As a junior in high school, I took my first sociology class, Criminology, and decided that was what I was going to study. Looking at the world from a sociological lens was extraordinarily impactful and continues to shape my life. It changed my perspective on the world while enlightening me on why prejudice and bias exist in society. That led me to realize that I want to be an attorney to change the culture and the tendencies in the law. I realized my true passion was law, specifically civil rights law. While it had never been a career that I had thought about, law spoke to me as a means to create change, helping me understand what I want my future to be. Through my sociology major, I will gain insight into society and law to be a better attorney. Not only did sociology change my perspective on society and my future career, but it also allowed me to understand myself. As my journey with taking sociology classes continued, I realized that I had been hiding a part of myself subconsciously. I am a lesbian and had subconsciously, without even knowing, been internally homophobic towards myself. I had been an ally for years and even came out as pansexual, but I was so afraid of society that I hid the truth from myself. Sociology helped me realize my sexuality and start my journey to accept myself. Understanding myself through a sociological lens keeps me growing as a person and as a student, showing me my passion in life and how I can make a difference at a macro and micro level. As I further my education in sociology, I know that I will continue to challenge myself to see society in a different light and grow personally and professionally.

Advocacy and positively impacting marginalized communities have been an essential part of my life throughout high school. Since starting at Mt. SAC Early College Academy, I have been a part of the Advocacy Club. I have worked with my peers to advocate for the LGBTQ+ community and other marginalized groups within our school and community. Through the Activism Club, we educate one another on the prejudice within society. During Junior year, I also joined GSA, where I heard other students' stories while working together to change bias. While working in the Associated Student Body, I worked with some of my peers to create a gender-neutral prom court to create equality and help LGBTQ+ youth be included. Not only have I been an activist within my school, but I have also been an advocate within my community. I participated in protests within my very conservative community for Black Lives Matter, fighting for equity alongside other activists who wanted to make a difference. I have also been actively trying to educate myself and others around me, making a difference even in small ways. Yet, I know it is not enough and that as I go to college and law school, I will continue to advocate for marginalized people. Once I become an attorney, I plan to go into civil rights law to advocate for equity and freedom within the legal system. My ultimate goal is to be a "pro bono" attorney, especially for the LGBTQ+ community, while advocating for the community and other marginalized communities. Making a change through the legal system and working to change the inequities within the law is what I am meant to do, and even through that, I know I will continue to advocate for change within society to make a difference.

It took me many years to realize what I wanted to do with my life, but I knew I was meant to make a difference. I wanted to go to college and continue my education, but I never really knew what direction. Then, when I was fourteen, I developed anorexia and had to go through extensive treatment to recover, causing me to question every priority within my life. That very question led me to find my true passion in life: advocacy. Through advocacy and civil rights, I realized the true importance and how even as a privileged white girl, I can use my privilege to lift the voices of marginalized people. I knew that somehow, in my life I was meant to be an advocate and create change. As I continued my educational journey, I took a sociology class to realize the importance of civil rights law truly. Looking at the world from a sociological lens was extraordinarily impactful and continues to shape my life. It changed my perspective on the world while enlightening me on why prejudice and bias exist in society. That led me to realize that I want to be an attorney to change the culture and the tendencies in the law. I realized my true passion was law, specifically civil rights law. While it had never been a career that I had thought about, law spoke to me as a means to create change, helping me understand what I want my future to be. I will gain insight into society and law through my sociology major to be a better attorney. I realized I want to be an attorney to change the culture and the tendencies in the direction and truly leave a legacy of change. Once I become an attorney, I plan to go into civil rights law to advocate for equity and freedom within the legal system. My ultimate goal is to be a "pro bono" attorney, especially for the LGBTQ+ community, while advocating for the community and other marginalized communities. Making a change through the legal system and working to change the inequities within the law is what I am meant to do, and even through that, I know I will continue to advocate for change within society to make a difference. As I continue my journey in education and my future career, becoming an attorney, the experience I have and the scholarships I receive will shape me to become the best person and attorney I can be.

