A time I was confronted with adversity was in my senior year of high school. I was on the varsity volleyball team and my shoulder eventually started to hurt halfway through the season, and near the end, it felt as if something popped out of place in my shoulder. My team and I were very good together as we had only lost one game the entire season. I fought so hard with my team and made sure I never disappointed them or my coach. They all looked up to me and supported me so I had to do the same. I soon found out after the season was over that I had completely torn the labrum in my right shoulder. This was the ligament that connected to the rotator cuff, so every time I swung at the volleyball, it would sort of pop out of place. The pain was excruciating, but my team was so good and we had made it so far. We had made it to the conference championship game and this was very important to us as the volleyball team at my high school had only gotten one ever conference championship and that was in 2011. That day my shoulder was bothering me badly. I had layered so much icy hot on it and had a shoulder brace and compression sleeve on it. At the time I didn’t know what exactly was wrong with my shoulder, but I knew in my heart of hearts I had to persevere through it. I was one of the top hitters on my team, so my team heavily relied on me. That day we won the trophy and medals in three straight sets, 3-0. We were very happy and everyone was extremely proud of me for my courage and bravery. My coach gave me the biggest hug and told me he was so proud of me, and that I helped him get his first conference championship during his first couple of years of coaching. I still today can go back to my high school and see the 2021-2022 volleyball season and my team pictures up in the raptures and on the walls of the gym. After the season I did have to get surgery and go to physical therapy for a few months, but I still managed to get recruited to play volleyball at Lincoln University only five months post-surgery. Even then I had to go through so much, not being able to use my right, dominant hand and arm, but the biggest part of the fight was over. I learned that it's okay to fight for the people and things you love. This impacted my relationships positively. I realized that I had people to help, support, and lift me up. This is something that I will always remember throughout my lifetime. I'm never really alone and I have people to go to and lean on when things get tough. This overall made my relationships so much more valuable and dependable as I would now go to them to help me with difficult situations.

The career path I am pursuing is dermatology. This would fall under the science part of STEM as it is biological science. I plan to enter into the healthcare and medical field of work because I have always enjoyed helping people and my community. I have always been interested in cosmetics regarding hair, skin, and nails, so dermatology perfectly fits all of my interests into one. I major in biochemistry which helps to get me prepared for becoming a dermatologist. My degree focuses on the study of living organisms alongside the chemistry of living things. Seeing and exploring how certain things interact with each other. This degree helps me pursue a career in dermatology because it first helps me develop a better understanding of the medical field and second deals with the parts and objectives of the profession such as the relation of filaments and microtubules in pigment cells for example. I think that one of the biggest social issues is African Americans not being able to get the proper treatment and healthcare opportunities as other races, for example, Caucasian people. African Americans have a huge health disparity which I am already working towards fixing with my degree. I am a black woman, so I understand what we go through in the healthcare field and I want to help my community. I plan to use my college degree to give back to the community and since I am a black woman determined and motivated to enter into a medical career field, I want to ensure that all patients, but especially black patients get the proper medical treatment and procedures. I want to uplift my community and make them never feel left out or neglected. I want all African Americans to know that there is always help and that they can get the same and best treatment out there, just like everyone else. I want to do this by making sure that they can get proper access to health insurance and healthcare methods as we are often the minority when it comes to obtaining this. This is one of the many health disparities in the black community so there must be an increase in racial diversity in healthcare. A big goal of mine is to help my patients get the right healthcare so they are happy with their results and satisfied with how I am treating them not having to worry about what color their skin is. This results in a boost of confidence within the black community. I believe that this will have an overall positive impact on the world as we also need more educated black people in healthcare, and me being an African American woman, I can contribute to this.

