For as long as I can remember, I have been fascinated with and by STEM. My earliest memory of my relationship with STEM was my obsession with transportation, specifically aircraft. I took my first flight as a two month old to my family’s home, The Virgin Islands. As soon as I could talk, I could name aircraft models and as soon as I had access to the internet, I would share details about those specific models to anyone who would listen. I owned every aircraft model that existed and when I wasn’t with my family at the Air and Space Museum, I was playing different aircraft games. As I aged into an elementary age child, I kept my interest in aircraft with an interest in computers and coding. Each summer my parents enrolled me in coding camp at the local elementary school and at the community college. There, my fascination with technology flourished as I was exposed to programs such as Scratch and Panda Programming. I remember the first time my mind was blown with the experiences with robotics. These are fond memories I have with the new friends I met who shared similar interests. Today, as a senior, I am almost at the end of the computer science pathway which includes me serving my school community in a computer science internship. This means that I work for my high school community in all technical aspects. For example, I am responsible for creating brochures, spreadsheets, presentations, and google forms for various programs and organizations at my school such as the athletic program and the PTSA. As I prepare to deepen my STEM studies at college, I'm most excited to engage in studies about Artificial Intelligence and Machine learning. My interest in AI started my sophomore year when I decided to start taking coding classes. As me and my classmates learned the basics of programming, we had the opportunity to create a program of whatever we wanted. My project was using python to create a funny program of a bug chasing students around, which was a funny moment that happened in my coding class a couple weeks before. The program involved many advanced coding components to make the bug move and chase the kids. Of course it wasn't a full on AI but it was a start. Later that year, a new app called chat GPT came out. I was extremely fascinated by it. I used it for different types of help. For example, when I had a challenging question from class I used chat GPT. When I was starting to learn Java and needed to fact check something, I used chat GPT. While many humans are concerned about AI, I believe I can lead the good work that AI can do. One of my goals is to use AI to decrease misdiagnosis in the healthcare industry, to solve other errors that may take place,and to find cures. I don't want AI to do a human's job but I think it can be useful to prevent and correct mistakes. As someone who has suffered from two ACL tears, I am passionate about healthcare and I want to find ways to be involved in it through technology. Being a part of ensuring that Artificial Intelligence is used respectfully and that it does not replace human intellect, but strengthens the skills, creativity and talent of humans is also important to me. I am ready to follow in my father’s footsteps to pursue a career in data science and I see it as my duty to have an impact on young Black and Brown students by inspiring them to pursue careers in STEM by creating pathways for them that provide access to technology.

I didn’t start being interested in sports until I was in the 4th grade, and once I was, it was all I could think about. I ate, slept, and dreamt basketball 7 days a week for at least 7 years until one life changing day. While playing basketball with my friends right after a leg day workout, I tore my left ACL and was out of the game for all of my sophomore year. Throughout that year, I learned lessons that some adults still haven’t learned. I learned that it’s not that time heals. It’s what you do during the time that heals. When this experience took all of my independence away, I leaned on prayer to get me through very tough days and sleepless nights. I prayed to give thanks for every milestone that I made in my recovery. I got to know Jesus. We became best friends and he was by my side as I stayed focused on my healing and worked extremely hard to get back on the court. The moment I was cleared by my physical therapist aligned with summer tryouts for my travel team. I was so excited to get back on the court and when I did on that spring day of my junior year, it felt great until the last ten minutes of the tryouts. That’s when my right knee collided with someone else’s. I immediately knew the pain. Unfortunately, it was familiar to me. I tore my right ACL. Once again, and during my senior year, I would be benched. You may think that this had an adverse impact on my life, but it didn't because I had God by my side. Once again, I got the message that my love of basketball was bigger than me. So, I prayed and did the work to get back on my feet. Then, I worked for a second season as our team's manager and junior coach. No matter how hard it was to put my desires aside and sit on the sidelines, I did it with grace and humility and I mentored other teammates when they injured. Even more, I started a club at my school called SIPC. That stands for Sport Injury Prevention Club. Throughout this ordeal, I put God first and my team second. I could have taken up another hobby or applied for a job, but I wanted to see my commitment to the team through. These experiences helped me mature and this testimony will stay with me as I face change and challenge throughout my college experiences and for the rest of my life.

For as long as I can remember, I have been fascinated with and by STEM. My earliest memory of my relationship with STEM was my obsession with transportation, specifically aircraft. I took my first flight as a two month old to my family’s home, The Virgin Islands. As soon as I could talk, I could name aircraft models and as soon as I had access to the internet, I would share details about those specific models to anyone who would listen. I owned every aircraft model that existed and when I wasn’t with my family at the Air and Space Museum, I was playing various aircraft games. As I aged into an elementary age child, I balanced my interest in aircraft with an interest in computers and coding. Each summer my parents enrolled me in coding camp at the local elementary school and at the community college. There, my fascination with technology flourished as I was exposed to programs such as Scratch and Panda Programming. Additionally, I remember the first time my mind was blown with the experiences with robotics. These are fond memories I have with the new friends I met who shared similar interests. Today, as a senior, I am serving my school community in a computer science internship. This means that I work for my high school community in all technical aspects. For example, I am responsible for creating brochures, spreadsheets, presentations, and google forms for various programs and organizations at my school such as the athletic program and the PTSA. As I prepare to deepen my STEM studies at college, I'm most excited to engage in studies about Artificial Intelligence and Machine learning at UNC. The world is evolving at a very fast pace and Artificial Intelligence is the main reason. It interests me because although I know how it works, I don't know how it is made or what makes one AI more efficient than another. I also am interested in the future of AI and how it will impact the world during lifetime and beyond.I want to be a part of how AI shapes the world. Specifically, I am excited about upgrading our lives by using Artificial intelligence to analyze data and solve problems faster, by assisting the healthcare industry with diagnoses and cures, and by improving the safety of all humans. I am equally excited to be a part of ensuring that Artificial Intelligence is used respectfully and that it does not replace human intellect, but strengthens the skills, creativity and talent of humans. I am ready to follow in my father’s footsteps to pursue a career in data science and I see it as my duty to have an impact on young Black and Brown students by inspiring them to pursue careers in STEM. This is something I especially want to do in the Virgin Islands where technology is not as mainstreamed as it is in the continental United States.

