach Police Department (Delaware) and Alice Paul House (Indiana's DV/SA Shelter- Non-Profit), which has broadened my awareness on what is good, what can be fixed, and what absolutely needs to change in terms of how we serve our community. I found that in these jobs, many officers are not equipped with the understanding of the intricacies of certain crimes. Furthermore, with a non-profit organization, they are very knowledgeable on the laws pertaining to the crimes they advocate for, but they tend to have strained relationships with law enforcement. Once again, my goal is to help and heal families and children, change our justice system and how each department interacts, and bridging the gap between law enforcement, advocates, and our community. I believe many areas can be improved upon that would benefit how our system works.

In my opinion, the best way to help an individual struggling with mental health, is to be understanding and an active listener. You may not always have the words or advice to support you friends, family, or peers. By being an active listener, it may help to let the individual relieve some of the pressure or darkness weighing on their mind. Active listening is the act of hearing, reiterating, and comprehending what the individual is saying. This may entail some guidance and empowerment, but not direction or advice. It is more-so the act of allowing them to vent to you. Furthermore, it shows how caring, understanding, and comfortable you are with allowing them to vent. By showing you care and want to hear them, you can possibly do as much as save their life. This type of acceptance and de-stigmatizing of mental health is the simplest solution in most cases. In the event you or someone else is struggling with crisis-level thoughts or situations, refer to a local mental health organization and let them know you are in crisis and need immediate intervention. This can prevent self-harm or suicide. It will also allow you to have an open door into therapy, which can be very impactful and helpful when struggling with mental health. A trained therapist can offer extensive programs and skills to work through or heal the problems one is dealing with. I have found that these solutions have been most practical for my friends and I. I have been in therapy for almost 6 years now and I recommend it to everyone who is dealing with severe mental disorders. It can really help you with the right therapist.

My name is Jodi. I am a 20 year old queer woman who has always struggled with my sexuality and gender expression. I am a cis female, but tend to find that it is not as impactful to my identity to define myself as genderfluid or genderqueer, however I feel that these terms are applicable to me. I came out to my dad as bisexual at the age of 13, and to this day we do not speak of it. I have only had romantic relationships with men this far into my life, and it feels invalidating to me, as many inside and outside of the community make assumptions because of this. My family knows I am queer, but it is generally overlooked and ignored. I don't think they mind, but it is something I have found to cross my mind over the years, as I wonder if they see me for what I have told them, or rather something else. I wonder if I were as loud and proud and secure as some of my peers, if my family would still love me the same. I have seen the way they interact with and treat other family members that are not straight or cis and it is with great distain. I feel as though it did not matter that I came out all those years ago. And maybe it didn't. I find that my sexuality and gender identity isn't maybe as important to me as others in the community. But, that doesn't mean I'm not here and that my identity doesn't exist. Sometimes, I feel as though I am still in the closet. Currently, I am a student at Indiana University of Pennsylvania in a dual baccalaureate program in Sociology and Criminology. After finishing my undergraduate degrees, I am going straight into graduate school at IUP for both degrees. I plan on becoming a social worker to heal and advocate for children and families. Unfortunately, there is a huge portion of LGBTQIA+ youth that are affected by abuse, neglect, and homelessness in the U.S. I'm hoping that in my field I am able to positively impact their lives and provide them with the nurture, care, and empowerment they deserve to thrive in life. Furthermore, I think that at some point I may go back to my roots in rural Pennsylvania to serve as a social worker. With this in mind, I hope that I could do extensive outreach to LGBTQIA+ individuals in that area, due to the lack of resources, support, and acceptance.

If I had $1000 at this moment, I would put it toward my credit card debt. As a college student with almost no financial aid or family contribution, I am forced to take out expensive private loans to pay the full cost of my college tuition, and have to resort to using my credit card to pay for all other expenses. Fortunately, I have recently been approved for food stamps on the contingency I work a minimum of 20 hours a week. Unfortunately, my credit card has a $4000 credit limit and is maxed out. Let me break down my monthly expenses in the simplest way possible, every month I pay off my interest on at least four of my private loans, totaling to about $100. My rent breaks down to about $700 a month. I spend probably a maximum of $300 on groceries every month. I pay for my phone bill and car insurance every month at around $200. I tend to get sick easily and my copay for a doctor visit is about $30. I spend about $300 on gas every month due to the ever-increasing gas prices. With the cost of tuition, divided by the six months I am in school, it averages out to about $3800 a month, not including textbooks or a meal plan or housing. This is roughly $5430 for necessities, on a monthly income of less than half that.