My name is Kendra Williams and I would describe myself as someone who is determined, motivated, reliable, respectful, and productive. This is because I stay determined to get the things that I want, and want to achieve. I do not let anything stop me from pursuing my dream and vision, and I work extremely hard to get to where I want to be. I stay motivated and ready to learn more and educate myself on a higher level. I like to stay knowledgeable and improve my skills. People can always count on me to get a job done promptly and to just be the shoulder that they can lean on if need be. I am entirely respectful to everyone including myself. I make sure I treat others the way I want to be treated, and that is kindly and with respect. Lastly, I like to stay on task and get ahead if I can. I always seek to do more if it is going to help with my future or help the well-being of others. I am working to make a positive impact on the world is by attending college to obtain my bachelor's degree in biochemistry, and soon to get my master's and even Ph.D. I plan to be a dermatologist which is in the healthcare and medical field of work. I want to pursue this degree because I think that one of the biggest social issues is African Americans not being able to get the proper treatment and healthcare opportunities as other races such as Caucasian people. African Americans have a huge health disparity which I am working towards fixing. I am a black female, so I understand what we go through and I want to help my community. I plan to use my college degree to give back to the community because since I am a black woman determined and motivated to enter into a medical career field, I want to ensure that all patients, but especially black patients get the proper medical treatment and procedures. I want to do this by making sure that they can get proper access to health insurance and healthcare methods as we are often the minority when it comes to obtaining this. This is one of the many health disparities in the black community. I would love to help my patients get the right healthcare so they are happy with their results and satisfied with how I am treating them. This results in a boost of confidence within the black community.

I am working to address the important social issue of African American healthcare treatment. I plan to do this by first entering the career path of pursuing dermatology. I want to enter into the healthcare and medical field of work because I have always enjoyed helping people and my community. I have always been interested in cosmetics regarding hair, skin, and nails, so dermatology perfectly fits all of my interests into one. I major in biochemistry which helps to get me prepared for becoming a dermatologist. My degree focuses on the study of living organisms alongside the chemistry of living things. Seeing and exploring how certain things interact with each other. This degree helps me pursue a career in dermatology because it first helps me develop a better understanding of the medical field and second deals with the parts and objectives of the profession such as the relation of filaments and microtubules in pigment cells for example. One goal that I have to start with is to make a positive impact on the world by continuing my college education to obtain my bachelor's degree in biochemistry, and soon to get my master's and even Ph.D. I think that one of the biggest social issues is African Americans not being able to get the proper treatment and healthcare opportunities as other races, for example, Caucasian people. Often African Americans are put on the back burner when it comes to receiving proper care regarding their health. This was proven by the Tuskeegee syphilis experiment. In this experiment, researchers made money off of not curing African American males of syphilis, to see how it spreads and interacts with the human body. The experiment was entirely unethical and wrong toward the African American community. This is one of the many events that created a huge health disparity which I am already working towards fixing by coming this far in obtaining a college education. I am a black female, so I understand what we go through in the healthcare field and I want to help my community. I plan to use my college degree to give back to the community because since I am a black woman determined and motivated to enter into a medical career field, I want to ensure that all patients, but especially black patients get the proper medical treatment and procedures. I want to do this by making sure that they can get proper access to health insurance and healthcare methods as we are often the minority when it comes to obtaining this. This is one of the many health disparities in the black community so it is important that there must be an increase in racial diversity in healthcare. Another goal is to help my patients get the right healthcare so they are happy with their results and satisfied with how I am treating them not having to worry about what color their skin is. This results in a boost of confidence within the black community. I believe that this will have an overall positive impact on the world as we also need more educated black people in healthcare, and me being an African American woman, I can contribute to this.

The career path I am pursuing is dermatology. I am planning to enter into the healthcare and medical field of work. This is because I have always enjoyed helping people and my community. I have always been interested in cosmetics regarding hair, skin, and nails, so dermatology perfectly fits all of my interests into one. I major in biochemistry which helps to get me prepared for becoming a dermatologist. My degree focuses on the study of living organisms alongside the chemistry of living things. Seeing and exploring how certain things interact with each other. This degree helps me pursue a career in dermatology because it first helps me develop a better understanding of the medical field and second deals with the parts and objectives of the profession such as the relation of filaments and microtubules in pigment cells for example. One goal that I have to start with is to make a positive impact on the world by continuing my college education to obtain my bachelor's degree in biochemistry, and soon to get my master's and even Ph.D. I think that one of the biggest social issues is African Americans not being able to get the proper treatment and healthcare opportunities as other races such as Caucasian people. African Americans have a huge health disparity which I am already working towards fixing by coming this far in obtaining a college education. I am a black female, so I understand what we go through in the healthcare field and I want to help my community. I plan to use my college degree to give back to the community because since I am a black woman determined and motivated to enter into a medical career field, I want to ensure that all patients, but especially black patients get the proper medical treatment and procedures. I want to do this by making sure that they can get proper access to health insurance and healthcare methods as we are often the minority when it comes to obtaining this. This is one of the many health disparities in the black community so it is important that there is an increase in racial diversity in healthcare. Another goal is to help my patients get the right healthcare so they are happy with their results and satisfied with how I am treating them not having to worry about what color their skin is. This results in a boost of confidence within the black community. I believe that this will have an overall positive impact on the world as we also need more educated black people in healthcare, and me being an African American woman, I can contribute to this.