For as long as I can remember, I have been fascinated with and by STEM. My earliest memory of my relationship with STEM was my obsession with transportation, specifically aircraft. I took my first flight as a two month old to my family’s home, The Virgin Islands. As soon as I could talk, I could name aircraft models and as soon as I had access to the internet, I would share details about those specific models to anyone who would listen. I owned every aircraft model that existed and when I wasn’t with my family at the Air and Space Museum, I was playing various aircraft games. As I aged into an elementary age child, I balanced my interest in aircraft with an interest in computers and coding. Each summer my parents enrolled me in coding camp at the local elementary school and at the community college. There, my fascination with technology flourished as I was exposed to programs such as Scratch and Panda Programming. Additionally, I remember the first time my mind was blown with the experiences with robotics. These are fond memories I have with the new friends I met who shared similar interests. Today, as a senior, I am serving my school community in a computer science internship. This means that I work for my high school community in all technical aspects. For example, I am responsible for creating brochures, spreadsheets, presentations, and google forms for various programs and organizations at my school such as the athletic program and the PTSA. As I prepare to deepen my STEM studies at college, I'm most excited to engage in studies about Artificial Intelligence and Machine learning at UNC. The world is evolving at a very fast pace and Artificial Intelligence is the main reason. It interests me because although I know how it works, I don't know how it is made or what makes one AI more efficient than another. I also am interested in the future of AI and how it will impact the world during lifetime and beyond.I want to be a part of how AI shapes the world. Specifically, I am excited about upgrading our lives by using Artificial intelligence to analyze data and solve problems faster, by assisting the healthcare industry with diagnoses and cures, and by improving the safety of all humans. I am equally excited to be a part of ensuring that Artificial Intelligence is used respectfully and that it does not replace human intellect, but strengthens the skills, creativity and talent of humans. I am ready to follow in my father’s footsteps to pursue a career in data science and I see it as my duty to have an impact on young Black and Brown students by inspiring them to pursue careers in STEM. This is something I especially want to do in the Virgin Islands where technology is not as mainstreamed as it is in the continental United States.

I ate, slept, and dreamt basketball 7 days a week for at least 7 years until one life changing day. While playing basketball with my friends right after a leg day workout, I tore my left ACL and was out of the game for all of my sophomore year. Throughout that year, I learned lessons that some adults still haven’t learned. I learned that it’s not that time heals. It’s what you do during the time that heals. I learned that my parents were right about keeping academic excellence at the forefront. I learned managerial skills as my role changed from point guard to team manager. While learning those lessons, I stayed focused on my healing and worked extremely hard to get back on the court. The moment I was cleared aligned with summer tryouts for my travel team. I was so excited to get back on the court and when I did on that spring day of my junior year, it felt great until the last ten minutes of the tryouts. That’s when my right knee collided with someone else’s. I immediately knew the pain. Unfortunately, it was familiar to me. I tore my right ACL. This experience could have had an adverse impact on my academic performance. Instead, it helped me mature and will stay with me as I face change and challenge throughout my college experiences and for the rest of my life. Much earlier than my peers, I learned that our lives are determined by the choices that we make and I made decisions to protect my academics no matter what. When I tore my ACLs, I was tempted to lay around and watch the world go by, but I pushed through the pain in my knees and the disappointment of not being able to play. I still attended all six basketball practices each week to assist the coach and team with whatever I could as team manager. Then, I would go to physical therapy or my local LA fitness after practice. Maintaining this level of activity in my life kept me motivated and focused on my academics, even though I would arrive at home around 8pm which left me with little time to focus on my rigorous honors and AP classes. But, I did. Many nights, I fought charlie horses and the urge to scroll tik tok. At first it was a struggle, but I made the choice to defeat the urge and I gained the discipline I needed to get what needed to get done as soon as possible. This is a skill that I am grateful to have gained that will follow me for the rest of my life. In conclusion, today, as a young human, I understand that leaders are lifelong learners who aim to serve others. With parents from a small community in the Caribbean whose families have led lives of service to others, I was raised with a service leader’s soul. I may not have met this soul if I had not torn both ACLs. This is still difficult to say, but I am grateful for the experience and the realization because I believe that it will help me create a great impact on the world we are creating for mine and future generations.

My grandfather, Clinton George, served in World War II. He didn’t share much about his experiences while serving there or in the military in general, but I have many great memories with him that I will cherish forever. One fond memory that will stay with me forever is when he came to stay with me and my family for two weeks one summer. I was about 10 years old and I wanted nothing to do with fruits or vegetables. While my parents were always nagging me and trying to get me to eat fruits and veggies, my grandfather approached me with an idea that hadn’t been offered to me before. He invited me to try a smoothie. Everyday for two weeks, my grandfather and I would walk to Whole Foods and he would offer me a smoothie. There was no pressure and his offers were always gentle. For the first several days, I said no and he would just say okay and drink his smoothie while commenting on its deliciousness. One particular scorching day, he insisted that we continue our daily ritual and walk to Whole Foods. The entire way there, he kept talking about how he couldn’t wait to enjoy a cold, refreshing smoothie. He also contemplated which one he would get. I cannot remember the exact words he used, but they were quite convincing, especially on this particularly hot day. When we arrived at Whole Foods, after what felt like walking for miles and miles, my Grandpa Clinton once again as he had always done, offered me a smoothie and I hesitantly said yes right before we agreed that I would try a strawberry banana smoothie. When he handed me my smoothie, I was cautious, but I took my first sip and I couldn’t believe what I had been missing all this time. It was so good and so refreshing that I finished it long before we got back home. A few summers after that, my sister and I stayed with my grandfather in Tampa, Florida while my parents traveled. Once again, my grandfather and I shared many smoothies over those two weeks, but something happened after this visit. My grandfather developed Alzheimers. He forgot who my parents were and I think he forgot who I was too, but he remembered smoothies. On my last trip to visit my grandfather, he was very different. He didn't take me to get smoothies. My Dad and I took him. He was like a kid in a candy store every time we went to get smoothies. Even though he couldn't say who I was, I thought of smoothies as the thing that connected us. He is gone now, and I still don’t really eat fruits and veggies. I haven’t tried any other smoothies either, but I enjoy strawberry banana smoothies often. When I do, I am comforted by the memories Grandpa Clinton and I shared together.