The best way to live a long, healthy life is to find a balance between all aspects of health and ultimately work towards finding tranquility within one’s life. While many of us only focus on our physical health, it is crucial to focus on our mental, spiritual, and social health. To truly live a long life, we need to balance each aspect of health and be healthy within all elements. I have struggled with this, overfocusing on my physical health without looking at the bigger picture, causing my mental and social health to worsen. As I have gotten older, I have begun to focus more on my mental well-being and taking more time for myself and my social life, which has not only impacted my health overall but has helped me improve my physical health. In working towards this balance, we, as human beings, can begin to find tranquility within our lives no matter the situation, which helps us overall live longer, healthier lives.

As a junior in high school, I took my first sociology class, Criminology, and became very passionate about sociology. Looking at the world from a sociological lens was extraordinarily impactful and continues to shape my life. It changed my perspective on the world while enlightening me on why prejudice and bias exist in society. That led me to realize that I want to be an attorney to change the culture and the tendencies in the law. I realized my true passion was law, specifically civil rights law. While it had never been a career that I had thought about, law spoke to me as a means to create change, helping me understand what I want my future to be. Through my sociology major, I will gain insight into society and law to be a better attorney. Sociology also helped me get involved with civil rights organizations and the activism club at my school. Sociology led me to participate in Black Lives Matter protests. I got to be with fellow activists to stand up while simultaneously learning and growing as an activist and individual. Not only did sociology change my perspective on society and my future career, but it also allowed me to understand myself. As my journey with sociology continued, I realized that I had been hiding a part of myself subconsciously. I am a lesbian and had subconsciously been internally homophobic towards myself. I had been an ally for years and even came out as pansexual, but I was so afraid that I hid the truth from myself. Sociology helped me realize my sexuality and start my journey to accept myself. As I further my passion for sociology, I know that I will continue to challenge myself to see society in a different light and grow personally and professionally.

When I was 14 years old, I was diagnosed with anorexia nervosa; I started to lose myself, and my life spiraled out of control. I became so hyper-focused on my eating disorder and the compulsive habits that I became someone who I no longer recognized. Finally, in October of 2019, I hit a breaking point and ended up in a psychiatric hospital after telling my therapist that I was suicidal. After the hospital, I finally went into treatment as my family realized that I needed serious help. Unfortunately, while going through full-time treatment, I had to be homeschooled and ultimately lost the old life that I knew. Recovering from anorexia was one of the hardest things I have ever had to do, but ultimately, it saved me. Going through treatment took determination and strength that I didn't even know I had, but I was determined to succeed and not relapse into my eating disorder. There were times when I felt like giving up or taking steps backward, but I finally left treatment and continued my journey because of my supportive family. When going through treatment, academics became challenging. Being homeschooled and having to focus on recovery was something I had never had to do. As a result, I had to find a balance between my academics and recovery. Treatment taught me how to find that balance between school and my personal life. I learned to persevere through challenging situations even when it feels impossible. At times during treatment, I felt like giving up on my academics and ultimately going backward. However, my determination to continue working while recovering has allowed me to continue my journey and get to where I am now. Recovery also led me to enroll in a high school where I met people who understood me and became my best friends. I also learned how stigmatized mental health is in society and the world. And while society slowly becomes more open about specific mental health disorders, eating disorders continue to be stigmatized, causing people to be judged based on their mental health. Because I was a young, white female with anorexia, I faced much less stigma, but many who I went through recovery with had had to struggle while being silenced because they were not the "poster child" of eating disorders. I realized how privileged I was and how important changing the stigma surrounding eating disorders, becoming one of my life goals. When I joined high school, I became open about my battle with anorexia, no longer allowing it to control me. I realized that I could help change stigma, even just in my school, by speaking out and raising awareness. Then, in Junior year, I became the president of our mental health club and told them my whole story. I knew others had gone through or were going through something very similar to me, and I wanted them to know they were not alone. Since then, people have continued to tell their stories and be vulnerable with their mental health. It has begun to change the school's culture, and I hope it continues to change even when I graduate. I plan to continue changing stigma and working towards supporting others once I attend college. Recovery is something that is a part of me, something that continues to strengthen me even today. Recovery brought something out of me that I didn't even know existed. Without recovery, I would not be the person I am today or have learned so much about myself, my goals, and what I can do to change the world.