The career path I am pursuing is dermatology. I am planning to enter into the healthcare and medical field of work. This is because I have always enjoyed helping people and my community. I have always been interested in cosmetics regarding hair, skin, and nails, so dermatology perfectly fits all of my interests into one. I major in biochemistry which helps to get me prepared for becoming a dermatologist. My degree focuses on the study of living organisms alongside the chemistry of living things. Seeing and exploring how certain things interact with each other. This degree helps me pursue a career in dermatology because it first helps me develop a better understanding of the medical field and second deals with the parts and objectives of the profession such as the relation of filaments and microtubules in pigment cells for example. How I am working to make a positive impact on the world is by continuing my college education to obtain my bachelor's degree in biochemistry, and soon to get my master's and even Ph.D. I think that one of the biggest social issues is African Americans not being able to get the proper treatment and healthcare opportunities as other races such as Caucasian people. African Americans have a huge health disparity which I am working towards fixing. I am a black female, so I understand what we go through and I want to help my community. I plan to use my college degree to give back to the community because since I am a black woman determined and motivated to enter into a medical career field, I want to ensure that all patients, but especially black patients get the proper medical treatment and procedures. I want to do this by making sure that they can get proper access to health insurance and healthcare methods as we are often the minority when it comes to obtaining this. This is one of the many health disparities in the black community. I would love to help my patients get the right healthcare so they are happy with their results and satisfied with how I am treating them. This results in a boost of confidence within the black community. I believe that this will have an overall positive impact on the world as we also need more black people in healthcare, and me being an African American woman, I am able to contribute to this.

An obstacle that I had to overcome in pursuit of higher education was financial problems. I did not have enough money to go to college alone, and financial aid was just not enough. I eventually was able to enroll at Lincoln University in Pennsylvania which is still where I go now, as I was able to find enough money for the first two semesters of college. My dad was the person who helped me to overcome this obstacle. We both worked together to find as many scholarships as we could for me to apply to, and he had to work extra hard at work to help build up more money. There were many nights my dad had worked overtime, stayed up extremely late, and/or got up very earlier in the morning to help me pursue higher education. I also picked up extra shifts at work just to help out as well because I appreciated all that my dad was doing for me. I knew that if I didn't have enough money to attend, I wouldn't have been able to go to college at all and this was something that I did not see happening. I've always known that I wanted to obtain degrees and live a comfortable life. My dad had always wished the same for me and even told me that he wants me to do way better than him. My dad put in the work to help me out all while still having to take care of my two younger sisters simultaneously. Another obstacle that I had to overcome was being away from home. All my life I loved having my family around me and always having their support. I felt that if I were to go away, all that support would be diminished. This was starting to affect me negatively. It made me question pursuing higher education despite my dreams of earning my degrees and becoming a dermatologist. I was starting to think I couldn't do it, and that I would be too overwhelmed. Once again, my dad stepped in to be my encouragement. He told me that he and the rest of my family would always be my support system whether I'm at home or farther away. He said that he was only a phone call away and that there are always resources and people to talk to if I need help and things started to get overwhelming. He made me realize that I could do it and that it was nothing to just pick up the phone and call him. I also noticed I'd be home more than I thought because of how close the breaks are. Overall, I have faced many challenges and obstacles when trying to obtain a higher education, but I was able to do it for the first year, and now it is time to put the pedal to the metal again so that I can continue my years in college.

My name is Kendra Williams and I would describe myself as someone who is determined, motivated, reliable, respectful, and productive. This is because I stay determined to get the things that I want, and want to achieve. I do not let anything stop me from pursuing my dream and vision, and I work extremely hard to get to where I want to be. I stay motivated and ready to learn more and educate myself on a higher level. I like to stay knowledgeable and improve my skills. People can always count on me to get a job done promptly and to just be the shoulder that they can lean on if need be. I am entirely respectful to everyone including myself. I make sure I treat others the way I want to be treated, and that is kindly and with respect. Lastly, I like to stay on task and get ahead if I can. I always seek to do more if it is going to help with my future or help the well-being of others. How I am working to make a positive impact on the world is by attending college to obtain my bachelor's degree in biochemistry, and soon to get my master's and even Ph.D. I plan to be a dermatologist which is in the healthcare and medical field of work. I think that one of the biggest social issues is African Americans not being able to get the proper treatment and healthcare opportunities as other races such as Caucasian people. African Americans have a huge health disparity which I am working towards fixing. I am a black female, so I understand what we go through and I want to help my community. I plan to use my college degree to give back to the community because since I am a black woman determined and motivated to enter into a medical career field, I want to ensure that all patients, but especially black patients get the proper medical treatment and procedures. I want to do this by making sure that they can get proper access to health insurance and healthcare methods as we are often the minority when it comes to obtaining this. This is one of the many health disparities in the black community. I would love to help my patients get the right healthcare so they are happy with their results and satisfied with how I am treating them. This results in a boost of confidence within the black community.