For as long as I can remember, I have been fascinated with and by STEM. My earliest memory of my relationship with STEM was my obsession with transportation, specifically aircraft. I took my first flight as a two month old to my family’s home, The Virgin Islands. As soon as I could talk, I could name aircraft models and as soon as I had access to the internet, I would share details about those specific models to anyone who would listen. I owned every aircraft model that existed and when I wasn’t with my family at the Air and Space Museum, I was playing various aircraft games. As I aged into an elementary age child, I balanced my interest in aircraft with an interest in computers and coding. Each summer my parents enrolled me in coding camp at the local elementary school and at the community college. There, my fascination with technology flourished as I was exposed to programs such as Scratch and Panda Programming. Additionally, I remember the first time my mind was blown with the experiences with robotics. These are fond memories I have with the new friends I met who shared similar interests. As a teenager, playing basketball became my first love, but my interest in STEM remained. It was important to me to balance playing local and travel basketball, while enjoying my studies in the computer science pathway at school. I was successful at balancing both until I was forced to take a break from the relationship I had with my first love. One life-altering day while playing basketball with my friends right after a leg day workout, I tore my left ACL and was out of the game for a year. Throughout that year, I learned a few adult lessons earlier in life. I learned that it’s not that time heals. It’s what you do during the time that heals; and I learned that change and challenge are a part of life; and I learned managerial skills as my role changed from point guard to team manager. While some may characterize this experience as a loss, I view it as a gain because these lessons will stay with me as I face change and challenge throughout my college experiences and for the rest of my life. Today, as a senior, I am serving my school community in a computer science internship. This means that I work for my high school community in all technical aspects. For example, I am responsible for creating brochures, spreadsheets, presentations, and google forms for various programs and organizations at my school such as the athletic program and the PTSA. I'm excited to take this learning to the next level as a college student. One hope is to follow in my father’s footsteps to pursue a career in data science. Another is to have an impact on young Black and Brown students by inspiring them to pursue careers in STEM.

For as long as I can remember, I have been fascinated with and by STEM. My earliest memory of my relationship with STEM was my obsession with transportation, specifically aircraft. I took my first flight as a two month old to my family’s home, The Virgin Islands. As soon as I could talk, I could name aircraft models and as soon as I had access to the internet, I would share details about those specific models to anyone who would listen. I owned every aircraft model that existed and when I wasn’t with my family at the Air and Space Museum, I was playing various aircraft games. Then, when I was in the 4th grade, I started playing the violin. The more I played the violin, the more I became a better, more organized student. Playing the violin also helped my brain warm up and gave me the juice I needed to perform well on tests and assignments. Also as a fourth grader, playing basketball became my first love, but my interest in STEM remained. It was important to me to balance playing local and travel basketball, while tending to my curiosity with STEM. I was successful at balancing both until I was forced to take a break from the relationship I had with my first love. One life-altering day while playing basketball with my friends right after a leg day workout, I tore my left ACL and was out of the game for a year. WhenI tore my second ACL, I learned a few adult lessons earlier in life. I learned that it’s not that time heals. It’s what you do during the time that heals. I also learned that change and challenge are a part of life. Today, as a senior, I have also learned to play the bass and was promoted to symphonic orchestra. This put me in a different community where I met new people that shared the gift of playing string instruments. Although orchestra started out as a non-priority compared to my technical interests and my love of sports, it quickly became very valuable and meaningful to me. Not only did I continue to perform well in my academic courses, I also got good scores at every adjudication ceremony, which is a competition between orchestras in my district. We even qualified for the State Competition multiple times. I am also serving my school community in a computer science internship. This means that I work for my high school community in all technical aspects. For example, I am responsible for creating brochures, spreadsheets, presentations, and google forms for various programs and organizations at my school such as the athletic program and the PTSA. I'm excited to take this learning to the next level as a college student. One hope is to follow in my father’s footsteps to pursue a career in data science. Another is to have an impact on young Black and Brown students by inspiring them to pursue careers in STEM. This is something I especially want to do in the Virgin Islands where my family is from and where technology is not as mainstream as it is in the continental United States.

Throughout my preschool and elementary school years, I had what I would describe as good teachers. For the most part, they were fair and fun. However, it wasn’t until I stepped into 6th grade Honors English that I met the first teacher who would see and connect with me in a way that no teacher had ever before. Mr. Banks was the first teacher who had my undivided attention for a whole class period. The way that he taught us to write essays and the interesting books that we read caught and kept my attention. Writing essays in the 6th grade was the first time that I received feedback that I understood and jumped on to make my writing better. Maybe this was because I felt seen in the topics that we wrote about or maybe it was because of the supportive and non-judgy way that Mr. Banks gave us feedback. No matter what the learning or task was, I felt seen. I was seen as a black male with a creative mind. I was seen as a black male with athletic interests. My mother, who is an educator, explained windows and mirrors and sliding glass doors to me. This is what Mr. Banks gave me. Every day that I went to his English class, I entered worlds that felt familiar to me. I was exposed to worlds that I could see myself being a part of. Finally, I met real and imaginary people who were a reflection of me. Basically, I was seen as a black male with great potential. and Mr. Banks created conditions for me to be interested in learning and for me to do my absolute best. My Dad reminds me that one day that school year I came home saying that I wanted to be an English teacher. This has changed, but when I said it, I felt it because I was so inspired by Mr. Banks. This is because he opened my eyes to having black mentors who aren't related to me, especially since I had never had one before. This changed my life and I want to impact others in the same way. So, whether I become a teacher or not, Mr. Banks has impacted my life to the point that no matter where I go, or who I meet, I will do my best to make sure all people are seen and acknowledged for who they are.

