My bedroom is the place I spend the most time. While this may sound very stereotypical for my age, my reasoning is different from that of a typical teenager. And it all started on a rainy Saturday afternoon. I recall walking downstairs to see on my TV two men talking about renovating a house. It was like a whole new door had opened for me when I realized that you could customize a house to your liking. I was amazed at how these people could view color, pattern, and balance and direct it into their work. Ultimately, though, my favorite part was seeing the reaction of the clients themselves. Today, I find myself analyzing artistic pieces, documenting my daily life through photography, and just drawing for comfort. Art has always been part of my life that’s why I’m pursuing it as a career. I'm particularly interested in interior design and architecture. My goal with this degree is to use it positively. One of the biggest goals I want to achieve in my career is to provide more pleasurable housing for the homeless. My vision is to create tiny house villages everywhere in the United States. Specifically, these villages would be temporary living for the homeless to help them get back on their feet. Each tiny house will be a place where the homeless can have their own personally designed space that makes them feel comfortable. Going forward in this career I know I need to keep multiple factors in mind. One of them being that I will be a minority in this field. Currently, only 2.3% of interior designers and 2% of architects in the U.S. are African American. By being involved in interior design and architecture I hope to encourage other minorities to also partake in this field so that it can be diversified. I want to inspire others to strive for their dreams and not be intimidated if they find themselves in the minority. Overall, I’m excited to see my goals achieved. I know that these next few years won’t be easy, but I plan to persevere through it all to reach the important task at hand: giving back. I’m excited to learn new things and meet new people through my journey. And most of all, I can’t wait to see the smile on the face of my first client.

My bedroom is the place I spend the most time. While this may sound very stereotypical for my age, my reasoning is different from that of a typical teenager. My bedroom is a space that I’ve created but also fell in love with. I think it’s pretty accurate to say that I’ve been interested in design my whole life. It all started on a rainy Saturday afternoon. I recall walking downstairs to see on my TV two men talking about renovating a house. It was like a whole new door had opened for me when I realized that you could customize a house to your liking. I was amazed at how these people could view color, pattern, and balance and direct it into their work. Ultimately, though, my favorite part was seeing the reaction of the clients themselves. Today, I find myself analyzing artistic pieces, documenting my daily life through photography, and just drawing for comfort. Art has always been part of life, and that’s why I know I want to pursue it as a career. I'm particularly interested in interior design and architecture. My goal with this degree is to use it in a positive way. I’ve been blessed throughout my life, so I feel that it is only fitting to be one to give back. One of the biggest goals I want to achieve in my career is to provide more pleasurable housing for the homeless. I’ve noticed that the homeless shelters that are available aren’t always the most appealing. They can be described as cold, cramped, warehouse-like spaces, not a home. My vision is to create tiny house villages everywhere in the United States. Specifically, these villages would be temporary living for the homeless to help them get back on their feet. Each tiny house will be a place where the homeless can have their own personally designed space that makes them feel comfortable. While I have this goal and many more, I understand that to be able to accomplish them I need to continue my education. Attending college will give me the tools I need to prepare myself for this profession. Going forward in this career I know I need to keep multiple factors in mind. One of them being that I will be a minority in this field. Currently, only 2.3% of interior designers and 2% of architects in the U.S. are African American. By being involved in interior design and architecture I hope to encourage other minorities to also partake in this field so that it can be diversified. I want to inspire others to strive for their dreams and not be intimidated if they find themselves in the minority. Throughout my life, I have been looked at differently because of my race. Some have assumed I cannot accomplish things efficiently because of this. I want to prove that anything can be achieved purely from hard work and that it is nondependent on the color of your skin. Overall, I’m excited to see my goals be achieved. I know that these next few years won’t be easy, but I plan to persevere through it all to reach the important task at hand: giving back. I’m excited to learn new things and meet new people through my journey. And most of all, I can’t wait to see the smile on the face of my first client.