A time I faced hardship was in my senior year of high school. I was on the varsity volleyball team and my shoulder eventually started to hurt halfway through the season, and near the end, it felt as if something popped out of place in my shoulder. My team and I were very good together as we had only lost one game the entire season. I fought so hard with my team and made sure I never disappointed them or my coach. They all looked up to me and supported me so I had to do the same. I soon found out after the season was over that I had completely torn the labrum in my right shoulder. This was the ligament that connected to the rotator cuff, so every time I swung at the volleyball, it would sort of pop out of place. The pain was excruciating, but my team was so good and we had made it so far. We had made it to the conference championship game and this was very important to us as the volleyball team at my high school had only gotten one ever conference championship and that was in 2011. That day my shoulder was bothering me badly. I had layered so much icy hot on it and had a shoulder brace and compression sleeve on it. At the time I didn’t know what exactly was wrong with my shoulder, but I knew in my heart of hearts I had to persevere through it. I was one of the top hitters on my team, so my team heavily relied on me. That day we won the trophy and medals in three straight sets, 3-0. We were very happy and everyone was extremely proud of me for my courage and bravery. My coach gave me the biggest hug and told me he was so proud of me, and that I helped him get his first conference championship during his first couple of years of coaching. This was a time when I had to turn it up to 11 for my sport and my teammates. As well as my family and everyone I loved. I still today can go back to my high school and see the 2021-2022 volleyball season and my team pictures up in the raptures and on the walls of the gym. After the season I did have to get surgery and go to physical therapy for a few months, but I still managed to get recruited to play volleyball at Lincoln University only five months post-surgery. Even then I had to go through so much, not being able to use my right, dominant hand and arm, but the biggest part of the fight was over. I learned that it's okay to fight for the people and things you love. This impacted my relationships positively. I realized that I had people to help, support, and lift me up. This is something that I will always remember throughout my lifetime. I'm never really alone and I have people to go to and lean on when things get tough. This overall made my relationships so much more valuable and dependable as I would now go to them to help me with difficult situations.

The song that has the most important message to me would be "Roar" by Katy Perry. This song's biggest message is about standing up for yourself and speaking up to ignite change. At the beginning of the song, she mentions how she used to be silent and agree with whatever anyone would say or do. She was scared to speak up because she thought she would "rock the boat and make a mess." As the song progressed, she explained how she decided she had enough and is ready to speak up and speak out, hence hearing her "roar." I believe this message is so important because it is very easy to sit back and listen to others nowadays. Many people are too afraid to say their opinion because they are scared of judgment or how others will feel towards them. Even I have fallen guilty about this in the past. This song helps to remind me that it is perfectly okay to speak up and talk about your feelings and what you want to see changed. Katy Perry explains how she has the "eye of a tiger" and that she is a "fighter" now that she's grown to realize what she has to say is important, meaningful, and impactful. I believe that everyone should have the chance to listen to this song and use it to motivate them to advocate for positive change in the world and to boost their confidence.

