Growing up I always noticed a discrepancy in the amount of African Americans represented in healthcare. I’ve always had the drive to work in healthcare but due to lack of representation, I didn’t know how that would be possible. Although I had the desire to work in healthcare, I always found myself conflicted when deciding which area of healthcare I wanted to pursue. The college application process urged me to become serious about researching different career options that aligned with my values and interests. Throughout my research, I found great compassion in serving underrepresented communities as it relates to maternal and infant morbidity. Within the United States alone, there are undoubtedly several inequities that we face as a nation. These inequities include inadequate health education among patients, which leads to a lack of health literacy and language barriers within the clinical setting. These healthcare disparities force American individuals to remain in bondage because they cannot afford the resources for a healthier lifestyle. While these disparities contribute to the issues we face as a country, the racial inequalities within the healthcare system against African American women along with their infants give me the drive to work with mother-baby pairs in underrepresented communities. Recent data has shown the shocking statistics that within the United States, maternal death rates linked to African American women are two to three times higher than death rates amongst white women. While these rates may come as a surprise for some, the challenges faced by African-American women are not new. I strongly believe that the root of this inequality is not merely racism but also the implicit bias placed on this community and the lack of education for future practitioners when it comes to serving people within these communities. Although in the past it seemed highly unlikely that I as one person could play a role in closing the gap in racial inequality as it relates to maternal health, I now know that my education and my ability to advocate for those will help me close this gap within the healthcare system starting in my community. As an African-American aspiring nurse, I have started taking the necessary measures to minimize this inequity by engaging in conversations with my white colleagues on how to actively listen to patients of color during this vulnerable period of their lives. During the Fall semester of 2022, I was allowed to take a health promotion course. Within this course, I, along with a few other students, led a discussion to educate future healthcare professionals on ways to identify prejudice, inequalities, and racism within women and infants who identify as people of color. This discussion enforced the importance of being able to recognize these inequalities in healthcare with the ultimate goal of minimizing maternal and infant mortality amongst mother-baby pairs of color. I know that opening this door about racial inequalities at the collegiate level will offer white nurses and other healthcare personnel the opportunity to ask questions or raise concerns about how they could be educated on advocating for patients of color when they are helpless. Additionally, this past summer of 2023 I interned with the Prematurity Prevention Initiative (PPI) which helped to foster a deeper understanding of ways to go about decreasing preterm births amongst women of color. This internship also allowed me to educate patients on how to advocate for themselves in hospital settings where they were made to feel inferior to racist healthcare professionals. All in all, I look forward to stepping up in healthcare and making advancements that cater to the needs of underserved communities.

Growing up I always noticed a discrepancy in the amount of African Americans represented in healthcare. I’ve always had the drive to work in healthcare but due to lack of representation, I didn’t know how that would be possible. Although I had the desire to work in healthcare, I always found myself conflicted when deciding which area of healthcare I wanted to pursue. The college application process urged me to become serious about researching different career options that aligned with my values and interests. Throughout my research, I found great compassion in serving underrepresented communities as it relates to maternal and infant morbidity. Within the United States alone, there are undoubtedly several inequities that we face as a nation. These inequities include inadequate health education among patients, which leads to a lack of health literacy and language barriers within the clinical setting. These healthcare disparities force American individuals to remain in bondage because they cannot afford the resources for a healthier lifestyle. While these disparities contribute to the issues we face as a country, the racial inequalities within the healthcare system against African American women along with their infants give me the drive to work with mother-baby pairs in underrepresented communities. Recent data has shown the shocking statistics that within the United States, maternal death rates linked to African American women are two to three times higher than death rates amongst white women. While these rates may come as a surprise for some, the challenges faced by African-American women are not new. I strongly believe that the root of this inequality is not merely racism but also the implicit bias placed on this community and the lack of education for future practitioners when it comes to serving people within these communities. Although in the past it seemed highly unlikely that I as one person could play a role in closing the gap in racial inequality as it relates to maternal health, I now know that my education and my ability to advocate for those will help me close this gap within the healthcare system starting in my community. As an African-American aspiring nurse, I have started taking the necessary measures to minimize this inequity by engaging in conversations with my white colleagues on how to actively listen to patients of color during this vulnerable period of their lives. During the Fall semester of 2022, I was allowed to take a health promotion course. Within this course, I, along with a few other students, led a discussion to educate future healthcare professionals on ways to identify prejudice, inequalities, and racism within women and infants who identify as people of color. This discussion enforced the importance of being able to recognize these inequalities in healthcare with the ultimate goal of minimizing maternal and infant mortality amongst mother-baby pairs of color. I know that opening this door about racial inequalities at the collegiate level will offer white nurses and other healthcare personnel the opportunity to ask questions or raise concerns about how they could be educated on advocating for patients of color when they are helpless. Additionally, this past summer of 2023 I interned with the Prematurity Prevention Initiative (PPI) which helped to foster a deeper understanding of ways to go about decreasing preterm births amongst women of color. This internship also allowed me to educate patients on how to advocate for themselves in hospital settings where they were made to feel inferior to racist healthcare professionals. All in all, I look forward to stepping up in healthcare and making advancements that cater to the needs of underserved communities.

Growing up I always noticed a discrepancy in the amount of African Americans represented in healthcare. I’ve always had the drive to work in healthcare but due to lack of representation, I didn’t know how that would be possible. Although I had the desire to work in healthcare, I always found myself conflicted when deciding which area of healthcare I wanted to pursue. The college application process urged me to become serious about researching different career options that aligned with my values and interests. Throughout my research, I found great compassion in serving underrepresented communities as it relates to maternal and infant morbidity. Within the United States alone, there are undoubtedly several inequities that we face as a nation. These inequities include inadequate health education among patients, which leads to a lack of health literacy and language barriers within the clinical setting. These healthcare disparities force American individuals to remain in bondage because they cannot afford the resources for a healthier lifestyle. While these disparities contribute to the issues we face as a country, the racial inequalities within the healthcare system against African American women along with their infants give me the drive to work with mother-baby pairs in underrepresented communities. Recent data has shown the shocking statistics that within the United States, maternal death rates linked to African American women are two to three times higher than death rates amongst white women. While these rates may come as a surprise for some, the challenges faced by African-American women are not new. I strongly believe that the root of this inequality is not merely racism but also the implicit bias placed on this community and the lack of education for future practitioners when it comes to serving people within these communities. Although in the past it seemed highly unlikely that I as one person could play a role in closing the gap in racial inequality as it relates to maternal health, I now know that my education and my ability to advocate for those will help me close this gap within the healthcare system starting in my community. As an African-American aspiring nurse, I have started taking the necessary measures to minimize this inequity by engaging in conversations with my white colleagues on how to actively listen to patients of color during this vulnerable period of their lives. During the Fall semester of 2022, I was allowed to take a health promotion course. Within this course, I, along with a few other students, led a discussion to educate future healthcare professionals on ways to identify prejudice, inequalities, and racism within women and infants who identify as people of color. This discussion enforced the importance of being able to recognize these inequalities in healthcare with the ultimate goal of minimizing maternal and infant mortality amongst mother-baby pairs of color. I know that opening this door about racial inequalities at the collegiate level will offer white nurses and other healthcare personnel the opportunity to ask questions or raise concerns about how they could be educated on advocating for patients of color when they are helpless. Additionally, this past summer of 2023 I interned with the Prematurity Prevention Initiative (PPI) which helped to foster a deeper understanding of ways to go about decreasing preterm births amongst women of color. This internship also allowed me to educate patients on how to advocate for themselves in hospital settings where they were made to feel inferior to racist healthcare professionals. All in all, I look forward to stepping up in healthcare and making advancements that cater to the needs of underserved communities.