Last school year, I was elected as the treasurer of my school's ASB. While I have only been the treasurer for three months, I have already made a difference through leadership by having the opportunity to create a student store so students may enjoy food and beverages while providing revenue for ASB. I had to decide the pricing of each item and make sure that every food and drink followed the guidelines determined by the state. In addition, I had to make sure that every detail was perfect so that it would run smoothly. It was terrifying being the first person to create a student store at the school, but even so, it was gratifying seeing myself make something new. When the store opened up, it had a few minor mishaps but overall went very smoothly. I continue to be so proud of myself and my fellow ASB members as we embark on this journey, working to create this store and keep it running. In doing so, I have built a legacy for myself at the school, providing the future ASB with the resources to continue the student store for years to come. In addition to being an ASB treasurer, I am also the president of TCS (Timberwolves Changing Stigma), a mental health club meant to end stigma and raise awareness. Through TCS, I have helped make it easier for students to discuss mental health by feeling like they are in a safe environment while spreading awareness through the school and community. I also began supporting other students struggling with their mental health while giving resources that I had learned through my mental health journey. While it was challenging to be the president of a mental health club during a pandemic, especially when we could not have face-to-face contact, I still tried to provide the best tools I could while making a difference for the student body. As I continue on my adventure, I know that I am growing as a leader in my school and community. Outstanding leadership means to me taking accountability for your actions while also growing as you make mistakes. The best leaders are willing to own up to their mistakes but, in doing so, also grow and learn from the mistakes they and their team make. Being a leader, I have made my fair share of mistakes, but I try to learn from these mistakes and change not only as a leader but also as an individual. Being a leader is significant to me because my ultimate goal in life is to make a positive difference in the world, and by being a leader, I can do that. In my future career as a civil rights attorney, I know that I will need to be a leader to create change and advocate for my clients, and by learning these leadership skills now, I am becoming the leader that I will need to be in my future.

When I was 14 years old, I was diagnosed with anorexia nervosa; I started to lose myself, and my life spiraled out of control. I became so hyper-focused on my eating disorder and the compulsive habits that I became someone who I no longer recognized. Finally, in October of 2019, I hit a breaking point and ended up in a psychiatric hospital after telling my therapist that I was suicidal. After the hospital, I finally went into treatment as my family realized that I needed serious help. Throughout recovery, I began to realize who was truly there for me. I held onto toxic relationships, hoping that someday they would prove part of me wrong. But throughout treatment, they never contacted me. They never even tried to continue our relationship. At that moment, I realized they were part of the reason why I struggled, and they were holding me back from recovery. So I let them go, letting go part of my identity that I had held onto for too long. It was mutual; we all needed to let each other go to find ourselves and our futures. While it was one of the most challenging things I did in recovery, it was worth it. After going through recovery, my values completely changed, helping me realize that what was once important to me no longer mattered. I had once been so focused on my image and academics that I lost myself. Recovery taught me how to find myself, specifically through activism and volunteering. After going through recovery and being faced with the stigma around hospitalization and eating disorders, I needed to do something to change the stigma and advocate for mental health awareness. Through recovery, I also realized how broken society's image of mental health is. As a young, thin, white girl, I was the "image" of someone with an eating disorder while many of the people I recovered with were faced with society telling them they were not sick enough or did not deserve treatment. So if there was anything I could do, I knew I needed to do it, which is why I started to tell my story and raise awareness of what I had seen, no longer allowing the stigma of what I went through control me. By Junior year, I decided to run for the president of my school's mental health club. I knew that to start to change the school and, in turn, the community, I needed to begin to shift the stigma, which is why I decided to run. I became the president of the NAMI club and made it my mission to be a support for the students at my school and change the school culture surrounding mental health. People in the club began to share their stories as I worked to support the students who were struggling. I hope that I have made a difference in the school even as I graduate. After high school, I will continue to advocate for mental health and work to change the stigma in society. After going through recovery and my values shifted, I realized I also want to make a difference in the law. So, I plan to go to law school after college and become an attorney who advocates on multiple platforms to change society and the world. While it is a big feat, I know with the motivation and resilience I learned in recovery, I will accomplish my goals and positively impact the world. While my work is not done, I will continue throughout my life to change the stigma surrounding mental health.