A time I faced a setback was in my senior year of high school. I was on the varsity volleyball team and my shoulder eventually started to hurt halfway through the season, and near the end, it felt as if something popped out of place in my shoulder. My team and I were very good together as we had only lost one game the entire season. I fought so hard with my team and made sure I never disappointed them or my coach. They all looked up to me and supported me so I had to do the same. I soon found out after the season was over that I had completely torn the labrum in my right shoulder. This was the ligament that connected to the rotator cuff, so every time I did go to swing at the volleyball, it would sort of pop out of place. The pain was excruciating, but my team was so good and we had made it so far. We had made it to the conference championship game and this was very important to us as the volleyball team at my high school had only gotten one ever conference championship and that was in 2011. That day my shoulder was bothering me badly. I had layered so much icy hot on it and had a shoulder brace and compression sleeve on it. At the time I didn’t know what exactly was wrong with my shoulder, but I knew in my heart of hearts I had to persevere through it. I was one of the top hitters on my team, so my team heavily relied on me. That day we won the trophy and medals in three straight sets, 3-0. We were very happy and everyone was extremely proud of me for my courage and bravery. My coach gave me the biggest hug and told me he was so proud of me, and that I helped him get his first conference championship during his first couple of years of coaching. This was a time when I had to turn it up to 11 for my sport and my teammates. As well as my family and everyone I loved. I still today can go back to my high school and see the 2021-2022 volleyball season and my team pictures up in the raptures and on the walls of the gym. After the season I did have to get surgery and go to physical therapy for a few months, but I still managed to get recruited to play volleyball at Lincoln University only five months post-surgery. Even then I had to go through so much, not being able to use my right, dominant hand and arm, but the biggest part of the fight was over. I learned that it's okay to fight for the people and things you love. Even though I was going through a lot at the time, I had people to help, support, and lift me up. This is something that I will always remember throughout my lifetime. I'm never really alone and I have people to go to and lean on when things get tough.

My passion for volleyball started in 7th grade. I came across it from a few of my close friends at the time as I had no intention of really ever playing volleyball. I had already been running track since 6th grade, and I loved it. I loved the feeling of being able to run and be free while competing against others to get to the finish line. In volleyball, I became a hitter which involved me spiking the ball down across the net. I liked the aggression and power I had while hitting and the drive to win. Both of these sports allowed me to develop a motivated, competitive, and driven mindset. I have won many medals in both volleyball and track and even went as far as to receive a Henlopen Conference medal and trophy for volleyball last year. My team and I beat everyone in our conference for our senior year and we were extremely proud of our fight. Competing on a court and track made me stand out and proved my athleticism, but it very quickly carried over into the classroom. I want to always get the best and highest grades. I make an effort to stand out in the classroom, and prove that as an African American woman I can have success in my academics. Winning gives me a sense of pride and confidence that makes me want to go further and continue to always better myself. I study overtime, ask questions in the classroom, and do extra credit to assure that I am putting in my best effort to be at my topmost potential. It was not long before teachers, classmates, and faculty began to see my determination in my academics, and I would receive many accolades. Being an athlete also taught me to have to think smart and to be agile. In volleyball, it is important to be smart and strategic about where you place the ball. Especially as a hitter, it is important that I hit the ball on the other side of the net where the defense is not. This would require a lot of fast thinking as the game is played at a high speed. Critical thinking is also a huge requirement in academics. Although I didn’t always have to think quickly, I still had to think strategically. In almost every class, I would always have to dig deep and work outside of the box to achieve the correct and most thought-out answer. Critical thinking would improve my creativity, reinforce my problem-solving skills, and encourage me to go further. I believe that sports helped in this field of my academic studies. My passion for athleticism had the biggest positive impact on my academic experience overall. As passionate as I was about my sports was just the same for my grades and success in the classroom. Many times in volleyball or track, I would be extremely tired, but I knew I had to keep pushing for myself and my teammates. This push is the equivalent of high grades and a high GPA in my academics. Still to this day, I fight to make sure that my grades are where I want them to be, and that I apply myself to any course and topics I endure. Many say that it can be difficult being a student-athlete and even though that can be true, they also go hand in hand as you can learn strategies and tactics from each, and apply them to one another to get the best you.

Many people believe that the meaning of life is what you do on a day to day basis or how much money you have or how big your house is. To me the meaning of life is the legacy you leave behind for your children and grandchildren. Children and Grandchildren do not ask to be here, so I feel like it is the responsibility of the parent of grandparent to live life in a way that does not harm their offspring. I look at my parents and everything that they have sacrificed for my sisters and I really defines the meaning of life. I believe you live your life to the fullest and do what you are suppose to do for your family and everyone will be rewarded in the end. I want to be the best person I can be as well as obtain the education that is needed for me to be successful in my field of choice. I try to achieve the meaning of life by doing what I am supposed to do by treating people the way I want to be treated and being respectful and loving to others.