Growing up I always noticed a discrepancy in the amount of African Americans represented in healthcare. I’ve always had the drive to work in healthcare but due to lack of representation, I didn’t know how that would be possible. Although I had the desire to work in healthcare, I always found myself conflicted when deciding which area of healthcare I wanted to pursue. The college application process urged me to become serious about researching different career options that aligned with my values and interests. Throughout my research, I found great compassion in serving underrepresented communities as it relates to maternal and infant morbidity. Within the United States alone, there are undoubtedly several inequities that we face as a nation. These inequities include inadequate health education among patients, which leads to a lack of health literacy and language barriers within the clinical setting. These healthcare disparities force American individuals to remain in bondage because they cannot afford the resources for a healthier lifestyle. While these disparities contribute to the issues we face as a country, the racial inequalities within the healthcare system against African American women along with their infants give me the drive to work with mother-baby pairs in underrepresented communities. Recent data has shown the shocking statistics that within the United States, maternal death rates linked to African American women are two to three times higher than death rates amongst white women. While these rates may come as a surprise for some, the challenges faced by African-American women are not new. I strongly believe that the root of this inequality is not merely racism but also the implicit bias placed on this community and the lack of education for future practitioners when it comes to serving people within these communities. Although in the past it seemed highly unlikely that I as one person could play a role in closing the gap in racial inequality as it relates to maternal health, I now know that my education and my ability to advocate for those will help me close this gap within the healthcare system starting in my community. As an African-American aspiring nurse, I have started taking the necessary measures to minimize this inequity by engaging in conversations with my white colleagues on how to actively listen to patients of color during this vulnerable period of their lives. During the Fall semester of 2022, I was allowed to take a health promotion course. Within this course, I, along with a few other students, led a discussion to educate future healthcare professionals on ways to identify prejudice, inequalities, and racism within women and infants who identify as people of color. This discussion enforced the importance of being able to recognize these inequalities in healthcare with the ultimate goal of minimizing maternal and infant mortality amongst mother-baby pairs of color. I know that opening this door about racial inequalities at the collegiate level will offer white nurses and other healthcare personnel the opportunity to ask questions or raise concerns about how they could be educated on advocating for patients of color when they are helpless. Additionally, this past summer of 2023 I interned with the Prematurity Prevention Initiative (PPI) which helped to foster a deeper understanding of ways to go about decreasing preterm births amongst women of color. This internship also allowed me to educate patients on how to advocate for themselves in hospital settings where they were made to feel inferior to racist healthcare professionals. All in all, I look forward to stepping up in healthcare and making advancements that cater to the needs of underserved communities.

Growing up I always noticed a discrepancy in the amount of African Americans represented in healthcare. I’ve always had the drive to work in healthcare but due to lack of representation, I didn’t know how that would be possible. Although I had the desire to work in healthcare, I always found myself conflicted when deciding which area of healthcare I wanted to pursue. The college application process urged me to become serious about researching different career options that aligned with my values and interests. Throughout my research, I found great compassion in serving underrepresented communities as it relates to maternal and infant morbidity. Within the United States alone, there are undoubtedly several inequities that we face as a nation. These inequities include inadequate health education among patients, which leads to a lack of health literacy and language barriers within the clinical setting. These healthcare disparities force American individuals to remain in bondage because they cannot afford the resources for a healthier lifestyle. While these disparities contribute to the issues we face as a country, the racial inequalities within the healthcare system against African American women along with their infants give me the drive to work with mother-baby pairs in underrepresented communities. Recent data has shown the shocking statistics that within the United States, maternal death rates linked to African American women are two to three times higher than death rates amongst white women. While these rates may come as a surprise for some, the challenges faced by African-American women are not new. I strongly believe that the root of this inequality is not merely racism but also the implicit bias placed on this community and the lack of education for future practitioners when it comes to serving people within these communities. Although in the past it seemed highly unlikely that I as one person could play a role in closing the gap in racial inequality as it relates to maternal health, I now know that my education and my ability to advocate for those will help me close this gap within the healthcare system starting in my community. As an African-American aspiring nurse, I have started taking the necessary measures to minimize this inequity by engaging in conversations with my white colleagues on how to actively listen to patients of color during this vulnerable period of their lives. During the Fall semester of 2022, I was allowed to take a health promotion course. Within this course, I, along with a few other students, led a discussion to educate future healthcare professionals on ways to identify prejudice, inequalities, and racism within women and infants who identify as people of color. This discussion enforced the importance of being able to recognize these inequalities in healthcare with the ultimate goal of minimizing maternal and infant mortality amongst mother-baby pairs of color. I know that opening this door about racial inequalities at the collegiate level will offer white nurses and other healthcare personnel the opportunity to ask questions or raise concerns about how they could be educated on advocating for patients of color when they are helpless. Additionally, this past summer of 2023 I interned with the Prematurity Prevention Initiative (PPI) which helped to foster a deeper understanding of ways to go about decreasing preterm births amongst women of color. This internship also allowed me to educate patients on how to advocate for themselves in hospital settings where they were made to feel inferior to racist healthcare professionals. All in all, I look forward to stepping up in healthcare and making advancements that cater to the needs of underserved communities.

Growing up I always noticed a discrepancy in the amount of African Americans represented in healthcare. I’ve always had the drive to work in healthcare but due to lack of representation, I didn’t know how that would be possible. Although I had the desire to work in healthcare, I always found myself conflicted when deciding which area of healthcare I wanted to pursue. The college application process urged me to become serious about researching different career options that aligned with my values and interests. Throughout my research, I found great compassion in serving underrepresented communities as it relates to maternal and infant morbidity. Within the United States alone, there are undoubtedly several inequities that we face as a nation. These inequities include inadequate health education among patients, which leads to a lack of health literacy and language barriers within the clinical setting. These healthcare disparities force American individuals to remain in bondage because they cannot afford the resources for a healthier lifestyle. While these disparities contribute to the issues we face as a country, the racial inequalities within the healthcare system against African American women along with their infants give me the drive to work with mother-baby pairs in underrepresented communities. Recent data has shown the shocking statistics that within the United States, maternal death rates linked to African American women are two to three times higher than death rates amongst white women. While these rates may come as a surprise for some, the challenges faced by African-American women are not new. Although in the past it seemed highly unlikely that I as one person could play a role in closing the gap in racial inequality as it relates to maternal health, I now know that my education and my ability to advocate for those will help me close this gap within the healthcare system starting in my community. As an African-American aspiring nurse, I have started taking the necessary measures to minimize this inequity by engaging in conversations with my white colleagues on how to actively listen to patients of color during this vulnerable period of their lives. During the Fall semester of 2022, I was allowed to take a health promotion course. Within this course, I, along with a few other students, led a discussion to educate future healthcare professionals on ways to identify prejudice, inequalities, and racism within women and infants who identify as people of color. This discussion enforced the importance of being able to recognize these inequalities in healthcare with the ultimate goal of minimizing maternal and infant mortality amongst mother-baby pairs of color. I know that opening this door about racial inequalities at the collegiate level will offer white nurses and other healthcare personnel the opportunity to ask questions or raise concerns about how they could be educated on advocating for patients of color when they are helpless. Additionally, this past summer of 2023 I interned with the Prematurity Prevention Initiative (PPI) which helped to foster a deeper understanding of ways to go about decreasing preterm births amongst women of color. This internship also allowed me to educate patients on how to advocate for themselves in hospital settings where they were made to feel inferior to racist healthcare professionals. All in all, I look forward to stepping up in healthcare and making advancements that cater to the needs of underserved communities.