For as long as I can remember, I have been fascinated with and by STEM. My earliest memory of my relationship with STEM was my obsession with transportation, specifically aircraft. I took my first flight as a two month old to my family’s home, The Virgin Islands. As soon as I could talk, I could name aircraft models and as soon as I had access to the internet, I would share details about those specific models to anyone who would listen. I owned every aircraft model that existed and when I wasn’t with my family at the Air and Space Museum, I was playing various aircraft games. As I aged into an elementary age child, I balanced my interest in aircraft with an interest in computers and coding. Each summer my parents enrolled me in coding camp at the local elementary school and at the community college. There, my fascination with technology flourished as I was exposed to programs such as Scratch and Panda Programming. Additionally, I remember the first time my mind was blown with the experiences with robotics. These are fond memories I have with the new friends I met who shared similar interests. As a teenager, playing basketball became my first love, but my interest in STEM remained. It was important to me to balance playing local and travel basketball, while enjoying my studies in the computer science pathway at school. I was successful at balancing both until I was forced to take a break from the relationship I had with my first love. One life-altering day while playing basketball with my friends right after a leg day workout, I tore my left ACL and was out of the game for a year. Throughout that year, I learned a few adult lessons earlier in life. I learned that it’s not that time heals. It’s what you do during the time that heals; and I learned that change and challenge are a part of life; and I learned managerial skills as my role changed from point guard to team manager. While some may characterize this experience as a loss, I view it as a gain because these lessons will stay with me as I face change and challenge throughout my college experiences and for the rest of my life. Today, as a senior, I am serving my school community in a computer science internship. This means that I work for my high school community in all technical aspects. For example, I am responsible for creating brochures, spreadsheets, presentations, and google forms for various programs and organizations at my school such as the athletic program and the PTSA. I'm excited to take this learning to the next level as a college student. One hope is to follow in my father’s footsteps to pursue a career in data science. Another is to have an impact on young Black and Brown students by inspiring them to pursue careers in STEM. This is something I especially want to do in the Virgin Islands where technology is not as mainstreamed as it is in the continental United States. My love of STEM will be fulfilled with the help of this scholarship and my purpose will be fulfilled when I contribute to the exposure and development of STEM studies in public schools, including those in the Virgin Islands.

For 7 days per week, for at least 7 years, I ate, slept, and dreamt basketball until one life changing day when while playing basketball with my friends right after a leg day workout, I tore my left ACL and was out of the game for all of my sophomore year. Throughout that year, I learned lessons that some adults still haven’t learned. I learned that it’s not that time heals. It’s what you do during the time that heals; and I learned that my parents were right about keeping academic excellence at the forefront; and I learned managerial skills as my role changed from point guard to team manager. While learning those lessons, I stayed focused on my healing and worked extremely hard to get back on the court. The moment I was cleared intersected with summer tryouts for my travel team. I was so excited to get back on the court and when I did on that spring day of my junior year, it felt great until the last ten minutes of the tryouts. That’s when my right ACL collided with someone else’s. I immediately knew the pain. Unfortunately, it was familiar to me. ACL recovery requires 12 months of physical therapy, so as I work through my senior year, I know that I will not be able to play. This experience could have had an adverse impact on my academic performance. Instead, it helped me mature and will stay with me as I face change and challenge throughout my college experiences and for the rest of my life. Much earlier than my peers, I learned that our lives are determined by the choices that we make and I made decisions to protect my academics no matter what. When I tore my ACLs, I was tempted to lay around and watch the world go by, but I pushed through the pain in my knees and the discomfort of not being able to play and attended all six basketball practices each week to assist the coach and team with whatever I could as team manager. Then, I would go to physical therapy or my local LA fitness after practice. Maintaining this level of activity in my life kept me motivated and focused on my academics, even though I would arrive at home around 8pm which left me with little time to focus on my rigorous honors and AP classes. Some may characterize this experience as a loss, and it was in some ways. While I was forced to mourn my high school sports career as a point guard, I also view it as a gain because what I learned the first time around carried me through and I gained more strength as a leader in my team manager role, as a mentor in my sports injury prevention club which I helped create fat school, and as a friend to teammates experiencing similar hardships. In conclusion, today, as a young human, I understand that leaders are lifelong learners who aim to serve others. With parents from a small community in the Caribbean whose families have led lives of service to others, I was raised with a service leader’s soul. I may not have met this soul if I had not torn both ACLs. This is still difficult to say, but I am grateful for the experience and the realization because I believe that it will help me create a great impact on the world we are creating for mine and future generations.

“Mommy and Daddy, can we buy a new pair of shoes for my friend at school?” These are the words that my parents remind me of every so often. I spoke to them as a five year old and they use them as one example of how kind I have always been. My mother always says that I get it from my 79 year old maternal grandmother who has given her entire life to the service of others. As one of the few physicians on the island of St. Croix, where my family is from, she cared for her patients whether they had the means or not. Not only did she care for them in her small family medicine practice, she also traveled all around the island to care for those who were “shut-in.” Perhaps I am an apple off of her tree, but not before my mother who is a 25 year public school educator. So, hailing from a family of service leaders, I get it honestly. Helping my kindergarten classmate to get shoes that did not expose his toes was just the beginning. As a child of Caribbean parents, I didn’t receive an allowance because my island born parents believe that chores are a part of life and that me and my sister should not be compensated for them. They did want us to learn the value of money, so what they did compensate us for was our hard work in school. We were gifted with financial compensation with every report card that demonstrated and reflected hard work. Most kids would use their money to hang out with friends or to buy something they have saved up for, and I did that, but I also gave a portion to charity every single year at Christmas. My high school participates in a Holiday Giving Project every November/December. They do this to provide assistance to families who are in need of basic life necessities such as food, housing, clothing, etc. Every year, since middle school, I have donated my report card reward to this charity event in the hope that it will help a fellow student at my school. My parents didn't allow me to give my kindergarten classmate a new pair of shoes, but they taught me how to help fellow community members. This is my way of providing many shoes. Another example of how I have impacted others with my kind spirit is volunteering. In my school district, every high schooler is required to earn 75 student service learning hours prior to graduating from high school. To date, I have earned 220 hours of community service. I have earned these hours by volunteering at summer school, delivering mulch to my neighbors, and managing my high school varsity basketball team. This last example was extremely difficult for me because with basketball as my first true love, I would have preferred to be on the court playing with my teammates, but rather than sulking in isolation or moving on to something else, I put service above self and ensured that my teammates had the material, emotional, and moral support they needed from me on the sidelines. With the help of this scholarship, I will prepare to leave the nest to deepen my studies and I take with me the values of kindness and service that have been modeled for me and that define me as a human who will use my character to make the world a happier and healthier place.