I never thought I would play volleyball, but when I was 12 years old, in the 6th grade, my best friend played volleyball and said I should tryout for our middle school team. I made the team and now it was time for me to learn something new. Unfortunately, I did not realize my teammates had been playing since they were 7 years old and had so much more skill and knowledge of the game then I did. My father who played college basketball explained to me that I would have to work hard, look at videos and practice as much as I could to get up to speed with my teammates. I worked hard day in and day out and by the time I was in the 8th grade I was a starter on the team and worrying about playing in high school next year. After the season ended I asked my father could he get me a personal trainer and could I play travel volleyball and he said yes to both. I started lifting weights and getting stronger than all the other girls and now my athletic ability really started to show. Freshman year I played on the junior varsity as I should have, but my desire was to become a varsity player by my sophomore year. I just kept learning and growing and getting stronger. My sophomore year I made varsity and I never looked back. As of today I am considered a three time All-Conference Selection a two time All-State Selection and my team won the conference championship my senior year. I also have a partial volleyball scholarship to Lincoln University in Pennsylvania. I often think back and say, if I gave up and never had persistence to overcome this obstacle where would I be today?

I would like to find a cure for skin cancer. This would also allow for a change and upgrade in the medicine used in the medical field. The adversity that sparked this aspiration is when my grandmother passed away from skin cancer. My grandmother meant everything to me, so her death hit me hard. I always knew I wanted to be a doctor of some sort, and she would always tell me how I am a smart cookie and how much I would indeed become that doctor. She took my education very seriously as she always made me stay on top of my work and strive to do better and be better. When she passed, I realized I didn’t want anyone to have to go through something like this with a loved one because I know how much it hurts. My plans for the future were finally in focus as I decided I wanted to be a dermatologist. Dermatologists specialize in hair, skin, and nail conditions etc. which is the perfect job for the cancer I want to cure. I plan to make this change by starting with my studies and education first. When Nelson Mandela said that “education is the most powerful weapon,” I could have not agreed more. It reminded me of something that my grandmother would say, which was “once you get that degree, no one could ever take it from you,” because she knew that obtaining a degree and focusing on your education could get you anywhere you wanted to be in life. I know that everything in life is not going to be easy and may require a lot of hard work and leadership. I believe that leadership qualities that are required to make the change I want to make, are first being responsible, accountable, creative, and motivated. I feel that these qualities contribute to the definition of being a leader, especially when it comes to trying to find a cure to skin cancer. I would have to be responsible and accountable because many people struggle with cancer and skin cancers every day, and I would have to be that person they can rely on to help them heal and stay on top of things, so their condition wouldn’t get worse. I would also have to be creative and motivated because creativity is thinking outside the box, and if I am able to do that, I could possibly discover something new and different that others have yet to find. The motivation to work hard and finish what is started is also a big aspect of leadership which I know is needed to be successful in making the change I would like to make in this world. I expect to run into times where I do not feel as productive and inspired to finish that homework assignment, times where I’m too tired to study, and/or times I simply cannot figure out what to do and I’m stuck. All of those things are bound to happen, but I will remember my purpose and what my grandmother has taught me. I will remember my reasoning for wanting to make such a difference in the world and how much I don’t want others to feel how I felt. Like I said before, I realize that there are bumps in the road that lie ahead, but I will encounter them with an open mind and find my way around them, because the change I want to make in this world will leave a huge impact on everyone and it all starts with the education I receive today.

My all-time favorite movie/film would be "Birdbox" by Josh Malerman. This movie demonstrates ambition, courage, strength, love, and sympathy which are all traits I strive to have. The main character is a mother of her son and ends up taking in her friend's daughter as she commits suicide. She has to take care and protect two children while trying to stay blindfolded from an entity that drives people to commit suicide if they look at it. The mother, Malorie, has to travel for days across a river with strong currents and has to use any and all survival techniques she has to keep her and the children safe. She has so much strength as she fights against the entity telling her to "look" and take her blindfold off. She demonstrates bravery and courage as she has to get out of her comfort zone to protect the children and make sure they stay with her so the entity doesn't manipulate them. She also shows love and sympathy as she took in the child of her friend and finds a man to love along the way even though he ended up committing suicide due to the entity as well. The movie can invoke some fear in the audience, but if you focus on the messages in the movie, it turns out to be a very passionate and heartfelt movie which is why it is my all-time favorite film.

