My mental health has held me back from things that I didn't even know I was missing. My grandmother was clinically diagnosed with depression and BPD, and my mother has dealt with depression all her life, as have I. I've never been able to talk to her about it, but when she asked a few months ago when I had a mental breakdown I still wasn't able to open up to her about it. Depression slowly changed me into someone who had more anger and less patience than I used to have. It severed the consciousness that I had to enjoy things and made me push everyone that I could push, far away from me. As a child, I grew up as an introvert and had trouble making friends. As a teenager, I developed anxiety and shut myself off from the world, as if I was ensuring myself that I wouldn't enjoy anything in life. And If I could enjoy something that required me to be with someone else, I wouldn't give myself the opportunity. I took opportunities away from myself that other people didn't know they had to give themselves. Opportunities like falling in love, spending time with friends and family, and loving yourself. I shut myself off from the world and the only things that mattered in my eyes were work and school. Not friends, or family, myself, or any romantic prospects. All I knew was that I didn't like myself or my life and I had two conclusions: do anything to fix my life or ultimately do anything to end my life. At the end of the 2021-2022 school year I came very close to taking my life and I had a mental breakdown that made me distance myself from all of my closest friends. When the school year ended, I lost my job and my grades for the end of the semester had no reflection on how hard I actually worked and how passionate I actually am about Speech Language Pathology. I didn't meet the GPA requirement and as a result, I should have been dropped from my major. The only reason that I wasn't dropped was that I only needed eight credits to graduate. I was devastated. I had no money, mediocre grades and no contact with any of my friends. In a conversation with my mother, we were discussing the future and what to do in times of diversity and stress. She was telling me the lengths that she has went and will still go for me, how happy i make her, and that its important to enjoy things while you can. Suddenly I was brought to tears at the thought of me taking myself away from her. She couldn't understand why I was crying and she has no idea how much of my life I spent depressed, but it made me never want to feel so low ever again. As an adult, I've grown tired of feeling so old and worn out. I look back on my teenage years with regret from how I treated myself. The experiences that I took from myself and others that I could've shared experiences with. I've spent the past few years exercising and this summer I've taken up yoga in an attempt to be less angry and to forgive myself. I've reconnected with my friends and began to spend more time with my family. Every day I remind myself that I don't want to go back to where I was before, and that as long as I continue to live I have more opportunities to love.

I was born in a housing project in North Milwaukee called Westlawn. As a child, my mother always stressed the importance of code switching and how as I would grow older, I may experience racist micro-aggressions from white people who believe that African American Vernacular is not a legitimate dialect of English. As I prepare to enter a field where I know I will be a minority as a black male from the inner city, I aim to help diversify the workplace and provide cultural representation to patients who would benefit from having a clinician who is alike - or different than them. During my childhood years, my grandmother watched me when my parents needed a babysitter. She had a very bright and ambitious personality and while she was occasionally rough around the edges, she never failed to let her family know how important we were to her and how important we are to each other. When I was a teenager, she experienced a major stroke that left her with Broca’s aphasia. She went from living independently to living in an assisted living facility and no rehabilitation for her newly acquired language disorder. Since my family had no knowledge of what a Speech-Language Pathologist was, what they do, and weren't able to afford their services, we had no idea what to do but accept the position she was in. When I got to college and took the introductory class for Speech-Language Pathology, is when I first got a better understanding of the language barrier between us. but until then me and my mother would visit my grandmother frequently. There wasn’t much to talk about on these visits, but just being able to spend time with my grandmother and knowing she listened to my every word meant the world to me. She would point to us and tell us that she loved us and that she remembered the memories we shared together. Without the intervention of a Speech-Language Pathologist and with an increase in age, her language abilities would slowly regress. She passed away last year a week before thanksgiving and while she was already my biggest inspiration, becoming a Speech-Language Pathologist means even more to me now. My goal as a future Speech-Language Pathologist is to ensure that evidence-based practice with my patients strengthens communication with the patient’s family and others in their everyday life. I’ve also been blessed to see brightness in the futures of other people. Through my academic career with the college access program known as Sponsor-A-Scholar with the Boys & Girls Clubs of greater Milwaukee, I have not only received help from people who were in my position, but I’ve also returned that same help. With Sponsor-A-Scholar I’ve helped educate high school students on how to get more funding for college, how to apply for the FAFSA, chaperoned college tours and edited admissions essays. I plan to go even farther than just giving back to my community, I want to help other communities and all kinds of people who are nothing like me. In the future I plan to become a Speech-Language Pathologist and work with patients who suffer from traumatic brain injuries and as a result, have lost the ability to communicate either temporarily or permanently. While I haven’t made it that far yet, I currently work with a six-year-old who has an articulation disorder in my clinical practicum. I know in my heart that if I can progress past living in poverty and continue to help others in need, I can empower others to do the same.