*TW: Mention of S*exual Abuse, S*lf-harm, and Substance Abuse- minial details* On a personal level, I feel as though my resilience and intuition are the most important qualities I carry. I refer to my resilience as I am a victim of CSA* and struggle with complex Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and chronic depression. My resilience is what drives me to constantly heal, become a better person, and help others. I am determined to finish undergraduate school and stride my way straight into graduate school, with the hopes of obtaining a Master's in Sociology and a Master's in Criminology. My resilience is what has kept me moving through financial hardships, further adverse experiences, poor coping mechanisms, and all other negative impacts in life. I have been through many traumatic experiences, struggled with substance abuse and other forms of self-harm, and been consistently low-income throughout my life. Without my resilience, I cannot truly say where I would be right now. However, I know that despite everything I've been through, I am a capable and driven individual and know exactly where I want to go in life. Furthermore, I believe my natural intuition helps me throughout almost all life aspects. Many people would refer to this as their "gut-feeling". Well, my gut speaks a little louder. I frequently can read behaviors and emotions from almost anyone I meet, which protects me and those I care about. It also allows me to know how to help my family and friends in ways that some people are not capable of doing. I have relied on my instincts all of my life and continuously work on fine-tuning it. I do not think of this as some supernatural ability, but rather tapping into my instincts and knowing how to utilize them. Both of these qualities within me will allow me to also exceed in my career field as a future social worker. I believe I can efficiently and effectively provide care for children, families, and other individuals by sharing with them my knowledge, kindness, and care. If I can help individuals learn how to utilize their own personal resilience and intuition, I think they would fare better after going through their own adverse and traumatizing experiences. Many people that go through traumatic experiences share these qualities, and those that have been affected that are unable to tap into their resilience and intuition tend to struggle far worse, unfortunately. It is my goal to help those who have been impacted so that they learn how to heal, grow, and protect themselves. Hopefully, free from mental illness, substance abuse, low self-esteem, and self-harm. My qualities of character are something that I am proud of and find to help me be myself, while also healing those around me. *(Childhood S*exual Ab*se)

I want to be able to help children and families recover from traumatic, abusive, or otherwise tragic incidents through therapy, skill-building, and outside resources. I am currently attending Indiana University of Pennsylvania through a dual Baccalaureate program in Criminology and Sociology with a Human Services track. Through my education and ongoing career goals, I plan to become a social worker for the state of Pennsylvania. I believe that I am a naturally caring, intuitive, and intelligent and that I can change people's lives. Through my approaching career as a social worker, I can positively impact children and families in crisis. I genuinely care about children and easily connect with them. I find that, although I am mature and carry myself with much resilience, I am also very happy, care-free, and enjoy tapping into my inner child. This can help the process, especially only being 20 years old and getting my feet in the water. I find that I can be a great connection between children and parents/guardians because I am an adult, but also very young for the job I am going for. I can bridge the gap of understanding the child(ren)'s position, while also knowing the needs and feelings of the adult caregiver. Currently, I have been interviewing at local organizations in which they are contracted through CYS of PA in hopes of being able to gain hands-on experience in my field. I am very excited to hear back, especially from one organization in particular. They would like me to build a program wherein I would assess children under 5 years of age for any developmental delays. I think I would be exceedingly good at this, as I like to research new topics and expand my knowledge on topics related to mental health. Furthermore, by assessing young children, we may be capable of giving them a head start on behavioral therapy, social skills, and learning methods if the families are willing to get a formal assessment for disabilities, such as autism or down syndrome. Furthermore, by giving me the potential opportunity to start this program, we would be able to provide resources and guidance to families with children who may potentially need some extra help. I'm looking forward to starting my career soon and learning more about what I can do to provide for and impact my community. It gives me great amounts of gratitude, self-esteem, and comfort knowing that I am a capable person and that I have the potential to change lives.

By obtaining degrees in my desired field, I believe I can change lives. I am planning on going to school to become a social worker, victim advocate, or similar career path, wherein I can help children, families, and all other people in my community. I desire an education that can prepare me for my future endeavors and help me feel qualified to help people in need. Education is important to me because I am capable of learning new skills and expanding my knowledge on different perspectives of life. Going to University has been a wonderful experience in so many aspects. I have tried new hobbies, made so many new friends from all different backgrounds, met so many talented and amazing professors to guide me through my experiences, and so much more. This is something I would not have found so readily if not for higher education. There are a multitude of reasons to go into a higher education institution and I find that it is the best decision I could have made. It’s important because I am a first generation student and I will be obtaining two Master’s degrees in the next 3-4 years. It is empowering for me to know that I am doing well and preparing myself for a career where I can provide comfort and resources to those in need. I come from a low-income background (I am still a low-income individual, but my father has worked hard to make money.), have c-PTSD, and not many of my peers from high school sought out higher education. Helping people has been something that has always come naturally to me and it made sense to go into a career field where that’s what I do. I have recently found myself applying to local centers contracted through CYS (Pennsylvania’s CPS) in hope of helping children and families heal and move forward together. Recently, I got an offer to interview with a organization called JustcieWorks. They were very friendly and had to get approval from CYS to interview with me because I don’t currently have any degrees. They were so eager to interview me once they got approval and I’m excited to hear back with a job offer. I would be working directly with children and families, which I think is what I will do best. None of these opportunities would have come to me if not for higher education. I also had the chance to work at a Sexual Assault and Domestic Violence Shelter in Indiana, PA (where I attend IUP- Indiana University of Pennsylvania). Another great opportunity that I learned so much for, simply because I chose to pursue further education. I also find that my education doesn’t need to come directly from the institution I attend. I have learned so much from my surrounding resources about adulthood, life skills, and being an advocate. Education is how we grow, whether it is through a higher education, a new job or hobby, friends, family, and our community. I find that it is extremely important to continue to grow, expand, and learn from all experiences.