For as long as I can remember, I have been fascinated with and by STEM. My earliest memory of my relationship with STEM was my obsession with transportation, specifically aircraft. I took my first flight as a two month old to my family’s home, The Virgin Islands. As soon as I could talk, I could name aircraft models and as soon as I had access to the internet, I would share details about those specific models to anyone who would listen. I owned every aircraft model that existed and when I wasn’t with my family at the Air and Space Museum, I was playing aircraft games. As I aged into an elementary age child, I balanced my interest in aircraft with an interest in computers and coding. Each summer my parents enrolled me in coding camp. There, my fascination with technology flourished as I was exposed to programs such as Scratch and Panda Programming. I remember the first time my mind was blown with the experiences with robotics. r interests. As a teenager, playing basketball became my first love, but my interest in STEM remained. It was important to me to balance playing local and travel basketball, while enjoying my studies in the computer science pathway at school. I was successful at balancing both until I was forced to take a break from the relationship I had with my first love. One life-altering day while playing basketball with my friends right after a leg day workout, I tore my left ACL and was out of the game for a year. Throughout that year, I learned a few adult lessons earlier in life. I learned that it’s not that time heals. It’s what you do during the time that heals; and I learned that change and challenge are a part of life; and I learned managerial skills as my role changed from point guard to team manager. While some may characterize this experience as a loss, I view it as a gain because these lessons will stay with me as I face change and challenge throughout my college experiences and for the rest of my life. Today, as a senior, I am serving my school community in a computer science internship. This means that I work for my high school community in all technical aspects. For example, I am responsible for creating brochures, spreadsheets, presentations, and google forms for various programs and organizations at my school such as the athletic program and the PTSA. I'm excited to take this learning to the next level as a college student. One hope is to follow in my father’s footsteps to pursue a career in data science. Another is to contribute to the exposure and development of computer science studies to the public schools of the Virgin Islands as well generate interest and inspiration to the students they serve. That's the change I want to make. In the US Virgin Islands where my parents are from and where I visit every year, there is not as much technology as the mainland. My Grandmother didn't even have wifi until the 2020s. That is not the life I want my people to live. By pursuing an education in technology, I will be able to not only inspire other people to pursue tech. But I will actively try to bring technology to the Virgin Islands. With the money that I make in tech I plan to run camps in the Virgin Islands similar to the ones I went to in Maryland because the Caribbean has some catching up to do. I plan to help with that.

For as long as I can remember, I have been fascinated with and by STEM. My earliest memory of my relationship with STEM was my obsession with transportation, specifically aircraft. I took my first flight as a two month old to my family’s home, The Virgin Islands. As soon as I could talk, I could name aircraft models and as soon as I had access to the internet, I would share details about those specific models to anyone who would listen. I owned every aircraft model that existed and when I wasn’t with my family at the Air and Space Museum, I was playing various aircraft games. As I aged into an elementary age child, I balanced my interest in aircraft with an interest in computers and coding. Each summer my parents enrolled me in coding camp at the local elementary school and at the community college. There, my fascination with technology flourished as I was exposed to programs such as Scratch and Panda Programming. Additionally, I remember the first time my mind was blown with the experiences with robotics. These are fond memories I have with the new friends I met who shared similar interests. As a teenager, playing basketball became my first love, but my interest in STEM remained. It was important to me to balance playing local and travel basketball, while enjoying my studies in the computer science pathway at school. I was successful at balancing both until I was forced to take a break from the relationship I had with my first love. One life-altering day while playing basketball with my friends right after a leg day workout, I tore my left ACL and was out of the game for a year. Throughout that year, I learned a few adult lessons earlier in life. I learned that it’s not that time heals. It’s what you do during the time that heals; and I learned that change and challenge are a part of life; and I learned managerial skills as my role changed from point guard to team manager. While some may characterize this experience as a loss, I view it as a gain because these lessons will stay with me as I face change and challenge throughout my college experiences and for the rest of my life. Today, as a senior, I am serving my school community in a computer science internship. This means that I work for my high school community in all technical aspects. For example, I am responsible for creating brochures, spreadsheets, presentations, and google forms for various programs and organizations at my school such as the athletic program and the PTSA. I'm excited to take this learning to the next level as a college student. One hope is to follow in my father’s footsteps to pursue a career in data science. Another is to have an impact on young Black and Brown students by inspiring them to pursue careers in STEM. This is something I especially want to do in the Virgin Islands where technology is not as mainstreamed as it is in the continental United States. My love of STEM will be fulfilled with the help of this scholarship and my purpose will be fulfilled when I contribute to the exposure and development of STEM studies in public schools, including those in the Virgin Islands.