Within the United States healthcare system, there are undoubtedly several inequities that we face as a nation. Some of these inequities include inadequate health education among patients, which leads to a lack of health literacy and increases the risk of infection upon leaving healthcare establishments and high healthcare costs. These healthcare disparities force American individuals to remain in bondage due to poor health choices because they cannot afford the resources for a healthier lifestyle. While all these disparities cause many issues within our nation the most disturbing healthcare disparity this country faces is the racial inequalities in maternal health revolving around African American women. Recent data has shown the shocking statistics that within the United States, maternal death rates linked to African American women are two to three times higher than death rates amongst white women. While these rates may come as a surprise for some, the challenges faced by African-American women are not new. I strongly believe that the root of this inequality is not merely racism but also the implicit bias placed on African-American women. An example of this inequality is evident in how some white healthcare professionals treat African-American patients when they are experiencing pain. Some healthcare personnel do not listen to the voices of their African-American patients. Some healthcare professionals take it as far as giving lower doses of pain medication to African American women because of the false doctrine that black women can “handle” pain better than white women. Although in the past it seemed highly unlikely that I as one person could play a role in closing the gap in racial inequality as it relates to maternal health, I now believe that my education and my ability to advocate for those will help me close this gap within the healthcare system starting in my community. As an African-American aspiring nurse, I can contribute to minimizing healthcare disparities by having those “uncomfortable” conversations with my colleagues who do not identify as African-American or people of color (POC). I know that opening this door about racial inequalities at the collegiate level will offer white nurses and other healthcare personnel the opportunity to ask questions or raise concerns about how they could be educated on how to listen to black voices and advocate for minority patients when they are helpless. I can also contribute to closing the gap of women of color dying during childbirth by being present in high-risk pregnancies so patients of color feel more comfortable within their medical circumstances. I have already started taking the necessary measures to ensure that this advancement in healthcare becomes a reality in my community. In the Fall semester of 2022, I took a health promotion course, and within this course, there was a class discussion about racial inequality revolving around maternal health. I was able to express how I felt as an African American young woman who would someday like to give birth but with the high complication rates revolving around the color of my skin, childbirth does seem scary. Toward the end of the conversation, I described the necessary steps nurses and allied healthcare professionals should initiate to see a reduction in maternal morbidity. As my curiosity to learn and improve health care grows, I plan on getting my masters in public health with a concentration in health education and communication. This level of education will empower me in addressing and minimizing healthcare disparities allowing me to climb the ladder of leadership. I’ll be able to educate other healthcare professionals on how to properly care for minority groups and reduce implicit biases.

Within the United States healthcare system, there are undoubtedly several inequities that we face as a nation. Some of these inequities include inadequate health education among patients, which leads to a lack of health literacy and increases the risk of infection upon leaving healthcare establishments and high healthcare costs. These healthcare disparities force American individuals to remain in bondage due to poor healthy choices because they cannot afford the resources for a healthier lifestyle. While all these disparities cause many issues within our nation the most disturbing healthcare disparity this country faces is the racial inequalities in maternal health revolving around African American women. Recent data has shown the shocking statistics that within the United States, maternal death rates linked to African American women are two to three times higher than death rates amongst white women. While these rates may come as a surprise for some, the challenges faced by African-American women are not new. I strongly believe that the root of this inequality is not merely racism but also the implicit bias placed on African-American women. An example of this inequality is evident in how some white healthcare professionals treat African-American patients when they are experiencing pain. Some healthcare personnel do not listen to the voices of their African-American patients. Some healthcare professionals take it as far as giving lower doses of pain medication to African American women because of the false doctrine that black women can “handle” pain better than white women. Although in the past it seemed highly unlikely that I as one person could play a role in closing the gap in racial inequality as it relates to maternal health, I now believe that my education and my ability to advocate for those will help me close this gap within the healthcare system starting in my community. As an African-American aspiring nurse, I can contribute to minimizing healthcare disparities by having those “uncomfortable” conversations with my colleagues who do not identify as African-American or people of color (POC). I know that opening this door about racial inequalities at the collegiate level will offer white nurses and other healthcare personnel the opportunity to ask questions or raise concerns about how they could be educated on how to listen to black voices and advocate for minority patients when they are helpless. I can also contribute to closing the gap of women of color dying during childbirth by being present in high-risk pregnancies so patients of color feel more comfortable within their medical circumstances. I have already started taking the necessary measures to ensure that this advancement in healthcare becomes a reality in my community. In the Fall semester of 2022, I took a health promotion course, and within this course, there was a class discussion about racial inequality revolving around maternal health. In this group discussion, I was able to express how I felt as an African American young woman who would someday like to give birth but with the high complication rates revolving around the color of my skin, childbirth does seem scary. Towards the end of the conversation, I was able to express how moving forward, nurses or allied healthcare professionals who do not identify as black or people of color should always strive to advocate for black voices and other members of the POC community who find themselves in a position where they are helpless or seen as inferior to racist healthcare personnel. In my future profession, I wish to make more positive impacts as such and minimize healthcare disparities for underrepresented communities.

This meme is very funny because sometimes I'll write a whole essay for a scholarship program then before I submit it go read the qualifications then realize I didn't even qualify to apply in the first place. Then I'm left just thinking "how can I be so slow", but I know I'm not the only one who that happens to so I know alot of people can relate to this meme.

My name is Lois Berchie. I am a young 18 year old teenager growing up in the midst of a world breaking pandemic. The year 2020 came with many life changing experiences. The most craziest experience of 2020 I must say was the COVID pandemic. To say that COVID-19 has affected me when it comes to my educational studies or personal life would be an understatement. The coronavirus pandemic has had the biggest effect on my mental health more than I could ever imagine. This whole pandemic we thought we would just be out for two weeks then boom everything would go back to normal! But no, I was wrong. I wasn’t aware that I was going to completely have my life turned around and adapt to so many changes. COVID-19 has personally affected me because with social distancing being enforced for eight months, it forced me so many teens like myself to separate and be so far from society. With this concept being enforced over me I felt so far from my friends and the people who were not my immediate family members. Furthermore, being in lock down for so long gave my mind no choice other than to go into a dark place where all my fears and anxieties perplexed me. In this dark time of my life the question “how long will my life be on pause?” always ran through my mind daily and the more that I would think about it the more worried that I became. On the other hand, the coronavirus pandemic just wasn’t a negative change or stop in my life. It was once said, “with a terrible negative comes a life changing positive. In addition, through this pandemic I learned so many new things about myself and the people I love the most. The coronavirus also affected me in a positive light. This pandemic helped me to grow in my faith and begin to build a stronger and healthier relationship with God. The biggest life changing impact that the COVID pandemic has on me was teaching me how to love and care about the people closest to you. This was the biggest lesson that the pandemic taught me because working at a nursing home and watching people die left and right who I genuinely cared about taught me to value life and the people in your life because you never know when the person you care about will be taken away from you. Most importantly, the pandemic it’s self taught me many lessons about myself that I would've never realized if it wasn't for this occurrence in time. During the pandemic I was reminded to stabilize my mental health and stay calm in the midst of a storm that doesn’t look like it’s going to be over. I also learned that I should value the time I have with my friends because that time can be taken from me without me noticing. All in all, even though in the beginning of this world breaking news I was upset about the outcome of things. I'm happy about the lessons and all the positives that I learned from this pandemic and how close it’s brought me to my family, friends, and most importantly how close it brought me to God.