Everyone goes through hardships and tough times, but it is all about how you are able to manage it, work with it, and push past it. It took me a while to recognize this is what I needed to do to get through it, but in the end, I learned a lot and was able to have one of the best accomplishments of my life. During my 5th grade year in 2014, my grandmother had passed away. She was my biggest supporter and helped me all throughout my school career so far at that point. Throughout all my years at my elementary school, I dreamed of being able to enter into the spelling bee to be in the spotlight and have all the attention and focus on me. When she passed away that year, it left me heartbroken as she would always help me with anything I wanted to do in life. Every day when I would come home with my spelling words for the spelling test at school on Friday, she would sit down with me and help me learn to spell the words. To me, I thought this would be the end of the world because I would no longer be able to have her help anymore. By this time, I needed to start preparing for the spelling bee. I would cry every night and wish and pray that she could come back to me. I found it so hard to actually study and focus to the point where I wanted to drop out of the bee and not try anymore. After I told my dad I wanted to quit, he sat down with me and told me that she would want me to compete in the spelling bee just for her and that it has always been my dream so why give it up now? I took time to reflect on the conversation he had with me and I decided I would continue on. I would practice every day all for her and I would use the strategy she taught me when spelling out words. She taught me to make a type of rhythm or song when spelling out my words, and that would always help me when I got to the spelling tests on Fridays. I decided to take what she taught me and apply it to the spelling bee as it almost would just be another "spelling test." It took me time to realize that I can still be great just for her and I know that she would be looking down on me smiling. I ended up getting 2nd place in the national spelling bee that year, which I was so proud of considering that I had almost completely dropped out of the bee that year. I used what my grandma taught me and what I had learned, listened to my dad and reflected on his advice, and took it upon myself to stay dedicated and to practice to overcome my obstacles. Although I went through one of the hardest times of my life losing my greatest support system and best friend, I still turned out okay and pulled out a win for her.

I am a 16 year old African American girl who has big dreams and aspirations. My family has never told me that I wouldn't be able to succeed in what I dream in, but rather that I can do anything in the world that I put my mind to. I have always grown up where I was surrounded by people not of my color at school and in my community. This honestly really made it hard to be myself and fit it even. However, I love school and always will love school. I like the fact that I can learn new things and obtain more knowledge everyday with no cost whatsoever. That is definitely something to take advantage of because many people forget that there was a point in time where education was not free, and African Americans and females were not even allowed education. This is why I work hard in school to maintain the 3.8 gpa that I currently have, and to keep up my streak of getting all straight a's since the beginning of my high school career. I've always dreamed of working with computers, technology, and electronics ever since I was a little girl. There is something so fascinating about the way technology works, especially since the world is basically surrounded by technology in today's modern society. I plan to work in the Information Technology, or IT field. I have came to understand that me being African American and even a female working in this field could be extremely difficult as most times we are not seen as the types of people are a right fit for that workforce. I, however, will push past all those stigmas and expectations and will show and prove that I can work efficiently and effectively in the computer technology field just as well as anyone else. I am dedicated to expressing my new ideas and methods for the betterment of the world and our future as a whole. I plan to someday own the biggest business in technology; possibly even creating a new internet perhaps. Although that could be seen as a very, very farfetched idea, it just goes to show how much I am ready and motivated to pursue my dreams for myself and for everyone else in the world to make this place a better place. Many times I was called a nerd, weird, different, boring, and "too smart" as insults. To me, these were not even considered insults, but rather motivational words. I used those words as fuel to my fire and aggression to succeed and make myself stronger. I think about how much I can be seen as a leader and a powerful African American women in the eyes of all the younger generations and even generations now and before me. Not only does being called all those different types of names empower me, it also allows me to realize that there are going to be people in the world that do not support what you stand for, and do not want to see you winning and that itself is absolutely okay. Everyone is entitled to their own views and opinions, but I realize that if I'm able to create an easier and faster way of getting from one place to another with the use of technology for example, then I am helping people. That is the main thing that I want to do; help people in their daily lives and make them and their families happier. Today I am focusing on getting the grades, scores, and scholarships needed to get me to my goals. I'm working hard to help my parents, where they do not have to use any money that they make for me to continue my education on a university level. I want to make them proud of me and all that I have accomplished and will accomplish. They already do not make that much money, so for me to help them out in any way I possibly can, they can continue to use the money they make for the necessities of them, my sisters, and I. Everyday I remind myself of where I want to be at in life, and motivate myself and stay determined to go after it. Being an African American female in today's society can be very difficult, but I am here to set a new standard in life, and to make it so that we no longer have to struggle and live in fear, but yet we can prosper, teach, and inform.