For as long as I can remember, I have been fascinated with and by STEM. My earliest memory of my relationship with STEM was my obsession with transportation, specifically aircraft. I took my first flight as a two month old to my family’s home, The Virgin Islands. As soon as I could talk, I could name aircraft models and as soon as I had access to the internet, I would share details about those specific models to anyone who would listen. I owned every aircraft model that existed and when I wasn’t with my family at the Air and Space Museum, I was playing various aircraft games. As I aged into an elementary age child, I balanced my interest in aircraft with an interest in computers and coding. Each summer my parents enrolled me in coding camp at the local elementary school and at the community college. There, my fascination with technology flourished as I was exposed to programs such as Scratch and Panda Programming. Additionally, I remember the first time my mind was blown with the experiences with robotics. These are fond memories I have with the new friends I met who shared similar interests. As a teenager, playing basketball became my first love, but my interest in STEM remained. It was important to me to balance playing local and travel basketball, while enjoying my studies in the computer science pathway at school. I was successful at balancing both until I was forced to take a break from the relationship I had with my first love. One life-altering day while playing basketball with my friends right after a leg day workout, I tore my left ACL and was out of the game for a year. Throughout that year, I learned a few adult lessons earlier in life. I learned that it’s not that time heals. It’s what you do during the time that heals; and I learned that my parents were right about keeping academic excellence at the forefront; and I learned managerial skills as my role changed from point guard to team manager. While some may characterize this experience as a loss, I view it as a gain because these lessons will stay with me as I face change and challenge throughout my college experiences and for the rest of my life. Today, as a senior, I am serving my school community in a computer science internship. This means that I work for my high school community in all technical aspects. For example, I am responsible for creating brochures, spreadsheets, presentations, and google forms for various programs and organizations at my school such as the athletic program and the PTSA. I'm excited to take this learning to the next level as a college student. One hope is to follow in my father’s footsteps to pursue a career in data science. Another is to have an impact on young Black and Brown students by inspiring them to pursue careers in STEM. This is something I especially want to do in the Virgin Islands where technology is not as mainstreamed as it is in the continental United States. My love of STEM will be fulfilled with the help of this scholarship and my purpose will be fulfilled when I contribute to the exposure and development of STEM studies in public schools, including those in the Virgin Islands.

As a young human, I understand that leaders are lifelong learners who aim to serve others. With parents from a small community in the Caribbean whose families have led lives of service to others, I was raised with a service leader’s soul. This is evident in my student service learning experiences where I have earned more than 200 hours when the requirement is only 75. I have earned required and excess hours by being of service to younger children in summer school and summer camp settings. When I tore my ACLs, I was tempted to lay around and watch the world go by, but I pushed through the pain in my knees and the discomfort of not being able to play and attended every basketball practices each week and every game to assist the coach and team with whatever I could as team manager. Service leadership involves building trust especially in the field of science. This is important because taking risks is part of the role, especially as leaders make ideas a reality. For example, as a camp counselor. I was determined to live my purpose by ensuring that newcomers had a home at Camp Twin Creeks with meaningful experiences and connections that were as deep as mine. I did just that by being a fun mentor and providing a safe place to grow and thrive. I remember taking safe risks by letting my kids stay up later as long as they were quiet. It didn't work out the first couple days, but as time went on they started to stay quiet. This helped my kids trust me as a leader because of the risk I took. At the end of our session I was rewarded with countless “thank yous” from the campers I mentored. Through all the community service hours I maintained excellent grades by keeping a healthy balance of studying and serving. Through it all I learned to study in efficient ways and I learned about service above self even when I faced internal challenges of not being able to play basketball. In the future, I see my leadership will revolve around my career in tech where I will help to better the world. One of my goals is to use AI to decrease misdiagnosis in the healthcare industry and to solve other errors that may take place. I dont want AI to do a human's job but I think it can be useful to prevent and correct mistakes. As someone who has suffered from two ACL tears, I am passionate about healthcare and I want to find ways to be involved in it through technology while making sure that Artificial Intelligence is used responsibly and not used for hacking and other malicious crimes. I want to make sure that it does not replace human intelligence, but strengthens the skills, creativity and talent of humans. As the entire world looks to the future of artificial intelligence, I plan to be a leader who does not look to replace human intellect with it, but to strengthen the creativity and talent of humans to compliment it.

Thrive with an indomitable will… For as long as I can remember, I have been fascinated with and by STEM. My earliest memory of my relationship with STEM was my obsession with transportation, specifically aircraft. I took my first flight as a two month old to my family’s home, The Virgin Islands. As soon as I could talk, I could name aircraft models and as soon as I had access to the internet, I would share details about those specific models to anyone who would listen. I owned every aircraft model that existed and when I wasn’t with my family at the Air and Space Museum, I was playing various aircraft games. As I aged into an elementary age child, I balanced my interest in aircraft with an interest in computers and coding. Each summer my parents enrolled me in coding camp at the local elementary school and at the community college. There, my fascination with technology flourished as I was exposed to programs such as Scratch and Panda Programming. Additionally, I remember the first time my mind was blown with the experiences with robotics. These are fond memories I have with the new friends I met who shared similar interests. As a teenager, playing basketball became my first love, but my interest in STEM remained. It was important to me to balance playing local and travel basketball, while enjoying my studies in the computer science pathway at school. I was successful at balancing both until I was forced to take a break from the relationship I had with my first love. One life-altering day while playing basketball with my friends right after a leg day workout, I tore my left ACL and was out of the game for a year. Throughout that year, I learned a few adult lessons earlier in life. I learned that it’s not that time heals. It’s what you do during the time that heals; and I learned that my parents were right about keeping academic excellence at the forefront; and I learned managerial skills as my role changed from point guard to team manager. While some may characterize this experience as a loss, I view it as a gain because these lessons will stay with me as I face change and challenge throughout my college experiences and for the rest of my life. This will be important as I face challenges and dare to take calculated risks. While I have gained maturity and strength throughout this experience, I still struggle with

For as long as I can remember, I have been fascinated with and by STEM. My earliest memory of my relationship with STEM was my obsession with transportation, specifically aircraft. I took my first flight as a two month old to my family’s home, The Virgin Islands. As soon as I could talk, I could name aircraft models and as soon as I had access to the internet, I would share details about those specific models to anyone who would listen. I owned every aircraft model that existed and when I wasn’t with my family at the Air and Space Museum, I was playing various aircraft games. As I aged into an elementary age child, I balanced my interest in aircraft with an interest in computers and coding. Each summer my parents enrolled me in coding camp at the local elementary school and at the community college. There, my fascination with technology flourished as I was exposed to programs such as Scratch and Panda Programming. Additionally, I remember the first time my mind was blown with the experiences with robotics. These are fond memories I have with the new friends I met who shared similar interests. Today, as a senior, I am serving my school community in a computer science internship. This means that I work for my high school community in all technical aspects. For example, I am responsible for creating brochures, spreadsheets, presentations, and google forms for various programs and organizations at my school such as the athletic program and the PTSA. As I prepare to deepen my STEM studies at college, I'm most excited to engage in studies about Artificial Intelligence and Machine learning at UNC. The world is evolving at a very fast pace and Artificial Intelligence is the main reason. It interests me because although I know how it works, I don't know how it is made or what makes one AI more efficient than another. I also am interested in the future of AI and how it will impact the world during lifetime and beyond.I want to be a part of how AI shapes the world. Specifically, I am excited about upgrading our lives by using Artificial intelligence to analyze data and solve problems faster, by assisting the healthcare industry with diagnoses and cures, and by improving the safety of all humans. I am equally excited to be a part of ensuring that Artificial Intelligence is used respectfully and that it does not replace human intellect, but strengthens the skills, creativity and talent of humans. I am ready to follow in my father’s footsteps to pursue a career in data science and I see it as my duty to have an impact on young Black and Brown students by inspiring them to pursue careers in STEM. This is something I especially want to do in the Virgin Islands where technology is not as mainstreamed as it is in the continental United States.