When many people hear the word patience, they groan, hating the idea of having to wait for something. As human beings, we commonly do not see the importance of patience, yet it is one of the most important concepts we can follow. Young me could not see the value of the virtue of patience; I finally see it now. Patience allows us to persevere when we want to give up, helping us keep going even when we crave an easier life. Unfortunately, it took me years to truly learn how to be patient, and it was not until I matured that I saw its importance. The pandemic helped me learn the value of patience, and in turn, perseverance. Going through the pandemic caused me to learn how to be patient with myself and my mental health while persevering through the struggles many of us faced. The pandemic helped me ultimately start to learn patience, but even so, it was not easy. Even today, I continue to struggle to be patient and not give in easily to struggles or impulses, but even so, it is worth it for myself and the people around me. It is a work in progress, but all human beings must value patience and balance impulses and tolerance. To me, patience is one of the essential values a human being can have, and although my journey to find patience has been brief, I have already felt the positive impact on my life and my mental health.

When I was 14 years old, I was diagnosed with anorexia nervosa; I started to lose myself, and my life spiraled out of control. I became so hyper-focused on my eating disorder and the compulsive habits that I became someone who I no longer recognized. Finally, in October of 2019, I hit a breaking point and ended up in a psychiatric hospital after telling my therapist that I was suicidal. After the hospital, I finally went into treatment as my family realized that I needed serious help. Unfortunately, while going through full-time treatment, I had to be homeschooled and ultimately lost the old life that I knew. Recovering from anorexia was one of the hardest things I have ever had to do, but ultimately, it saved me. Going through treatment took determination and strength that I didn't even know I had, but I was determined to succeed and not relapse into my eating disorder. There were times when I felt like giving up or taking steps backward, but I finally left treatment and continued my journey because of my supportive family. Throughout recovery, I began to realize who was truly there for me. I held onto toxic relationships, hoping that someday they would prove part of me wrong. But throughout treatment, they never contacted me. They never even tried to continue our relationship. At that moment, I realized they were part of the reason why I struggled, and they were holding me back from recovery. So I let them go, letting go part of my identity that I had held onto for too long. It was mutual; we all needed to let each other go to find ourselves and our futures. While it was one of the most challenging things I did in recovery, it was worth it. After going through recovery, my values completely changed, helping me realize that what was once important to me no longer mattered. I had once been so focused on my image and academics that I lost myself. Recovery taught me how to find myself, specifically through activism and volunteering. After going through recovery and being faced with the stigma around hospitalization and eating disorders, I needed to do something to change the stigma and advocate for mental health awareness. Through recovery, I also realized how broken society's image of mental health is. As a young, thin, white girl, I was the "image" of someone with an eating disorder while many of the people I recovered with were faced with society telling them they were not sick enough or did not deserve treatment. So if there was anything I could do, I knew I needed to do it, which is why I started to tell my story and raise awareness of what I had seen, no longer allowing the stigma of what I went through control me. By Junior year, I decided to run for the president of my school's mental health club. I knew that to start to change the school and, in turn, the community, I needed to begin to shift the stigma, which is why I decided to run. By November, I became the president of the NAMI club and made it my mission to be a support for the students at my school and change the school culture surrounding mental health. People in the club began to share their stories as I worked to support the students who were struggling. I hope that I have made a difference in the school even as I graduate. After high school, I will continue to advocate for mental health and work to change the stigma in society. After going through recovery and my values shifted, I realized I also want to make a difference in the law. So, I plan to go to law school after college and become an attorney who advocates on multiple platforms to change society and the world. While it is a big feat, I know with the motivation and resilience I learned in recovery, I will accomplish my goals and positively impact the world, even if in small ways. Recovery is something that is a part of me, something that continues to strengthen me even today. Recovery brought something out of me that I didn't even know existed. Without recovery, I would not be the person I am today or have learned so much about myself, my goals, and what I can do to change the world.