Growing up in a low-income household meant there were large inconveniences that forced you to adjust your lifestyle. And when you come from a marginalized community it’s always harder to grasp how not only should life be easier, but how much harder you have to work to get the same things others are born with. Living in poverty has given me personal qualities like patience and resilience and has taught me the importance of having strong role models. As an adolescent there were many important things my family went without, clean clothes and reliable transportation being some of the most debilitating. Having access to clean clothes got harder as I got older. At one point in my life my mother couldn’t continue to maintain an unreliable car and couldn’t afford a reliable vehicle, so we relied on public transportation. When we moved to a new apartment that moved us farther away from the laundromat is when things got rough. The bus route wouldn’t take us directly to the laundromat for the times we were able to go. Besides any harsh weather, there was the physical transport of all the clothes. So, I would either go months between without having clean clothes or I’d have to hand wash them in small batches. Limited transportation also made it difficult to go grocery shopping. We couldn’t afford to call a cab or have our groceries delivered, so when we caught the bus to the grocery store we were only able to shop in small quantities. The most debilitating part of living in poverty was the lack of healthcare. I was born with sickle-cell trait and at the age of 7, I contracted a flesh-eating infection called cellulitis that permanently damaged my lymph nodes and left me with mild lymphedema in both of my legs from the knee down. Since birth I’ve gone without things I’ve both wanted and needed. I’ve always seen my parents work hard and still struggle, and that hard work is a quality that I have also inherited. However, I have a different opportunity than my parents. I have the opportunity to start down a new path and build a better life for myself and my future family. I see brightness in my future and no amount of waiting or hard work could ever stop me from trying to reach my goals. Additionally, I’ve also been blessed to see brightness in the future of other people. Through my academic career with the college access program known as Sponsor-A-Scholar with the Boys & Girls Clubs of greater Milwaukee, I have not only received help from people who were in my position, but I’ve also returned that same help. With Sponsor-A-Scholar I’ve helped educate high school students on how to get more funding for college, how to apply for the FAFSA, chaperoned college tours and edited admissions essays. I plan to go even farther than just giving back to my community, I want to help other communities and all kinds of people who are nothing like me. In the future I plan to become a Speech-Language Pathologist and work with patients who suffer from traumatic brain injuries and as a result, have lost the ability to communicate either temporarily or permanently. While I haven’t made it that far yet, I currently work with a six-year-old who has an articulation disorder in my clinical practicum. I know in my heart that if I can progress past living in poverty and sickness and continue to help others in need, I can empower others to do the same.

My name is Kaidihn and I was born in a housing project in North Milwaukee called Westlawn. As I prepare to enter a field where I know I will be a minority as a black male from the inner city, I aim to help diversify the workplace and provide cultural representation to patients who would benefit from having a clinician who is alike - or different than them. During my childhood years, my grandmother watched me when my parents needed a babysitter. She had a very bright and ambitious personality and while she was occasionally rough around the edges, she never failed to let her family know how important we were to her and how important we are to each other. When I was a teenager, she experienced a major stroke that left her with Broca’s aphasia. She went from living independently to living in an assisted living facility and no rehabilitation for her newly acquired language disorder. When I got to college and took the introductory class for speech language pathology, is when I first got a better understanding of the language barrier between us. but until then me and my mother would visit my grandmother frequently. There wasn’t much to talk about on these visits, but just being able to spend time with my grandmother and knowing she listened to my every word meant the world to me. She would point to us and tell us that she loved us and that she remembered the memories we shared together. But without the intervention of a Speech-Language Pathologist and with an increase in age, her language abilities would slowly regress. My goal as a future Speech-Language Pathologist is to ensure that evidence-based practice with my patients strengthens communication with the patient’s family and others in their everyday life. I believe that communication with family influences a person’s influence on the world, and that everyone should have a fair opportunity to be able to communicate with their loved ones. The biggest thing standing in the way of my future is me. There have been many times where I've had imposter syndrome not only being surrounded by successful peers in the college access program Sponsor-A-Scholar under the Boys & Girls Clubs of greater Milwaukee, but also the lack of career success and financial freedom from the people I grew up around and still know. Throughout my college career I've always struggled getting the best grades but there was never a lack of effort. I've been blessed with successful peers in Sponsor-A-Scholar that have always had high GPAs and outstanding social work reputations. And while I've never had that same high GPA, I've always had to remind myself that I am working alongside them for a reason. That reason is to help and serve younger students that are in the same position I was in to pursue the same goals that i'm pursuing. Besides comparing myself to others, I grew up in a household that struggled financially. My mother lives paycheck to paycheck and for various reasons there was always problems with my father finding a job. Often times this was the same for their friends and our extended family. To be the first generation of my Immediate family and among the first generation of degree holding youth with the my peers, I often feel the pressure to succeed. However, I feel as if I am already overcoming these struggles and plan to overcome them by continuing to pursue a masters degree and volunteering.