Artificial intelligence is a new field that I am not only interested in but plan to pursue. It all started my sophomore year when I decided to start taking coding classes. As me and my classmates learned the basics of programming, we had the opportunity to create a program of whatever we wanted. My project was using python to create a funny program of a bug chasing students around, which was a funny moment that happened in my coding class a couple weeks before. The program involved many advanced coding components to make the bug move and chase the kids. Of course it wasn't a full on AI but it was a start. Later that year, a new app called chat gpt came out. I was extremely fascinated by it. I used chat gpt for different types of help. For example, when I had a challenging question from class I used chat gpt. When I was starting to learn Java and needed to fact check something, I used chat gpt. Artificial intelligence is something that I cherish, but it also scares me. I always knew I wanted to do something tech related and I’m still finding my niche on what I want to do exactly. I am looking at jobs such as software engineering, data science, and information technology. I have done research and have found videos about all tech jobs being replaced by AI. Whether this is true or not, concerns me, but I have an idea. I can work to create and manage AI. I love it and am fascinated by it so this would be perfect for me. Now, my goals revolve around AI in different corporate settings to better the world. One of my goals is to use AI to decrease misdiagnosis in the healthcare industry and to solve other errors that may take place. I dont want AI to do a human's job but I think it can be useful to prevent and correct mistakes. As someone who has suffered from two ACL tears, I am passionate about healthcare and I want to find ways to be involved in it through technology. I want to also bring all my knowledge about AI to the Caribbean, especially the US Virgin Islands where my parents were born and raised and where I have spent much of my childhood, visiting my grandparents and other extended family. As a young kid, when I visited St Croix and St Thomas, I would always be upset about how much catching up the USVI had to do with technology. I want to make technology as available in the USVI and the entire Caribbean as it is in the states, so that residents can have the same quality of life as people on the mainland.

For as long as I can remember, I have been fascinated with and by STEM. My earliest memory of my relationship with STEM was my obsession with transportation, specifically aircraft. I took my first flight as a two month old to my family’s home, The Virgin Islands. As soon as I could talk, I could name aircraft models and as soon as I had access to the internet, I would share details about those specific models to anyone who would listen. I owned every aircraft model that existed and when I wasn’t with my family at the Air and Space Museum, I was playing various aircraft games. As I aged into an elementary age child, I balanced my interest in aircraft with an interest in computers and coding. Each summer my parents enrolled me in coding camp at the local elementary school and at the community college. There, my fascination with technology flourished as I was exposed to programs such as Scratch and Panda Programming. Additionally, I remember the first time my mind was blown with the experiences with robotics. These are fond memories I have with the new friends I met who shared similar interests. Today, as a senior, I am serving my school community in a computer science internship. This means that I work for my high school community in all technical aspects. For example, I am responsible for creating brochures, spreadsheets, presentations, and google forms for various programs and organizations at my school such as the athletic program and the PTSA. As I prepare to deepen my STEM studies at college, I'm most excited to engage in studies about Artificial Intelligence and Machine learning at UNC. The world is evolving at a very fast pace and Artificial Intelligence is the main reason. It interests me because although I know how it works, I don't know how it is made or what makes one AI more efficient than another. I also am interested in the future of AI and how it will impact the world during lifetime and beyond.I want to be a part of how AI shapes the world. Specifically, I am excited about upgrading our lives by using Artificial intelligence to analyze data and solve problems faster, by assisting the healthcare industry with diagnoses and cures, and by improving the safety of all humans. I am equally excited to be a part of ensuring that Artificial Intelligence is used respectfully and that it does not replace human intellect, but strengthens the skills, creativity and talent of humans. I am ready to follow in my father’s footsteps to pursue a career in data science and I see it as my duty to have an impact on young Black and Brown students by inspiring them to pursue careers in STEM. This is something I especially want to do in the Virgin Islands where technology is not as mainstreamed as it is in the continental United States.

For as long as I can remember, I have been fascinated with and by STEM. My earliest memory of my relationship with STEM was my obsession with transportation, specifically aircraft. I took my first flight as a two month old to my family’s home, The Virgin Islands. As soon as I could talk, I could name aircraft models and as soon as I had access to the internet, I would share details about those specific models to anyone who would listen. I owned every aircraft model that existed and when I wasn’t with my family at the Air and Space Museum, I was playing various aircraft games. As I aged into an elementary age child, I balanced my interest in aircraft with an interest in computers and coding. Each summer my parents enrolled me in coding camp at the local elementary school and at the community college. There, my fascination with technology flourished as I was exposed to programs such as Scratch and Panda Programming. Additionally, I remember the first time my mind was blown with the experiences with robotics. These are fond memories I have with the new friends I met who shared similar interests. As a teenager, playing basketball became my first love, but my interest in STEM remained. It was important to me to balance playing local and travel basketball, while enjoying my studies in the computer science pathway at school. I was successful at balancing both until I was forced to take a break from the relationship I had with my first love. One life-altering day while playing basketball with my friends right after a leg day workout, I tore my left ACL and was out of the game for a year. Throughout that year, I learned a few adult lessons earlier in life. I learned that it’s not that time heals. It’s what you do during the time that heals; and I learned that change and challenge are a part of life; and I learned managerial skills as my role changed from point guard to team manager. While some may characterize this experience as a loss, I view it as a gain because these lessons will stay with me as I face change and challenge throughout my college experiences and for the rest of my life. Today, as a senior, I am serving my school community in a computer science internship. This means that I work for my high school community in all technical aspects. For example, I am responsible for creating brochures, spreadsheets, presentations, and google forms for various programs and organizations at my school such as the athletic program and the PTSA. I'm excited to take this learning to the next level as a college student. One hope is to follow in my father’s footsteps to pursue a career in data science. Another is to have an impact on young Black and Brown students by inspiring them to pursue careers in STEM. This is something I especially want to do in the Virgin Islands where technology is not as mainstreamed as it is in the continental United States.