All over the world, people grow up in different places, around different people, under different circumstances and, all of these cause different effects on their lives. People are who they are today because of the experiences that they have faced. No, I am not a single mother but, growing up and being raised by a single mother has taught me so many life lessons regarding perseverance, hope, and strength. Being raised by a single mother has also had many different effects on me growing up and is my biggest inspiration in life, from my childhood to now late teenage years early adulthood. Both I and my siblings have faced the odds of being the stereotypical kids with a single parent who came out to be great kids with amazing grades and kids who didn’t fall apart because of our family dynamic. Growing up with a single mother, I was taught that a family could still run without the father figure being there and that women are way stronger than what society paints women to be. My relationship with my mother has been stronger than I could ever imagine. I look up to her in every single way shape and form. Her devotion to work has taught me to always work hard no matter the circumstances that might stand in my way. My mother’s dedication to the family has taught me to be determined in my work and always complete tasks accordingly. Although, being raised by a single mother has its positives; when it comes to my future and thinking about what I want to do with my life career-wise. I do fear because at times I can see that being a single mother is hard trying to get money to take care of your kids and being happy at the same time is hard. I would hate to not be able to give my kids the happy and joyous life they deserve because of the shortage of money because being a single mother sometimes it’s hard to get money. Importantly, I'm mainly driven by family and passion for education. My family drives me because without them always counting on me to do good things I don’t know where I would be right now and my passion for education has brought me this far in life to do great things. I know some people say education or college is a waste of time or it’s just spending money on a career that isn’t even guaranteed to you. I one-thousand percent disagree with that statement. Education is a gateway to many life-changing experiences. Education drives me because it plays a vital role in shaping successful people, great businesses, and amazing fellowship. College might be expensive but through continuing your education on such high expertise gives you the chance to overcome challenges and obstacles. Education drives me because it helps strengthen our awareness and aids in creating an astonishing vision for our future lives and those who will be included in our lives.

To commence, this question has honestly lived in my mind rent-free. “If money was an issue what would I do with my time?” Hmm... I would travel to every continent. I would do this because all my life I’ve always loved traveling, like taking small road trips just to learn about different places and different surroundings. But with a posed question like this, I would travel to every country in the world to learn about different cultures and how the people from those cultures interact with each other. I think that this would be an educating time for me and all-around a really fun experience. Some places that I would first stop at is Greece because of the Ancient Greek Gods I would love to learn more about their literature and if they still believed in Gods and Goddesses like Zeus, Hades, Athena, and Aphrodite. I think I would also love to visit Greece because of its beautiful architectural buildings and amazing artwork. Importantly, without money being an issue I would be able to bring souvenirs from each country to other countries and back home with myself to teach other people what I’ve learned about each culture and hopefully add it to my own culture all of it would be an overall learning experience. If money also wasn’t an issue I would also love to build homes for everyone so that there wouldn’t be homeless people living in the street. I think that this is a really important factor because if money isn’t an issue everyone should be granted a roof to live under. With all the extra time I would have on my hands I would take a step further to help others get back onto the right track of life and I believe building homes or apartments is the first step to helping my community and other communities around me in that regard.

To commence, before quarantine I can honestly say that I was a lukewarm Christian, someone living for the world, myself, but sadly not for Jesus or what I believed the holy spirit was pushing me to do. I thought growing up in the church and going to church every Sunday would do it all for me and that I would've done whatever I wanted turns out I was wrong. Jesus sent numerous people into my life to get me to run back to him and carry my cross everywhere I went. It wasn’t till God placed this specific field into my life who talked to me more about what it meant to be a true Christian and live my life passionately for the lord and what the bible represents as a good Christian shown in the whole James chapter of the bible. To continue, I can say that I was living in a life filled with sin till I one day decided to open my bible and get to know God and his Son Jesus and what Jesus did on the cross for my sins even when I felt I wasn’t worth loving. Moreover, I believe that Jesus has changed life in numerous ways but if I was to pick the most evident way I’ve shown to put all my trust into Jesus it would be throughout this college process. There have been times where I just wanted to give up because things got so hard and being overwhelmed to handle everything all at once. But then I always remember that I serve a God of peace, love, hope, and joy who can get through any storm as long as I call upon his name. I’m also trusting God into helping me choose the right school for me no matter the cost because I know God always finds mysterious ways to make things work out for the good in those and who trust and love him. Jeremiah 39:18 says, “ I will save you; you will not fall by the sword but will escape with your life, because you trust in me, declares the Lord.” This bible verse in itself speaks so much volume over my life and especially right now in the college process because there have been times where I looked at my top school’s financial aid letter and just thought how am I going to be able to pay for college at this standing tuition but then I always remember that God took the Israelites out of Egypt and he will do many miracles for me in my life too as long as I always trust and lean on to him at all time. All in all, I've seen the good things that Jesus can do for those who trust him and in this case, I am one of those many people that will continue to trust and rely on God for everything in this world. Last but not least, I am so grateful to have the opportunity to share my life journey which Jesus has been the author and illustrator of.

Margaret J. Wheatley once said, "there is no power for change greater than a community discovering what it cares about." This quote is significant because the community is the greatest power that helps the world function and helps others touch the lives of many. Being fully committed and involved in your local community strikes importance in many different ways. For instance, I think being actively involved in your community can be important when it comes to showing others you care, trying to make the world a better place for all, and last but surely not least just extending a helping hand even when it’s not needed. In my community, I have actively helped my community in a variety of ways. Starting with my freshman year of high school, a few friends and I came together to form a dance team in my local neighborhood for children whose parents couldn’t afford to enroll their children into real dance team schools. I believe that this helped my community in so many ways. This act of kindness was not only done by myself but with a group of people that we're thinking of the well being of others before themselves. Coming up with this dance team was very hard because my friends and I didn’t think we would be taken seriously. But coming from a single-parent household where I couldn’t afford to pay for dance classes I knew exactly how it felt to not be able to come up with a certain amount to be able to pay for dance classes. Moreover, we didn’t stop there with this extended hand to our community through dance we not only danced but on every third Wednesday of the month we had a regroup session where I as the leader would lead the dancers in a time of regression where we would teach the dancers how to feel comfortable in their skin and how to handle the burden of not being able to afford a real dance class. By doing this, it taught the dancers to embrace what they already have and to work towards a bigger goal no matter how hard it looked. Besides, there’s so much more I can’t wait to do in my near future especially regarding my career. I plan to help my community with my career as being a nurse practitioner by coming back to my town and giving care packages to the homeless and educating the homeless on the importance of hygiene and how to get back on their feet and off the streets. Becoming a nurse being my biggest dream I then again helped my community by volunteering at the American Red Cross Blood Donation at my school to get some hands-on patient to caregiver experience. All in all, I’m overly grateful that this scholarship allows me to talk about my dreams, goals, aspirations, and the joys of always extending a helping hand.