My goal as a future Speech-Language Pathologist is to ensure that evidence-based practice with my patients strengthens communication with the patient’s family and others in their everyday life. I believe that communication with family influences a person’s influence on the world, and that everyone should have a fair opportunity to be able to communicate with their loved ones.

I was born in a housing project in North Milwaukee called Westlawn. As a child, my mother always stressed the importance of code switching and how as I would grow older, I may experience racist microaggressions from white people who believe that African American Vernacular is not a legitimate dialect of English. In December, I'll be the first member of my family to graduate college. Both of my parents have either a GED or an HSED. Growing up I had to watch my parents live paycheck to paycheck and there were many times we had to struggle and face eviction, go to sleep hungry, and even going without electricity. As you can imagine, there was no way I would get everything I wanted. This led to me being hyper-aware of my parent's bills and finances to the point where I stopped asking for things altogether. In the future as a parent, I don't want to spoil my kids but I don't want them to worry about my bills or whether we'll end up homeless. As I prepare to enter a field where I know I will be a minority as a black male from the inner city, I aim to help diversify the workplace and provide cultural representation to patients who would benefit from having a clinician who is alike - or different than them. During my childhood years, my grandmother watched me when my parents needed a babysitter. She had a very bright and ambitious personality and while she was occasionally rough around the edges, she never failed to let her family know how important we were to her and how important we are to each other. When I was a teenager, she experienced a major stroke that left her with Broca’s aphasia. She went from living independently to living in an assisted living facility and no rehabilitation for her newly acquired language disorder. When I got to college and took the introductory class for speech language pathology, is when I first got a better understanding of the language barrier between us. but until then me and my mother would visit my grandmother frequently. There wasn’t much to talk about on these visits, but just being able to spend time with my grandmother and knowing she listened to my every word meant the world to me. She would point to us and tell us that she loved us and that she remembered the memories we shared together, but without the intervention of a Speech-Language pathologist and with an increase in age, her language abilities would slowly regress. My goal as a future Speech-Language Pathologist is to ensure that evidence-based practice with my patients strengthens communication with the patient’s family and others in their everyday life. I believe that communication with family influences a person’s influence on the world, and that everyone should have a fair opportunity to be able to communicate with their loved ones.

In December, I'll be the first member of my family to graduate college. Both of my parents have either a GED or an HSED. Growing up I had to watch my parents live paycheck to paycheck and there were many times we had to struggle and face eviction, going to sleep hungry, and not having power. As you can imagine, there was no way I would get everything I wanted. This led to me being hyper-aware of my parent's bills and finances to the point where I stopped asking for things altogether. In the future as a parent, I don't want to spoil my kids but I don't want them to worry about my bills or whether we'll end up homeless. To me legacy not only means being the first in my family to do something for a future generation, but to also remove any limits that I put on myself or limits put on me by anyone else. I was born in a housing project in North Milwaukee called Westlawn Gardens. As a child, my mother always stressed the importance of code switching and how as I would grow older, I may experience racist microaggressions from white people who believe that African American Vernacular is not a legitimate dialect of English. As I prepare to enter a field where I know I will be a minority as a black male from the inner city, I aim to help diversify the workplace and provide cultural representation to patients who would benefit from having a clinician who is alike - or different than them. During my childhood years, my grandmother watched me when my parents needed a babysitter. She had a very bright and ambitious personality and while she was occasionally rough around the edges, she never failed to let her family know how important we were to her and how important we are to each other. When I was a teenager, she experienced a major stroke that left her with Broca’s aphasia. She went from living independently to living in an assisted living facility and no rehabilitation for her newly acquired language disorder. When I got to college and took the introductory class for Speech-Language Pathology, is when I first got a better understanding of the language barrier between us. But until then me and my mother would visit my grandmother frequently. There wasn’t much to talk about on these visits, but just being able to spend time with my grandmother and knowing she listened to my every word meant the world to me. She would point to us and tell us that she loved us and that she remembered the memories we shared together, but without the intervention of a Speech-Language Pathologist and with an increase in age, her language abilities would slowly regress. My goal as a future Speech-Language Pathologist is to ensure that evidence-based practice with my patients strengthens communication with the patient’s family and others in their everyday life. I believe that communication with family influences a person’s influence on the world, and that everyone should have a fair opportunity to be able to communicate with their loved ones.

