I am definitely a non-traditional student for sure, especially when it comes to my career. I currently work as a laser technician for a government contractor, but before that, I was an esthetician. Many ask how I went from an esthetician to a laser technician, and the answer is: STEM. I always had a passion for STEM, especially in science and engineering. I was plotting new ideas on what needed to be innovated, improved, or invented when it came to the science or engineering fields. The only caveat was I had passions outside of STEM fields and was struggling how to integrate my passions. In high school, I was in engineering and biomedical sciences. I was originally going to go into college for biomedical engineering, but I could not afford college and there was not a lot of demand for biomedical engineers. I decided to switch to welding, a trade that I could afford, but I kept being waitlisted due to the program restructuring. I didn’t want to waste my time, so I decided to go out on a whim and go into cosmetology school and industrial management. Industrial management was the closest degree to engineering that I was eligible for with my credits, and I wanted my industry experience to be cosmetics and beauty with health. I absolutely loved it and excelled at it, however by the time I finished, COVID occurred. COVID completely ruined my job opportunities in the beauty and health industry, making me stuck as an apprentice for two years. In those two years, I gained a lot of knowledge and experience about skin health. I learned about various forms of acne and different kinds of treatments that can help treat it. That is where I met laser and light therapy. I researched so many devices that’s integrated lasers and lights that could treat acne, hyperpigmentation, and aging. I found equipment with red, blue, and green wavelengths to target different types of skin conditions, infrared diodes to help with icepick scarring from acne, and microneedling with radio frequency and blue light to help resurface the skin and combat bacteria. I thought that it was so fascinating that I decided to go back to college for lasers and optical devices. During these past two years in college, I have been able to work in the military and defense industry as a laser technician. My course knowledge and background experience made me stand out, which was actually very welcoming since I am a woman with women-based work experience now transitioning into a male-dominated work field. I absolutely enjoy my work field, and it has given me a lot more unique opportunities and experiences. I've worked on flashlamp and diode rangefinders, diode frequency scramblers, and laser designator rangefinders. I also have skills with laser and optical alignments, lens cleaning, laser and optical assemblies, electrical circuit schematics, and electronics troubleshooting. This has definitely moved me forward in my career and education as I have experience in the field and can apply that to help students in the same program as me. These fields have given me a well-rounded experience in the various applications of photonics which has enabled me to help tutor students at my college. This scholarship would be helpful in finishing my education. I'm towards the tail-end of my degree and this will help me close this chapter of my life. I'm quite fulfilled with this area of my life, and I would eventually like to pursue a business with this experience.

I might be a bit biased, but I think lasers and optical devices are the best types of technology out there. I have seen medical and defense applications for lasers and optical devices that can make the world a better place. I currently work as a laser technician, but before that, I was an esthetician. I gained a lot of knowledge and experience about skin health, various forms of acne and different kinds of treatments that can help treat it. That is where I met laser and light therapy. I researched so many devices that are integrated with lasers and lights that could treat acne, hyperpigmentation, and aging. I found equipment with red, blue, and green wavelengths to target different types of skin conditions, infrared diodes to help with icepick scarring from acne, and microneedling with radio frequency and blue light to help resurface the skin and combat bacteria. I thought that it was so fascinating that I wanted to base my career on how to bring these advanced beauty treatments to the public at affordable prices. My target was to do these treatments and track the results, and I saw many. The difference I saw in people’s skin was amazing, huge transformations in texture and pigmentation. I think this makes the world a better place because it brings confidence to individuals who struggle with certain skin conditions that can make them feel embarrassed. My current career as a laser technician has shown me different side of lasers and optical devices. I've seen photo sensors and infrared cameras pick up extremely interesting images about the environment and space. There are several photos showing thermal radiation in certain parts of the world that are attributed to climate change, and I have seen photos from space taken by the Webb Telescope showing new galaxies or updated images of star clusters or nebulas that weren't as elaborate in previous telescopes. In my opinion, this technology makes the world a better place in this application because it brings awareness and education about the world and space around us and can advance us forward. We can use this technology to help us combat climate change and explore deep space to find new constellations, planetary formations, or galaxies. Whether it's medical, space, automotive, aviation, nautical, or entertainment-based applications, I believe thatt there is a lot that can be done with this technology to advance us forward.