My bedroom is the place I spend the most time. While this may sound very stereotypical for my age, my reasoning is different from that of a typical teenager. My bedroom is a space that I’ve created but also fell in love with. I think it’s pretty accurate to say that I’ve been interested in design my whole life. It all started on a rainy Saturday afternoon. I recall walking downstairs to see on my TV two men talking about renovating a house. It was like a whole new door had opened for me when I realized that you could customize a house to your liking. I was amazed at how these people could view color, pattern, and balance and direct it into their work. Ultimately, though, my favorite part was seeing the reaction of the clients themselves. Today, I find myself analyzing artistic pieces, documenting my daily life through photography, and just drawing for comfort. Art has always been part of life, and that’s why I know I want to pursue it as a career. I'm particularly interested in interior design and architecture. My goal with this degree is to use it in a positive way. I’ve been blessed throughout my life, so I feel that it is only fitting to be one to give back. One of the biggest goals I want to achieve in my career is to provide more pleasurable housing for the homeless. I’ve noticed that the homeless shelters that are available aren’t always the most appealing. They can be described as cold, cramped, warehouse-like spaces, not a home. My vision is to create tiny house villages everywhere in the United States. Specifically, these villages would be temporary living for the homeless to help them get back on their feet. Each tiny house will be a place where the homeless can have their own personally designed space that makes them feel comfortable. While I have this goal and many more, I understand that to be able to accomplish them I need to continue my education. Attending college will give me the tools I need to prepare myself for this profession. Going forward in this career I know I need to keep multiple factors in mind. One of them being that I will be a minority in this field. Currently, only 2.3% of interior designers and 2% of architects in the U.S. are African American. By being involved in interior design and architecture I hope to encourage other minorities to also partake in this field so that it can be diversified. I want to inspire others to strive for their dreams and not be intimidated if they find themselves in the minority. Throughout my life, I have been looked at differently because of my race. Some have assumed I cannot accomplish things efficiently because of this. I want to prove that anything can be achieved purely from hard work and that it is nondependent on the color of your skin. Overall, I’m excited to see my goals be achieved. I know that these next few years won’t be easy, but I plan to persevere through it all to reach the important task at hand: giving back. I’m excited to learn new things and meet new people through my journey. And most of all, I can’t wait to see the smile on the face of my first client.

My bedroom is the place I spend the most time. While this may sound very stereotypical for my age, my reasoning is different from that of a typical teenager. My bedroom is a space that I’ve created but also fell in love with. Even back when I was little, you could find me on a Saturday afternoon watching HGTV. Today, I find myself analyzing artistic pieces, documenting my daily life through photography, and just drawing for comfort. Art has always been part of life, and that’s why I know I want to pursue it as a career. I'm particularly interested in interior design and architecture. My goal with this degree is to use it in a positive way. I’ve been blessed throughout my life, so I feel that it is only fitting to give back. One of the biggest goals I want to achieve in my career is to provide more pleasurable housing for the homeless. My vision is to create tiny house villages everywhere. Each tiny house will be a place where the homeless can have their own personally designed space. The tiny house village will work as a cycle, bringing people in and eventually cycling them out with the proper resources. While I have this goal and many more, I understand that to be able to accomplish them I need to continue my education. Overall, I’m excited to see my goals be achieved. I know that these next few years won’t be easy, but I plan to persevere through it all to reach the important task at hand: giving back. I’m excited to learn new things and meet new people through my journey. And most of all, I can’t wait to see the smile on the face of my first client.

Setbacks can only make you stronger. That is what I have learned from these past 2 years. My name is Kayla Sparks and I am 16 years old. I was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and now I currently live in Raleigh, North Carolina. I moved to Raleigh a little over a year ago, after completing my first year of high school. I was at first really disappointed with the move. I was leaving behind friends, and my childhood home, but mostly familiarity. I did not think I would ever be able to adjust to living in North Carolina after spending the majority of my life in Pennsylvania. I guess you could say that I considered moving to be a major setback for me. However, that mindset of mine progressively changed the longer I was in North Carolina. Ever since I was little I have dreamed of being an interior designer. I want to spend my life designing spaces for people to make them happy. Moving actually allowed me to design the new house that my family would be living in. Designing the new house gave me a better understanding of interior design and gave me a firsthand experience that I would not be able to get if I were still living in Pennsylvania. I also was given the opportunity to take an interior design class at my new school that gave me core knowledge I would need if I wanted to be in the design field. (Interior design classes were not offered at my old school). After experiencing these two things the 'setback' of moving helped me learn more about design and overall gave me stronger interior design skills. I hope to attend Howard University and study interior designer there because I strive to be one of the few African American interior designers. I want to be somebody that people recognize and stand out even, because of my race. I want to inspire other black students to also be interior designers so that the field can be diversified. Lastly, one of my biggest goals of being an interior designer is providing housing and spaces for everyone. Specifically, designing a temporary living for the homeless while they are getting back on their feet. My vision is to create tiny house villages everywhere. Each tiny house will be a place where the homeless can have their own space. While staying in the tiny house, I want there to be counseling provided for them to encourage them to get jobs and get a source of income. Eventually, the homeless will be able to move out of the village to obtain housing of their own. The tiny house village will work as a cycle, bringing people in and eventually cycling them out. I think it will bring a very positive aspect to the community. I am working every day to better myself and those around me. I make sure to work hard in school and I am always looking for ways to improve when it comes to anything. I have been really working to improve my drawing skills as I will be using them in the interior design field a lot. It's as simple as me watching YouTube videos every weekend to help improve my sketching. I work to help better those around me by encouraging my friends to stay focused in school. I also help tutor my little sister in math because it is one of my strongest subjects. Overall, I know that I have to work hard if I want to achieve my dream of becoming an interior designer. I will continue to strive and excel in everything I do and put forward my best effort. I know that in life there will be more setbacks that I will face. However, these setbacks can only help me become stronger and mold me into a better person.