When I was younger, I never understood the importance of a growth mindset. It was not until I was older that I realized the importance of a growth mindset and how it can strongly impact one's life. A growth mindset has genuinely helped me in my academic and personal life, helping me continue being dedicated in all parts of my life. I did not develop a growth mindset until I was in sophomore year. I had just begun a new high school where I was taking more rigorous classes and anxious about meeting new people. After weeks of realizing that my strategies for succeeding were not working, and I struggled to make friends, I started to use the growth mindset to enhance my experience and realize my full potential. After developing the growth mindset, I began to advance in both my personal and academic life. I learned how to juggle my class load while making friends who I could count on and who welcomed me. In my senior year, I continue to use the growth mindset to thrive and persevere in the most challenging times. Keeping a growth mindset is not always the most straightforward task, as it takes quite a while to truly develop it and remove the old habits of a fixed mindset. As a perfectionist, I have to continue to work on my growth mindset, specifically by taking a step back when I am stressed and genuinely looking at the situation at hand. I try to grow from my mistakes while not allowing my perfectionism to take over to keep the growth mindset I have been developing. While it is not an effortless action to keep a growth mindset, it has been worth it, helping me improve in all aspects and growing as an individual.

The best skill I possess is perseverance, especially in some of the most challenging times in my life. I have used my determination to succeed throughout my struggles, not allowing the obstacles I have faced to stop me from achieving my goals. Perseverance helps define who I am, and as I face life, I use it every step of the way to overcome challenges. For instance, when I was recovering from an eating disorder, I used my perseverance to continue, even when I wanted to give up. I often wanted to fall back, but my determination to recover stopped me from relapsing. Ultimately, this perseverance allowed me to continue working on myself and my academics, creating who I am today. Not only have I used perseverance in my past, but I also continue to improve it in every facet of my life. Even in my shortcomings and my struggles with my mental health, I face life with the dedication to succeed and perseverance to not let life throw me down. Currently, I am struggling with anxiety, but through my worry, I am improving my persistence to find coping skills and talk back to my fear. My perseverance leads me to become who I am today, helping shape the person I want to become and follow my future goals. Without it, I would not be where I am or who I am; It is my greatest strength and most vital skill.

Last school year, I was elected as the treasurer of my school's ASB. While I have only been the treasurer for three months, I have already made a difference by having the opportunity to create a student store so students may enjoy food and beverages while providing revenue for ASB. I had to decide the pricing of each item and make sure that every food and drink followed the guidelines determined by the state. In addition, I had to make sure that every detail was perfect so that it would run smoothly. It was terrifying being the first person to create a student store at the school, but even so, it was gratifying seeing myself make something new. When the store opened up, it had a few minor mishaps but overall went very smoothly. I continue to be so proud of myself and my fellow ASB members as we embark on this journey, working to create this store and keep it running. In doing so, I have built a legacy for myself at the school, providing the future ASB with the resources to continue the student store for years to come. In addition to being an ASB treasurer, I am also the president of TCS (Timberwolves Changing Stigma), a mental health club meant to end stigma and raise awareness. Through TCS, I have helped make it easier for students to discuss mental health by feeling like they are in a safe environment while spreading awareness through the school and community. I also began supporting other students struggling with their mental health while giving resources that I had learned through my mental health journey. While it was challenging to be the president of a mental health club during a pandemic, especially when we could not have face-to-face contact, I still tried to provide the best tools I could while making a difference for the student body. As I continue on my adventure, I know that I have made a difference for the school and the student body, working my hardest for them and the future. Through my leadership experience, I learned that leadership is not taking credit for our successes but rather holding yourself accountable for everything that happens under your supervision. The best leaders work to make a change and persevere to overcome the problems that their team faces by taking accountability for their actions, something I had to learn as a leader. As I go through college, law school, and my career, I know I will use these skills I learned as a leader to inspire the people on my team and keep myself accountable and responsible in my professional and personal life. I also plan to continue my journey as a leader by being on my college's student council and spreading awareness on mental health. My journey as a leader does not end when I graduate high school; it will continue to lead me as I fail and succeed, learning from the situations around me.