My career path is a bit strange because of how non-traditional it is. I am a laser technician with a background in cosmetics. They are completely different from each other, and I know that, but I want I want to combine these two fields together into a unique business concept. I want to first discuss how I developed these interests in cosmetology and photonics. I had bad acne growing up, so that moved me to read magazines or surf the internet for ways of treating and covering up acne and acne scars for years. When I graduated high school, I originally wanted to go to college for mechanical engineering, which failed, so I decided to go to cosmetology school and pursue an associate's in industrial management technology. My goal was to have my own business where I focused on skin treatments. During my time as an esthetician, I developed an interest in lasers and optics because of my experience, which I will discuss in the following paragraph. This new interest motivated me to go back to college and that is how I currently work in the defense and space industry as a laser technician. When I worked in the beauty industry, I gained a lot of experience in fashion, cosmetics, and services. My first job was in a fashion store where I assisted customers with choosing the most appropriate outfits based off their needs. When I started cosmetology school, I decided to work at a cosmetics store to gain more experience in ingredient knowledge, formulations, and color theory to help customers choose products that they won't react to, that won't dry out their skin or make them oily, and shades with warm, cool, or neutral undertones that best suited them. Once I was licensed, I was exposed to services such as haircutting, hair coloring and blonding, keratin treatments, lash extensions, lash tinting, brow waxing, brow lamination, brow tinting, facials, microneedling with and without radio frequency, radio frequency, high frequency, microdermabrasion, hydrodermabrasion, ultrasound, microcurrent, light therapy, and intense pulsed light. The high-tech equipment used in facial treatments was what piqued my interest in lasers. In the two years I have been working as a laser technician, I gained experience with is light propagation takes place in flash lamp lasers and in diode pumped lasers, how laser rangefinders, frequency scramblers, and designators are built and handled, how helium neon gas lasers are used in aligning optics, and various applications of lasers and optics in the photonics industry. My experience has a blend of both medical and defense industries which is what gives me a well-rounded understanding of this technology application. The skills that I have developed in both my cosmetology experience and laser experience are technical. I have a lot of hands-on training in various techniques on handling materials, hardware, lights, optics, and equipment and also in technical writing for work instructions and protocols. Even though these are a little broad, I say these skills generally encompass both industries. Another key skill is time management so that you get the product out on time, or the service done within the specified timeframe to keep customers satisfied. My end goal is to establish a business that combines my experience in both industries, but I want to be bold. I want to own beauty salon that offers packages that include laser lights and stage lights, which can be used in photography. I think that would best suit both industries because now it goes into the entertainment industry and impacts three industries. My vision is to bring more awareness of this technology to multiple industries.