To get to know a person you must really dig deep from the surface. My name is Lois Berchie. I am from a small town in New Jersey called Hammonton. There is so much that I could say about myself in such little space but if there was one thing I could say about myself that highlights who I am is that I am a very hard worker and love learning new things. I desire and aspire to take my life onto the next level by impacting people that I come into contact with every single day. Ben Franklin once said “you can do anything if you set your mind to it.” To commence, there are many things that I wish and hope to achieve in my lifetime. Things like becoming a nurse practitioner, selling the most homes in the entire country and much more. As a child I always dreamed of helping people and caring for others feelings before my own. Which is how I came to choose my major of nursing. I chose nursing as my major because all my life I wanted to pursue a career in the health field. I didn’t only choose a nursing major because I want to become a nurse, but because I wanted to always be on my toes and wanting to learn more each and every day. I believe that nursing connects you to so many people causing you to learn many different things that you didn’t even know about yourself. There have been many people who have walked in and out of my life that influenced me on wanting to major in nursing . My first biggest influence was my mom of course, she’s a nursing aide and even though that isn’t a certified nurse I see how much she loves her job and how much she appreciates the work that she does. When I saw how happy that made my mom I knew it would make me happy myself. In addition, I envision myself as a neonatal nurse practitioner in a big hospital taking care and healing many sick children. Furthermore, there are many things that I am doing to achieve my goal in wanting to become a nurse practitioner. At my school I am in a club called future nurses club which I happen to be the secretary for the club it’s self has helped me network with different types of doctors and nurses that I have met and have gotten to talk to first hand. The club taught me responsibility inside and outside of the medical field. All in all, each and everyday I am granted another day of life I aspire to be better than I was the day prior to that with all the things I do and plan to do. No I am not perfect but I strive to be for the better of my future and beyond that.

Peter Strople once said legacy is not leaving something for people. It’s leaving something in people.” This quote is so significant to the meaning of legacy because, legacy means more than just an inheritance of money, or riches wealth nor fame. Legacy to me is what I’ll be remembered for when my time here on earth is over. Legacy means the impact that I’ll have on my community and those who have helped shape the person I’ve become. Legacy isn’t only about leaving what you earned but also what you learned and what others can learn from you emotionally. Furthermore, when I think about leaving a legacy behind not only to my future kids and future grand-kids I think it means to leave a great impression on the people that you love the most and the people that mean the most to you in this world. It is hoped that as a person goes through life, they make decisions that not only affect their lives but also the lives of those who are close to them. In most cases, legacy sets a foundation that will affect subsequent generations. Of course in everything including a legacy that’s left behind, there will always be legacies that one values more. A legacy can hence have both positive and negative impacts depending on how they affected acquaintances. When it comes to the legacy that I value the most, it would have to be my attitude and gratification to help others in everything that I do. I believe that this is the most valuable over money and fame because someone can forget how much money you gave them but a human's love and emotion are unforgettable. Moreover, when it comes to leaving my legacy starting with high school; I would like to be remembered as the girl who always did her best even if times got hard. The girl who was always willing to give a hand to those in need and never look back for someone to pay them back. Most importantly, I would like to be remembered as the girl who changed the world for not only herself but for everyone she came into contact with. Last but surely not least, I would like to leave the legacy of being trustworthy and easily accessible for everyone to talk to. To me, that is one of the most significant legacies anyone could ever leave behind because trustworthy people are so hard to find especially in high school. All in all, I want my legacy story to touch the hearts of all and I hope in doing that my legacy can inspire someone to also do great things on this earth.

All over the world, people grow up in different places, around different people, under different circumstances and, all of these cause different effects on their lives. People are who they are today because of the experiences that they have faced. No, I am not a single mother but, growing up and being raised by a single mother has taught me so many life lessons regarding perseverance, hope, and strength. Being raised by a single mother has also had many different effects on me growing up from my childhood to now late teenage years early adulthood. Both me and my siblings have faced the odds of being the stereotypical kids with a single parent who came out to be great kids with amazing grades and kids who didn’t fall apart because of our family dynamic. Growing up with a single mother, I was taught that a family could still run without the father figure being there and that women are way stronger than what society paints women to be. Additionally, my relationship with my mother has been stronger than I could ever imagine. I look up to her in every single way shape and form. Her devotion to work has taught me to always work hard no matter the circumstances that might stand in my way. My mother’s dedication to family has taught me to be determined in my work and always complete tasks accordingly. Moreover, being close to my single mother has affected me in a more positive light than it has negatively. This is because watching my mother care for her children without any help has shown me the better parts of motherhood and how a mother cares for their child so diligently. Although, being raised by a single mother has its positives when being raised by a single mother but when it comes to my future and thinking about what I want to do with my life career wise. I do fear, because at times I can see that being a single mother is hard trying to get money to take care of your kids and being happy at the same time is hard.I would hate to not be able to give my kids the happy and joyous life they deserve because of shortage on money because being a single mother sometimes it’s hard to get money. Furthermore, there are so many dreams that I want to accomplish in my lifetime. My biggest dream of all time is to make enough money to ensure and establish a beautiful and exquisite life and be able to assist everyone that helped me get there in every way I possibly can. My life long dream career has always been to become a board certified board physician’s assistant. This has been my dream career because as a child, I always dreamed of offering my help to people from a medical standpoint so that title would be amazing to have. Even though becoming a Physician assistant is a very competitive field to be in I believe I surpass and over qualify in every caliber. Along with that, I would like to be presented in the medical hall of fame. I look forward to achieving that honor because it would make me really happy to know I am among a lot of people with the same dreams and aspirations of helping people all over the world. I know achieving my dreams and appreciating myself for what I have to offer makes me a much happier, self resilient, and powerful woman. With this being my dream career I volunteered at the American Red Cross Blood Donation at my school to get some hands on patient to caregiver experience. With this also being my dream career I was elected Secretary at my schools’ future health careers club where I educated others on what it meant to go into the medical field and how important we are for our communities and communities around us. Winning this scholarship will help me achieve my dreams because this award will give me the opportunity to chase my dreams and aspirations to the highest caliber. This scholarship will also help me towards my education and will make a difference in my life because this amount of money will help reduce the financial burden of the high end cost of college. I also believe that this scholarship will help make a difference in my personal life because with this award I will be able to continue and further my education to the next level. I am so grateful for this opportunity and the ability to be able to tell my story from such a heartfelt standpoint. I am grateful for my single mother and everything she has taught me from hard work and dedication to now someone who can put those lessons to an act.