I've chosen to pursue Speech-language pathology as my career because of its connection to my personal family life. She had a very bright and ambitious personality and while she was occasionally rough around the edges, she never failed to let her family know how important we were to her and how important we are to each other. When I was 12 years old, she experienced a major stroke that left her with Broca’s aphasia. She went from living independently to living in an assisted living facility and no rehabilitation for her newly acquired language disorder. When I got to college and took the introductory class for speech language pathology, is when I first got a better understanding of the language barrier between us. But until then me and my mother would visit my grandmother frequently. There wasn’t much to talk about on these visits, but just being able to spend time with my grandmother and knowing she listened to my every word meant the world to me. She would point to us and tell us that she loved us and that she remembered the memories we shared together, but without the intervention of a Speech-language pathologist and with an increase in age, her language abilities would slowly regress. My goal as a future Speech-language pathologist is to ensure that evidence-based practice with my patients strengthens communication with the patient’s family and others in their everyday life. I believe that communication with family influences a person’s influence on the world, and that everyone should have a fair opportunity to be able to communicate with their loved ones. I believe science is important to society and humanity because it advances our perception of the world and how we interact with the environment around us. Science is the cornea to the lens of life. It makes sense of our health, our nature, and it's what we rely on to make sense of the unknown. And while life did not come with instructions, science is our guide. Specifically, research is important in the field of speech-language pathology because it advances our understanding of communication and helps us reach new conclusions to previously unanswered questions. There will always be an individual who has a problem that is unique to them but can be present in other clients as well. In addition, implementation of a researched method ensures that the client is receiving treatment that has already been tested using scientific methods and is proven to be useful. One field of research that interests me is traumatic brain injury and its connection to language function. I think research on brain plasticity and the advancement of stem cell research will provide our field with the proper evidence to improve overall rehabilitation and language impacted by brain injury and strokes.

I've chosen to pursue Speech-language pathology as my career because of its connection to my personal family life. She had a very bright and ambitious personality and while she was occasionally rough around the edges, she never failed to let her family know how important we were to her and how important we are to each other. When I was 12 years old, she experienced a major stroke that left her with Broca’s aphasia. She went from living independently to living in an assisted living facility and no rehabilitation for her newly acquired language disorder. When I got to college and took the introductory class for speech language pathology, is when I first got a better understanding of the language barrier between us. But until then me and my mother would visit my grandmother frequently. There wasn’t much to talk about on these visits, but just being able to spend time with my grandmother and knowing she listened to my every word meant the world to me. She would point to us and tell us that she loved us and that she remembered the memories we shared together, but without the intervention of a Speech-language pathologist and with an increase in age, her language abilities would slowly regress. My goal as a future Speech-language pathologist is to ensure that evidence-based practice with my patients strengthens communication with the patient’s family and others in their everyday life. I believe that communication with family influences a person’s influence on the world, and that everyone should have a fair opportunity to be able to communicate with their loved ones. I believe science is important to society and humanity because it advances our perception of the world and how we interact with the environment around us. Science is the cornea to the lens of life. It makes sense of our health, our nature, and it's what we rely on to make sense of the unknown. And while life did not come with instructions, science is our guide. Specifically, research. Research is important in the field of speech-language pathology because it advances our understanding of communication and helps us reach new conclusions to previously unanswered questions. There will always be an individual who has a problem that is unique to them but can be present in other clients as well. In addition, implementation of a researched method ensures that the client is receiving treatment that has already been tested using scientific methods and is proven to be useful. One field of research that interests me is traumatic brain injury and its connection to language function. I think research on brain plasticity and the advancement of stem cell research will provide our field with the proper evidence to improve overall rehabilitation and language impacted by brain injury and strokes.