Growing up, I never had a set goal of a future in mind. I had so many interests at heart that I honestly could not come to a decision. I wanted to be either a detective, a race car driver, a biomedical engineer, or a welder. At one point in my life, I was contemplating about going into the Navy to be a Nuclear Engineer on a submarine. However, due to my severe motion sickness, I knew that the motion of the ocean would sooner or later be my downfall. I decided to buckle down and stay mainland by choosing to study mechanical engineering at a university not too far from me, but I never went because I could not afford to go to that university. I tried applying to so many scholarships, grants, and FAFSA but to no avail. I was always ineligible for FAFSA because my parents' income on paper looked like they could afford my schooling, but in reality, my parents were using that money to get themselves out of debt, pay bills, and to get surgeries or treatments. I decided to work and pay for my own college instead that way I would not accrue student loan debt, but sometimes what I make is not always enough for tuition and expenses. I know what I am going to say probably sounds outdated, but my plans for the future are to be an assistant at church, an entrepreneur, and a homeowner. I want to briefly discuss my desire to be an assistant at my church. I hope I do not offend anyone's beliefs by my own, it's just an important aspect to my life. I am the only one in my family who has the desire to build a relationship with God and that has honestly made me stronger. I would be a liar if I said that I wasn't lonely at times, but my relationship with God has truly helped me move forward in my life as I used to be really stuck without any direction or anyone. Now that I have this as a part of my life, I have drive and ambition to accomplish my goals and to keep pushing until I see results. I would like to be an assistant to serve God and connect with people that could relate to me and give them advice that was revealed to me in my own trials. Speaking of trials, my plan to own a business has been rocky. This may come from the struggle of focusing, but I had a business for a short period of time, but it was unsuccessful. Again, I honestly attribute this to not having a clear focus at the time as I was trying to move my life forward without any direction and spreading myself too thin. Now that I have a clear mind and direction, I want to eventually own a business that combines my experience with beauty and lasers in a unique way. Additionally, I want to be a homeowner. I've lived by renting for a while now and I do not want to continue the cycle of renting homes or apartments for the rest of my life. Inflation keeps going up, making the housing market pricier yet household incomes are stagnant and can't keep up with inflation. This is undoubtedly another challenge for me as I get denied from buying homes because of my income. In short, this scholarship will help me move forward in my life by either giving me the means for business startup costs or to aid in a downpayment on a house.

My favorite book-to-film adaptation has got to be "The Invention of Hugo Cabret" to the Hugo movie. It is not really talked about, but I absolutely love that movie. The book and movie take place in France in the early 1930s. The story is based on the life of Georges Méliès, a famous French actor and film director. His use of automatons was the base of his work when it came to cinema and theatre. The novel and film are historical fiction; it takes place at the time of Georges Méliès, and the main characters meet him, but the book and movie are not about his entire life. They are centered around his cinema and theatrical direction period of his life. In the book and film, the main character is an orphaned young boy named Hugo Cabret. He lives at the Gare Montparnasse train station in Paris with his uncle and works on maintaining the station's clocks. He is fascinated by an automaton left by his late father and the notebook that accompanied it. His goal was to fix the automaton and discover its origins. On his journey of discovering the automaton's past, he meets Isabelle, the goddaughter of a toy merchant. Together, the two embark on a journey to solve the mystery of the automaton and to make it functional again. They find clues of cinema and theatre and end meeting a very old Papa Georges who lets them in on the mystery of the automaton. Before I get into the nitty gritty about the book and the film separately, I have to say that it was one of the best book-to-film adaptations, in my opinion. The plot remained very consistent, and the storyline did not deviate much when it comes to book-to-big-screen productions. There are some things that I enjoyed more when reading the novel compared to the movie, one being the dichotomy between Hugo and Isabelle. In the book, it illustrates them being very close friends whereas in the film it pushed the "young love" of childhood romance. I liked them more as close friends because of their age bracket and their shared interests. I also like how the book portrayed Papa Georges, not saying that the movie did not do the character any justice, but the development of Papa Georges past his prime, still hanging on to his in the spotlight was portrayed differently in the film compared to the novel. In the book and film, he was very dismissive, illusive, and reclusive, but you could tell based on the novel that he was portrayed in a more depressing tone, whereas the film portrayed him angry due to seeing himself as a failure because he was out of the spotlight. I personally think the depressed Papa Georges in the book gave him more depth because it added to the mystery of the automaton's origins as he did not want to open up about its purpose in his films. This was not due to disappointment like in the film, it was so that he would not bring attention to himself as he tried to hide his identity. However, I do understand why he was portrayed the way he was in the film which was to humanize him. Now with the film, I absolutely loved the cinematography. My favorite element of the film was how it slightly personified the automaton. Throughout the film, the automaton's expression ever so slightly changed. It had moments of sadness and at the end of the film when it was functioning it was smiling. Overall, I thought the book-to-film adaptation was well done.