All over the world, people grow up in different places, around different people, under different circumstances and, all of these cause different effects on their lives. People are who they are today because of the experiences that they have faced. No, I am not a mother but, growing up and being raised by a single mother has taught me so many life lessons regarding perseverance, hope, and strength. Being raised by a single mother has also had many different effects on me growing up from my childhood to now late teenage years early adulthood. Both me and my siblings have faced the odds of being the stereotypical kids with a single parent who came out to be great kids with amazing grades and kids who didn’t fall apart because of our family dynamic. Growing up with a single mother, I was taught that a family could still run without the father figure being there and that women are way stronger than what society paints women to be. Additionally, my relationship with my mother has been stronger than I could ever imagine. I look up to her in every single way shape and form. Her devotion to work has taught me to always work hard no matter the circumstances that might stand in my way. My mother’s dedication to family has taught me to be determined in my work and always complete tasks accordingly. Moreover, being close to my single mother has affected me in a more positive light than it has negatively. This is because watching my mother care for her children without any help has shown me the better parts of motherhood and how a mother cares for their child so diligently. Although, being raised by a single mother has its positives when being raised by a single mother but when it comes to my future and thinking about what I want to do with my life career wise. I do fear, because at times I can see that being a single mother is hard trying to get money to take care of your kids and being happy at the same time is hard.I would hate to not be able to give my kids the happy and joyous life they deserve because of shortage on money because being a single mother sometimes it’s hard to get money. Furthermore, there are so many dreams that I want to accomplish in my lifetime. My biggest dream of all time is to make enough money to ensure and establish a beautiful and exquisite life and be able to assist everyone that helped me get there in every way I possibly can. My life long dream career has always been to become a board certified board physician’s assistant. This has been my dream career because as a child, I always dreamed of offering my help to people from a medical standpoint so that title would be amazing to have. Even though becoming a Physician assistant is a very competitive field to be in I believe I surpass and over qualify in every caliber. Along with that, I would like to be presented in the medical hall of fame. I look forward to achieving that honor because it would make me really happy to know I am among a lot of people with the same dreams and aspirations of helping people all over the world. I know achieving my dreams and appreciating myself for what I have to offer makes me a much happier, self resilient, and powerful woman. With this being my dream career I volunteered at the American Red Cross Blood Donation at my school to get some hands on patient to caregiver experience. With this also being my dream career I was elected Secretary at my schools’ future health careers club where I educated others on what it meant to go into the medical field and how important we are for our communities and communities around us. Winning this scholarship will help me achieve my dreams because this award will give me the opportunity to chase my dreams and aspirations to the highest caliber. I am so grateful for this opportunity and the ability to be able to tell my story from such a heartfelt standpoint. I am grateful for my mother and everything she has taught me from hard work and dedication to now someone who can put those lessons to an act.

The most significant activity that I feel has impacted and shaped the person that I am today is “Future Nurses Club”. I love this club for a variety of reasons. Number one the club itself connected me with different types of people. Secondly, it was a very informative club and thirdly, I always felt a sense of gratitude like I was participating in something that I really love. In addition, the club” at my high school was very significant to me because the club helped me connect with a variety of people. When I say connect with people I’m not just talking about anybody, the club really helped me connect with local doctors, nurses and even nursing students who were pursuing to go into the medical field. This really struck my interest because I think it is very vital to join a club where you can get professional insight, whenever you need it and “Future Nurses Club” provided that to me always without a doubt. Moreover, I can also say that this club was important to me because of the type of information that it had to offer. The information given to me through this club wasn’t information that I could just get off google or from any random person. The club offered insights like different specialties of nursing, different degrees when it comes to nursing, college requirements through the nursing and medical field, accurate salaries, and wages because who doesn’t love money ? Furthermore, what’s a club if you don’t love and enjoy it? The involvement of the club really showed me why I took a deep interest in nursing in the first palace. Not only did I always have vital keys and tips to nursing throughout this club but the club provided a sense of community where I felt loved and accepted for who I am and who I am striving to be. To continue, as the secretary of the club I can say being one of the leaders in the club it’s self was an important position to be placed in. I learned responsibility, hard work, and the courtesy to listen to others. In brief, I am forever grateful and thankful for everything that this club has taught me, offered me, and most importantly the love and kindness they have shown me. Winning this scholarship will help me achieve my dreams because this award will give me the opportunity to chase my dreams and aspirations to the highest caliber. This scholarship will also help me towards my education and will make a difference in my life because this amount of money will help reduce the financial burden of the high end cost of college. I also believe that this scholarship will help make a difference in my personal life because with this award I will be able to continue and further my education to the next level. Upon, graduation I just hope to make this world a better place from any stand point life takes me.

When it comes to my career goals there are so many things I wish to achieve. I hope to touch and change many lives in the healthcare field. My life long dream career has always been to become a board certified neonatal nurse practitioner This has been my dream career because as a child I always dreamed of the day that I would go to college. I always thought about how exciting and amazing it would be to meet new people from all over the world. I always talked about my dream and passion for helping people and building great networks with people which lead to my dream of becoming a neonatal nurse practitioner. The person who really inspired me to get a degree in nursing was my family but most importantly my mother of course, she’s a nursing aide and even though that isn’t a certified nurse I see how much she loves her job and how much she appreciates the work that she does. I see how hard my mother works and how she’s always determined to make her patients feel comfortable. When I saw how happy this job made my mother, the nursing degree really seemed very appealing to me. Even though becoming a nurse practitioner is a very competitive field to be in I believe I surpass and over qualify in every single way possible. Along with that, I would like to be presented in the medical hall of fame. I look forward to achieving that honor because it would make me really happy to know I am among a lot of people with the same dreams and aspirations of helping people all over the world. I don’t only dream to heal people medically but emotionally as well. I want to make the world a much happier and safer place for everyone inside and outside the medical field. In addition, planning to make sure I achieve all my dreams and aspirations is very essential to me. I volunteered at the American Red Cross Blood Donation at my school to get some hands on patient to caregiver experience. At this particular event I was a bedside nurse, my main job was to keep the patient calm and relaxed while they got their blood drawn. My sophomore year of high school I didn’t stop chasing my dreams; I was elected secretary at my schools’ future health careers club where I educated others on what it meant to go into the medical field and how important we are for our communities and communities around us. Furthermore, when college application started to roll around and it was time to pick a major I never hesitated once because I knew what I wanted to do and all the things that I wanted to achieve as an upcoming college student. I chose nursing as my major because all my life I wanted to pursue a career in the health field so I could offer help everyday. I didn’t only choose a nursing major because I wanted to become a nurse, I wanted to always stay educated on the medical profession. I believe that nursing connects you to so many people causing you to learn many different things that you didn’t even know about yourself. Obtaining a degree in nursing will help me achieve my career goals because, for one I will have the ability to be a positive light in the lives of many when they feel broken and lost. Obtaining this degree will also help me to bring light and appreciation to all health care workers. Last but not least, my nursing degree will help me to make a difference in the world along with many others in the healthcare profession. Winning this scholarship will assist me with reaching for my dreams because this award will give me the opportunity to showcase my dreams and aspirations to the highest caliber. I know that this scholarship will help make a difference in my personal life because with this award I will be able to continue and further my education to the next level. I am so thankful for this opportunity and the ability to be able to tell my story from such a heartfelt standpoint. I am grateful for my family and everything they have taught me from hard work and dedication to now someone who can act upon all those lessons.