When I was 14 years old, I was diagnosed with anorexia nervosa; I started to lose myself, and my life spiraled out of control. I became so hyper-focused on my eating disorder and the compulsive habits that I became someone who I no longer recognized. Finally, in October of 2019, I hit a breaking point and ended up in a psychiatric hospital after telling my therapist that I was suicidal. After the hospital, I finally went into treatment as my family realized that I needed serious help. Unfortunately, while going through full-time treatment, I had to be homeschooled and ultimately lost the old life that I knew. Recovering from anorexia was one of the hardest things I have ever had to do, but ultimately, it saved me. Going through treatment took determination and strength that I didn't even know I had, but I was determined to succeed and not relapse into my eating disorder. There were times when I felt like giving up or taking steps backward, but I finally left treatment and continued my journey because of my supportive family. When going through treatment, academics became challenging. Being homeschooled and having to focus on recovery was something I had never had to do. As a result, I had to find a balance between my academics and recovery. Treatment taught me how to find that balance between school and my personal life. I learned to persevere through challenging situations even when it feels impossible. At times during treatment, I felt like giving up on my academics and ultimately going backward. However, my determination to continue working while recovering has allowed me to continue my journey and get to where I am now. Recovery also led me to enroll in a high school where I met people who understood me and became my best friends. Throughout recovery, I began to realize who was truly there for me. I held onto toxic relationships, hoping that someday they would prove part of me wrong. But throughout treatment, they never contacted me. They never even tried to continue our relationship. At that moment, I realized they were part of the reason why I struggled, and they were holding me back from recovery. So I let them go, letting go part of my identity that I had held onto for too long. It was mutual; we all needed to let each other go to find ourselves and our futures. While it was one of the most challenging things I did in recovery, it was worth it. I also learned how stigmatized mental health is in society and the world. And while society slowly becomes more open about specific mental health disorders, eating disorders continue to be stigmatized, causing people to be judged based on their mental health. Because I was a young, white female with anorexia, I faced much less stigma, but many who I went through recovery with had had to struggle while being silenced because they were not the "poster child" of eating disorders. I realized how privileged I was and how important changing the stigma surrounding eating disorders and mental health is, becoming one of my life goals. When I joined high school, I became open about my battle with anorexia, no longer allowing it to control me. I realized that I could help change stigma, even just in my school, by speaking out and raising awareness. Then, in Junior year, I became the president of our mental health club and told them my whole story. I knew others had gone through or were going through something very similar to me, and I wanted them to know they were not alone. Openness about something so personal and being so vulnerable when I had never been before was nerve-wracking. Still, I knew I had to be vulnerable to make people feel comfortable. Since then, people have continued to tell their stories and be vulnerable with their mental health. It has begun to change the school's culture, and I hope it continues to change even when I graduate. Recovery is something that is a part of me, something that continues to strengthen me even today. Recovery brought something out of me that I didn't even know existed. Without recovery, I would not be the person I am today or have learned so much about myself, my goals, and what I can do to change the world.

These are my three beautiful pets: Harvey (blonde dog), Huckleberry Finn (brown dog), and Gracie (grey cat). We met Harvey and Huck when we were volunteering at our local shelter, and from the moment I met them, I fell in love. When we rescued Huck, he had a severe medical condition involving his heart, but he fully recovered and is now the most rambunctious dog. My uncle found Gracie in his backyard and asked my father to take her in. My father surprised my mother with her, and ever since then, she has been an essential part of this family.

As someone who has had struggles with her mental health, practicing self-care is significant to me. When I was 14 years old, I was diagnosed with anorexia and had to go through treatment to begin the process of recovery. Through recovery, I had to learn to balance my life and use adaptive coping skills to not relapse back into my old maladaptive coping skills. I started to use self-care every day, taking care of myself no matter the situation or my mental health. I began to practice meditation and yoga and got into baking to replace my eating disorder behaviors. Self-care has helped me continue my recovery journey and has helped me learn to cope with anxiety. Had it not been for self-care, I would not have learned new adaptive coping skills and would not be the resilient, strong person I am today.