Have you ever seen an African American interior designer? If your answer to that is a no, I'm hoping that I can eventually, with time, change that answer to a yes. My name is Kayla Sparks and I am 16 years old. I live in Raleigh, NC with my mom, dad, little sister, and little brother. My whole life I have aspired to be an interior designer. Even back to when I was little, you could find me on a Saturday afternoon watching HGTV. (mostly The Property Brothers) I've always been intrigued with design and what essentially makes a space. I observe pattern, color, and balance pretty much wherever I go. I understand that achieving dreams isn't easy and that I need to work hard for what I want. Fortunately, I've always felt the need to strive and excel when it comes to academics, sports, and extracurriculars. I always make sure the things that I accomplish are completed to the best of my ability. I make sure that I have all A's and always contact my teachers to see if there's anything I can do to raise my grade even higher. This year has been especially challenging with COVID, but I've managed to push through and even get all A's for my first semester. I plan to do this second semester as well! I understand that to pursue my dreams I need to stay focused on my grades so that I have a shot at attending college. After I attend college, I hope to achieve a lot of things. I want to earn a degree in interior design and one day even own my own interior design business. My business would focus a lot on low-income families and helping to redesign places for the less fortunate. I feel that it is important for me to give back to the community because I was fortunate enough to be blessed growing up. I understand that others may not have this chance, so I want to be able to provide for them. I'm preparing myself to achieve these goals by working hard in school, as I said before, but also making sure I'm present in the community. I make sure to try to volunteer in the community and give back to those who are less fortunate. I feel that being a present person in the community helps improve yourself as a person overall. It humbles you and makes you really appreciate all that you have in life. Another way I am going to achieve this goal is never giving up. I know that things in life won't always come easily, and I know that there may be big setbacks. Whether it be financial setbacks, or even setbacks because of my race I'm willing to push through because being a designer is what I really want. There aren't many African American interior designers, so another thing that's pushing me to achieve this goal is being one of the few. I want to represent my race in this career and who knows, me becoming an interior designer could inspire fellow black students to want to become one. At the end of the day, it is only my junior year and I still have a bit of time before I go to college, but this isn't stopping me from pushing for what I want early. I will continue to excel in school and continue to be a role model in my community. Because I believe that doing those things will help me achieve my dream.

My entire life, I've always been interested in color, patterns, and the way things fit well together in a space. That's when I knew that I wanted to pursue art as a career. I'm particularly interested in interior design and architecture. I'm inspired by interior design every single day. Just by looking around my house, or watching tv, I can easily see different elements of design that has an influence on my design choices. I'm hoping to go to Howard University. I've been seen as the minority my entire life, and even questioned if I can be as great as the students around me. Since Howard University is majority African American, I think it will be refreshing to be able to surround myself with fellow black students who strive and are just as excellent as I am. They even have a great interior design program too! I will use this scholarship help with my dream of becoming an interior designer because it can allow me a chance to attend Howard University and receive a degree in design. Once I receive this degree, I can't wait to give back and design spaces for people to enjoy. One of the main projects that I want to do when I get out of college is to provide tiny houses for the homeless and design them. Homeless shelters are usually warehouses that can be packed. I feel as if everybody deserves their own space for themselves, so creating tiny house communities can help provide that. I'm excited to see where this idea of mine goes and I can't wait to start giving back to people.

My entire life, I've always been interested in color, patterns, and the way things fit well together in a space. That's when I knew that I wanted to pursue art as a career. I'm particularly interested in interior design and architecture. Making things all work together in harmony is just so amazing to me. I'm hoping to go to Howard University. I've been seen as the minority my entire life, and even questioned if I can be as great as the students around me. Since Howard University is majority African American, I think it will be refreshing to be able to surround myself with fellow black students who strive and are just as excellent as I am. They even have a great interior design program too! Interior design is very essential and important to me because I know that I can use it in a positive way. I can't wait to give back and design spaces for people to enjoy. However one of the main projects that I want to do when I get out of college is to provide tiny houses for the homeless and design them. Homeless shelters are usually warehouses that can be packed. I feel as if everybody deserves their own space for themselves, so creating tiny house communities can help provide that. I'm excited to see where this idea of mine goes and I can't wait to start giving back to people.