Goals begin when you have a dream, Ben Franklin once said “you can do anything if you set your mind to it.” I truly do agree with this quote when it comes to both my academic and career goals. To commence, there are many goals both educationally and career wise that I wish and know I can achieve in my lifetime. For example, my biggest academic goal for this school year at Hammonton High school is to graduate at least in the top 10 percent of my class. This has been a big goal of mine since I stepped into that building my freshman year of high school, because I truly believe that I qualify for this position in every single diameter because of my hard work, determination, and perseverance when it comes to my education. On the other hand, when it comes to my career goals there are so many things I wish to achieve. I hope to touch and change many lives in the healthcare field. My life long dream career has always been to become a board certified neonatal nurse practitioner This has been my dream career because as a child, I always dreamed of offering my help to people from a medical standpoint so that title would be amazing to have. Even though becoming a nurse practitioner is a very competitive field to be in I believe I surpass and over qualify in every single way possible . Along with that, I would like to be presented in the medical hall of fame. I look forward to achieving that honor because it would make me really happy to know I am among a lot of people with the same dreams and aspirations of helping people all over the world. I don’t only dream to heal people medically but emotionally as well. I want to make the world a much happier and safer place for everyone inside and outside the medical field. In addition, planning to make sure I achieve all my dreams and aspirations is very essential to me. I volunteered at the American Red Cross Blood Donation at my school to get some hands on patient to caregiver experience. At this particular event I was a bedside nurse, my main job was to keep the patient calm and relaxed while they got their blood drawn. My sophomore year of high school I didn’t stop chasing my dreams; I was elected secretary at my schools’ future health careers club where I educated others on what it meant to go into the medical field and how important we are for our communities and communities around us. Furthermore, when college application started to roll around and it was time to pick a major I never hesitated once because I knew what I wanted to do and all the things that I wanted to achieve as an upcoming college student. I chose nursing as my major because all my life I wanted to pursue a career in the health field so I could offer help everyday. I didn’t only choose a nursing major because I wanted to become a nurse, I wanted to always stay educated on the medical profession. I believe that nursing connects you to so many people causing you to learn many different things that you didn’t even know about yourself. Obtaining a degree in nursing will help me achieve my career goals because, for one I will have the ability to be a positive light in the lives of many when they feel broken and lost. Obtaining this degree will also help me to bring light and appreciation to all health care workers. Last but not least, my nursing degree will help me to make a difference in the world along with many others in the healthcare profession. Winning this scholarship will assist me with reaching for my dreams because this award will give me the opportunity to showcase my dreams and aspirations to the highest caliber. This scholarship will also help me towards my education and will make a difference in my life because this amount of money will help reduce the financial burden of the high end cost of college. This scholarship award will help me because with my mother being the primary source of annual earnings we simply as a family cannot afford to pay for college alone. I would have to take out an abundance of student loans due to nursing schools being so expensive. I know that this scholarship will help make a difference in my personal life because with this award I will be able to continue and further my education to the next level. I am so grateful for this opportunity and the ability to be able to tell my story from such a heartfelt standpoint. I am grateful for my family and everything they have taught me from hard work and dedication to now someone who can act upon all those lessons.

To commence, as a child I always loved education and learning new things to enhance my educational abilities. Through my middle school years I knew I wanted to study something in the medical field but it wasn’t till my freshman year of high school that I was secured on dividing I wanted to study and know more about the nursing profession. I would love to study nursing in college because all my life I wanted to pursue a career in the health field. I didn’t only choose to study a nursing major because I wanted to become a nurse, but because I wanted to always be able to teach nursing and continue to learn more each day. I believe that studying nursing will help connect me to so many inspiring people who work very hard . I also believe that studying nursing will help me change the lives of many and make the world a better place.

Honestly, there have been many moments in my life where I’ve changed my perspective on life. This moment was earlier in the beginning of the school year and it was when I wasn’t expected to my dream program of choice. Rejection, it hurts whether it comes from your family member , your crush or even your dream college you always wanted to get accepted to. No matter the type of rejection I have experienced during my lifetime there is always a positive that comes from it. I might not see it right away but I do believe that it is there. Often as individuals when we are rejected the thoughts of where did I go wrong ? Seems to be the first question we ask ourselves. Although, rejection can cause us to self criticize, it is also an open door for life lessons, redirection, and empowerment. Over the past couple years, I’ve trained my mind, body, and soul to handle rejection differently. Charlotte Erikson once said, “Rejections will redirect you to more exciting roads. When you think your life is falling apart, it's usually falling together in disguise. Your search will throw you on journeys you never would have dreamed of, in your mind and in the world.”For instance, I’ve always had the dream of becoming a nurse practitioner ever since I was six years old. I knew I wanted to work in a hospital and save lives daily. As the college application process began to get closer I already knew I was going to major in nursing. I never had a back up plan in case I wasn’t granted that major because I was so confident and determined. Because colleges require a second choice of major I didn’t even care what major I selected as my second choice so at random I picked the health science major as my second choice. After eight long weeks of anticipation and consciousness waiting for my college decision letter to arrive I finally got my acceptance letter to Cabrini University. I was filled with so much excitement and joy to open it and find out that I have been accepted to their nursing program. When I opened the letter I was met with disappointment, I didn’t get accepted into their nursing program but I was offered a placement in their Health Science program. After I got this news I was very devastated because this had been my dream for so many years and the fact that I wouldn’t be able to fulfill this dream broke my heart into a million pieces. For the next couple days after finding out I was rejected from my dream school’s nursing program I began to really look into the health science major a little more and start researching careers. As I got further into my research, I began to see careers that fit my personality perfectly that I would have never been interested in if it wasn’t for the rejection I endured. At this point of my life I began to take rejection by it’s two horns and turn it into redirection for my future self. Through this rejection phase I was facing it redirected me to finding the perfect career that suited me and my personality the best. Even though getting rejected to my dreams schools’s nursing program hurt me a lot and caused me to reflect on life as a whole. I am happy rejection redirected me to unlock the dream of becoming a physicians assistant. Learning this new way of life and seeing rejection is redirection I believe will help me in my career of choice because if I’m not hired right away I can use this rejection as time to see what I could possibly do better to become a more qualified worker for that particular company I want to work for. All in all,Throughout this whole process my dream of helping people and saving lives daily still remained the same. It just took a little bit of soul searching through redirection to find exactly how I would be fulfilling this dream of mine. Thank you for giving me this opportunity to tell my story and all the ways the perspective on life has changed.

To commence, Susan Mckinney- Steward is one of the many women in STEM which I admire so much. There are so many reasons why I admire and look up to Dr. Mckinney-Steward. When it comes to having a career and love for the STEM profession I believe that DR. Susan Mckinney- Steward meets all the outstanding requirements to have been given that title. To begin, she gained her medical degree and her certified license when racism against African Americans was still going on in the United States and in a time where discrimination against women was ideal. In addition, Susan Mckinney- Steward was the third black woman to earn a medical degree in the United States Of America and the first to earn a medical degree in the state of New York. I admire her because not only did she offer help from a medical standpoint, she paid her way through medical school by offering singing lessons to those who had a passion for singing. I look at that act of kindness as one of the main reasons why I admire her so much because she didn’t only care about herself but she helped her community in many thoughtful and kind ways. Carlos Santana once said “There is no greater reward than working from your heart, and making a difference in the world.” This quote here means a lot to me because if there is one thing that I wish to achieve with STEM, that would be to make a difference in the life of my coworkers and in the life of my patients when I become a physician's assistant. I hope to achieve this because if you can make a difference in someone's life that is something they will carry in their hearts and souls forever. All in all, I am so grateful and forever thankful for this opportunity to share my hopes and aspirations and what I wish to do pursuing a STEM degree, to touch the lives of many. Thank you so much for reading my story and giving me this fair chance at my dream.

