Oprah Winfrey once said, “How you spend your time defines who you are.” I have always tried to be an active member of my community through volunteering and pursuing my education. Because of this, I am a leader and a mentor both on and off my campus, while pursuing my degree in Communicative Sciences and Disorders at Hampton University. I currently volunteer on my campus as a member of the Student Recruitment Team. In addition, I mentor three underclassmen, through my participation in the William Harvey Leadership Institute. I am a very driven, but relatable person. I try to pass this mindset and level of confidence on to my mentees. Also, over the past two years, I have volunteered my time at a local preschool. I enjoy working with children and see it as an important part of my charity work. This is how I pay it forward. I try to lead by example and encourage these young children to love education and be good people. After graduating in May 2026, I plan to enter the health sciences field as a speech therapist. My professional goal is to gain employment in a children’s hospital or school. There, I will be able to help kids in our community, especially minority children, who are dealing with speech impediments and speech delays. Ultimately, through my future work in this area, I intend to be instrumental in developing better policies and addressing healthcare disparities with regard to speech and language services for minority children.

Ralph Waldo Emerson once said, “Speech is power. Speech is to persuade, to convert, to compel.” These words sum up why I’m majoring in Communicative Sciences and Disorders at Hampton University. After graduating in May 2026, I plan to become a speech pathologist. My professional goal is to work at a children’s hospital or school. There, I will help people, especially minority children, who are dealing with speech complications. I also plan to pursue both a masters and a doctorate degree. Ultimately, through my work in this field, I intend to be instrumental in developing better policies and addressing healthcare disparities with regard to speech and language services for minority children. It is a common belief that minority children receive the majority of special education services, like speech therapy. However, I have found this assumption is untrue. According to the University of Pennsylvania study, Cross-Cohort Evidence of Disparities in Service Receipt for Speech or Language Impairments, the odds that Black and Hispanic children receiving services was “46% lower than for otherwise similar White children.” I find this fact unsettling and plan to devote my career to closing this gap. My passion for this growing field has also been influenced by my cousin, Deacon, who was speech-delayed from birth. He did not speak until he was three years old. He is now nine years old and has had regular sessions with a speech teacher since he was in preschool. Observing how Deacon went from having virtually no verbal communication, to becoming a nonstop chatterbox has been my inspiration for following my chosen career path. I have seen first-hand how speech professionals can positively impact children’s lives and help shape their futures. I want to be one of those special people who helps children be the best that they can be.

Ralph Waldo Emerson once said that, “Speech is power. Speech is to persuade, to convert, to compel.” These words are important and can sum up why I plan to enter the health sciences field by majoring in Speech/Language Pathology and Audiology. I am passionate about this STEM area because my ultimate goal is to become a speech pathologist and therapist, then gain employment in either a school system or hospital. There, I will be able to help people in our community, especially minority children, who are dealing with speech impediments and speech delays. So, I also plan to pursue a minor in education. Helping people to communicate will be my future superpower! It is a common belief that minority children receive the majority of special education services, like speech therapy. I have done some research on this topic when I was looking at different STEM careers. I found out that this assumption is not true. According to the University of Pennsylvania Study, Cross-Cohort Evidence of Disparities in Service Receipt for Speech or Language Impairments, “Black and Hispanic children often go without the intervention they need.” The study also emphasized that “children who were ethnic or language minorities were less likely than white and/or English-speaking children to receive speech services.” Paul L. Morgan and Marianne M. Hillemeier, the Speech pathologists who conducted the study, found that, for Black and Hispanic children, the odds of them receiving services was “46% lower than for otherwise similar White children.” Speech Pathologist and author of, Putting the Spotlight on Racial Disparity in Speech Therapy, found this disparity to be concerning because “kindergarten is an ideal age to get help for many speech/language delays, and having untreated disorders can set these children up for lower academic achievement and a lack of confidence.” I also find this unsettling. That is why I plan to devote my professional career to closing this gap. My passion for this STEM field is also amplified by my own family's experience. My cousin, Deacon, was speech-delayed from birth. He did not speak one word until he was three years old. He is now seven years-old and has had regular sessions with his school’s speech teacher since he was a preschool student. Observing how he went from virtually no verbal communication, to becoming a nonstop chatterbox has been my inspiration for becoming a speech pathologist and following my chosen career path. Thus, through my own experience, I have seen first-hand how speech pathologists can positively impact a children’s lives and help shape their futures. Another person who influenced my decision to pursue a career in speech pathology is my first-grade teacher, Ms. Connie Peterson. Though she was not a speech teacher, she was an AWESOME teacher. When I was little, I was a very shy kid, which something that most people who know me would NOT believe. Ms. Peterson helped me build my confidence and showed me that learning was fun. Though I was only six years old, I knew way back then that teachers were special people and that they made a difference in people's lives. I decided as a little first-grader that when I grew up, I wanted to be just like Ms. Peterson. I wanted to help other children learn. With this also fueling my interests and passion for STEM, a career as a speech teacher in an elementary school would not be off the mark for me. I would be fulfilling my childhood goal!