I am definitely an oddball for sure, especially when it comes to my career. I currently work as a laser technician for a government contractor, but before that, I was an esthetician. Many ask how I went from an esthetician to a laser technician, and the answer is: STEM. I always had a passion for STEM, especially in science and engineering. I was plotting new ideas on what needed to be innovated, improved, or invented when it came to the science or engineering fields. The only caveat was I had passions outside of STEM fields and was struggling how to integrate my passions. In high school, I was in engineering and biomedical sciences. I was originally going to go into college for biomedical engineering, but I could not afford college and there was not a lot of demand for biomedical engineers. I decided to switch to welding, a trade that I could afford, but I kept being waitlisted due to the program restructuring. I didn’t want to waste my time, so I decided to go out on a whim and go into cosmetology school and industrial management. Industrial management was the closest degree to engineering that I was eligible for with my credits, and I wanted my industry experience to be cosmetics and beauty with health. I absolutely loved it and excelled at it, however by the time I finished, COVID occurred. COVID completely ruined my job opportunities in the beauty and health industry, making me stuck as an apprentice for two years. In those two years, I gained a lot of knowledge and experience about skin health. I learned about various forms of acne and different kinds of treatments that can help treat it. That is where I met laser and light therapy. I researched so many devices that’s integrated lasers and lights that could treat acne, hyperpigmentation, and aging. I found equipment with red, blue, and green wavelengths to target different types of skin conditions, infrared diodes to help with ice-pick scarring from acne, and microneedling with radio frequency and blue light to help resurface the skin and combat bacteria. I thought that it was so fascinating that I decided to go back to college for lasers and optical devices. During these past two years in college, I have been able to work in the military and defense industry as a laser technician. My course knowledge and background experience made me stand out, which was actually very welcoming since I am a woman with women-based work experience now transitioning into a male-dominated work field. I absolutely enjoy my work field and it has given me a lot more unique opportunities and experiences. For the future, I want to be bold. I want to combine my interests of beauty with lasers. I think possibly going the entertainment route would be promising with laser lights and stage lights and offering beauty services that can be used in photography or events. I am always curious how I can combine them together, but I think that it is a good start. I got to keep it laser focused!

My favorite anime series and film is Demon Slayer. The artwork and style of the animation is captivating and refreshing compared to other anime series. The animation also ties into the time periods that are represented throughout the series. The more rural areas are represented by a futile period and the villagers are very humble and traditional in culture. You can see by the way the villagers are clothed and when they use different sword techniques the designs of water, fire, wind, earth or animal elements are more traditional. The cities are represented in a roaring 20s period where there is innovation and improvements are taking place and the residents have a more forward-thinking mentality. Again, you can see this in the way the people are dressed. Their clothes are styled in the mid 1920s and the women’s kimonos are modern in style and color. The men’s fashion are more of the suit and tie attire, which is very representative of their modern lifestyles and careers that they have compared to the humble traditional villagers. I think this major separation is illustrated to make a distinct difference of how the city people are dealing with demons versus how the villagers are dealing with the demons. The city people are very aware of the problem, but they are trying to find ways to treat those who are infected and try to accommodate them into their society or they simply turn a blind eye to the problem. The villagers, however, are very traditional and they would rather eradicate them instead of trying to help them. This is where the conflict of Tanjiro and Nezuko comes into play. Nezuko, in terms of traditional culture, should have been killed but because she never harmed anyone, it’s changing the traditional people’s mindsets and now they are willing to look further into the infection by the help of the city people and how it can truly be defeated. Even though the main plot deals with Muzan, his hierarchy, his minions, and how they can keep the infection/ possession going, the true problem is the people’s mindsets and their will. This undertone is shown throughout the series and the film when people or demons talk about their “life-story” and what lead them to where they’re at. If these individuals had more of an open-mindset and were willing the change themselves instead of becoming victims to their selfishness or situations, they would not be miserable or suffering. Those who are in the Demon Slayer Corps are representative of people who decided to change themselves, even though they aren’t perfect, you see that they were willing to change their mindsets and apply that to helping others so that others wouldn’t go through the same hardship as them. I really like that aspect of the series and the film and it’s amazing how that’s shown through animation.