I have been a Miami Heat fan since the day I was born. When they won their first championship in 2006 I was still in my mothers womb, but I like to believe I was still celebrating. The first championship I do remember was 2012 when the Heat beat OKC. As a five year old, I only knew one player on the team and that was Lebron James. Lebron James has been one of the most inspirational people to me. He grew up in Akron, Ohio with his mother being there for him and his father absent. When he was a child, basketball was his escape from everything negative that was going on in his life. When Lebron James made it to the NBA he had three kids and raised them with his wife, giving them the life he wanted which inspires me to be successful and raise my kids just like how Lebron James does. Lebron James is also a very good businessman with a net worth of 1.2 billion. He has ownership in very successful companies, such as Beats By Dre. I love how Lebron James is more than just an athlete and one of the nine African American billionaires in the world. I believe that Lebron James is the greatest basketball player of all time. He played against multiple dynasties such as Tim Duncan and the Spurs as well as Stephen Curry and the Warriors. Although Lebron lost some of those series, he didn't always have the best team around him. But, in 2016 Lebron James beat the NBA team with the best record of all time and came back from a three to one deficit in a seven game series. Lebron James is a very inspirational person to me as an athlete and a student and will always be one of the figures I look up to.

My grandmother created a legacy and made her mark on the human race and she inspires me to do the same. Donna Marie Christensen gave her life to the human race. As a native Virgin Islander, she returned home to St. Croix after medical school to open a medical practice. As one of the few physicians on the island, she cared for her patients even when they did not have money or insurance. She cared for them in her practice and she traveled around the island to care for those who were “shut-in.” Throughout her 25-year career as a Family Physician, my grandmother encountered policy challenges and thought of ways to help her patients receive fair healthcare. Helping her patients through policy change meant entering the field of politics. Before I was born, my grandmother made the difficult decision to enter a political race and worked hard to be elected as the first woman Delegate to Congress from the United States Virgin Islands. Unfortunately, she lost her first race. My mother often tells me that I get my determination, and persistence from my grandmother. She shares with me that my grandmother's patients voted against her so that she would not leave them. Others didn’t vote for her because she was a woman and politics “is a man’s job.” After losing her first race, my grandmother worked hard to assure her patients that this move would work in their favor in a long term way. Two years later, she was elected as the first woman to serve as Delegate to Congress from the Virgin Islands and noted as the first woman to represent an offshore territory and the first woman physician to ever serve in Congress, period. While in Congress, my grandmother worked on committees that helped close health disparities for people of color. For example, she was the chair of the Congressional Black Caucus’s Health BrainTrust. Her work in healthcare has earned her national, regional, and local awards and recognitions. In the Virgin Islands, my family sometimes uses the expression, “apple trees don’t bear pears.” This expression is used when children take after their parents. In my case, I take after my grandmother. “Mommy and Daddy, can we buy a new pair of shoes for my friend at school?” These are the words my parents remind me of every so often. I spoke to them as a five year old and they use these words as one example of how kind I have always been. Helping my kindergarten classmate to get shoes that did not expose his toes was just the beginning. As a child of Caribbean parents, I didn’t receive an allowance because my island born parents believe that chores are a part of life and that me and my sister should not be compensated for them. They did want us to learn the value of money, so they compensated us for our hard work in school. We received financial compensation with every report card that reflected hard work. Most kids would use their money to hang out with friends or to buy something they have saved up for, and I did that, but I also gave a portion to charity every single year at Christmas. My grandmother has gifted her legacy and made her mark and she has modeled care and service. With the help of this scholarship, I plan to build my legacy and start my mark by inspiring Black and Brown students to pursue careers in STEM.

For as long as I can remember, I have been fascinated with and by STEM. My earliest memory of my relationship with STEM was my obsession with transportation, specifically aircraft. I took my first flight as a two month old to my family’s home, The Virgin Islands. As soon as I could talk, I could name aircraft models and as soon as I had access to the internet, I would share details about those specific models to anyone who would listen. I owned every aircraft model that existed and when I wasn’t with my family at the Air and Space Museum, I was playing various aircraft games. As I aged into an elementary age child, I balanced my interest in aircraft with an interest in computers and coding. Each summer my parents enrolled me in coding camp at the local elementary school and at the community college. There, my fascination with technology flourished as I was exposed to programs such as Scratch and Panda Programming. Additionally, I remember the first time my mind was blown with the experiences with robotics. These are fond memories I have with the new friends I met who shared similar interests. As a teenager, playing basketball became my first love, but my interest in STEM remained. It was important to me to balance playing local and travel basketball, while enjoying my studies in the computer science pathway at school. Today, as a senior, I am serving my school community in a computer science internship. This means that I work for my high school community in all technical aspects. For example, I am responsible for creating brochures, spreadsheets, presentations, and google forms for various programs and organizations at my school such as the athletic program and the PTSA. I'm excited to take this learning to the next level as a college student. One hope is to follow in my father’s footsteps to pursue a career in data science. Another is to have an impact on young Black and Brown students by inspiring them to pursue careers in STEM. This is something I especially want to do in the Virgin Islands where technology is not as mainstreamed as it is in the continental United States. While my love of STEM will be fulfilled with the help of this scholarship, my purpose will be fulfilled when I contribute to the exposure and development of computer science studies to the public schools of the Virgin Islands as well generate interest and inspiration to the students they serve.