All over the world, people grow up in different places, around different people, under different circumstances and, all of these cause different effects on their lives. People are who they are today because of the experiences that they have faced. No, I am not a single mother but, growing up and being raised by a single mother has taught me so many life lessons regarding perseverance, hope, and strength. Being raised by a single mother has also had many different effects on me growing up from my childhood to now late teenage years early adulthood. Both me and my siblings have faced the odds of being the stereotypical kids with a single parent who came out to be great kids with amazing grades and kids who didn’t fall apart because of our family dynamic. Growing up with a single mother, I was taught that a family could still run without the father figure being there and that women are way stronger than what society paints women to be. Additionally, my relationship with my mother has been stronger than I could ever imagine. I look up to her in every single way shape and form. Her devotion to work has taught me to always work hard no matter the circumstances that might stand in my way. My mother’s dedication to family has taught me to be determined in my work and always complete tasks accordingly. Moreover, being close to my single mother has affected me in a more positive light than it has negatively. This is because watching my mother care for her children without any help has shown me the better parts of motherhood and how a mother cares for their child so diligently. Although, being raised by a single mother has its positives when being raised by a single mother but when it comes to my future and thinking about what I want to do with my life career wise. I do fear, because at times I can see that being a single mother is hard trying to get money to take care of your kids and being happy at the same time is hard.I would hate to not be able to give my kids the happy and joyous life they deserve because of shortage on money because being a single mother sometimes it’s hard to get money. Furthermore, there are so many dreams that I want to accomplish in my lifetime. My biggest dream of all time is to make enough money to ensure and establish a beautiful and exquisite life and be able to assist everyone that helped me get there in every way I possibly can. My life long dream career has always been to become a board certified board physician’s assistant. This has been my dream career because as a child, I always dreamed of offering my help to people from a medical standpoint so that title would be amazing to have. Even though becoming a Physician assistant is a very competitive field to be in I believe I surpass and over qualify in every caliber. Along with that, I would like to be presented in the medical hall of fame. I look forward to achieving that honor because it would make me really happy to know I am among people with the same dreams and aspirations of helping people all over the world. I know achieving my dreams and appreciating myself for what I have to offer makes me a much happier, self resilient, and powerful woman. With this being my dream career I volunteered at the American Red Cross Blood Donation at my school to get some hands on patient to caregiver experience. With this also being my dream career I was elected Secretary at my schools’ future health careers club where I educated others on what it meant to go into the medical field and how important we are for our communities and communities around us. Winning this scholarship will help me achieve my dreams because this award will give me the opportunity to chase my dreams and aspirations to the highest caliber. This scholarship will also help me towards my education and will make a difference in my life because this amount of money will help reduce the financial burden of the high end cost of college. I also believe that this scholarship will help make a difference in my personal life because with this award I will be able to continue and further my education to the next level. I am so grateful for this opportunity and the ability to be able to tell my story from such a heartfelt standpoint. I am grateful for my single mother and everything she has taught me from hard work and dedication to now someone who can put those lessons to an act.

My name is Lois Berchie. I am a young 18 year old teenager growing up in the midst of a world breaking pandemic. To say that COVID-19 has affected me when it comes to my educational studies or personal life would be an understatement. The corona virus pandemic has had the biggest effect on my mental health than I could ever imagine. This whole pandemic we thought we would just be out for two weeks then boom everything would go back to normal! But no I was wrong I wasn’t aware that I was going to completely have my life turned around and adapt to so many changes. COVID-19 has personally affected me because with social distancing being enforced for eight months, it forced me so many teens like myself to separate and be so far from society. With this concept being enforced over me I felt so far from my friends and the people who were not my immediate family members. Furthermore, being in lock down for so long gave my mind no choice other than to go into a dark place where all my fears and anxieties perplexed me. In this dark time of my life the question “how long will my life be on pause?” always ran through my mind daily and the more that I would think about it the more worried that I became. On the other hand, the corona virus pandemic just wasn’t a negative change or stop in my life. It was once said, “with a terrible negative comes a life changing positive. In addition, through this pandemic I learned so many new things about myself and the people I love the most. The corona virus taught me to always value the people you love the most. This was the biggest lesson that the pandemic taught me because working at a nursing home and watching people die left and right who I genuinely cared about taught me to value life and the people in your life because you never know when the person you care about will be taken away from you. Most importantly, the pandemic it’s self taught me many lessons about myself that I would've never realized if it wasn't for this occurrence in time. During the pandemic I was reminded to stabilize my mental health and stay calm in the midst of a storm that doesn’t look like it’s going to be over. I also learned that I should value the time I have with my friends because that time can be taken from me without me noticing. All in all, even though in the beginning of this world breaking news I was upset about the outcome of things. I'm happy about the lessons that I learned from this pandemic and how close it’s brought me to my family and friends.

To commence, I have never been the sporty student or the student that likes to party. I’ve always been the student who likes to read and focus on their books. Education to me means so much more to me then just passing an exam or getting a good grade on a school project. The role that education plays in my life is beyond the classroom. Education varies from learning math to learning life skills. Educating myself in all the different parts and attributes of life is one of the main reasons why I am the way that I am today. Education has opened my eyes and brought awareness to many issues going on in the world that I’ve learned about beyond the limits of a classroom. Education is the vital key to life and the eye opener to success in so many different forms. Through education I have learned that as individuals who are students we form and construct the stepping stone of our future. Most importantly, education plays a big role in my life and in the lives of many others because education is a key factor which strengthens our awareness and aids in creating an astonishing vision for our future lives and those who will be included in our lives. The most significant role that education plays in my life is that because of education and really caring about my grades I will be the first person in my whole entire family to go to college. Saying that really does bring tears to my eyes because my parents were never offered this opportunity growing up in a home filled with poverty to even be able to afford to go to college and to be the first to go to college in my family is very exciting. I owe everything to education and how far it has brought me in this journey called life. Without education and educating myself in every pin point of my life I don’t know where I would be right now.

Rejection, it hurts whether it comes from your family member , your crush or even your dream college you always wanted to get accepted to. No matter the type of rejection I have experienced during my lifetime there is always a positive that comes from it. I might not see it right away but I do believe that it is there. Often as individuals when we are rejected the thoughts of where did I go wrong ? Seems to be the first question we ask ourselves. Although rejection can cause us to self criticize, it is also an open door for life lessons, redirection, and empowerment. Over the past couple years, I’ve trained my mind, body, and soul to handle rejection differently. Charlotte Erikson once said, “Rejections will redirect you to more exciting roads. When you think your life is falling apart, it's usually falling together in disguise. Your search will throw you on journeys you never would have dreamed of, in your mind and in the world.”For instance, I’ve always had the dream of becoming a nurse practitioner ever since I was six years old. I knew I wanted to work in a hospital and save lives daily. As the college application process began to get closer I already knew I was going to major in nursing. I never had a back up plan in case I wasn’t granted that major because I was so confident and determined. Because colleges require a second choice of major I didn’t even care what major I selected as my second choice so at random I picked the health science major as my second choice. After eight long weeks of anticipation and consciousness waiting for my college decision letter to arrive I finally got my acceptance letter to Cabrini University. I was filled with so much excitement and joy to open it and find out that I have been accepted to their nursing program. When I opened the letter I was met with disappointment, I didn’t get accepted into their nursing program but I was offered a placement in their Health Science program. After I got this news I was very devastated because this had been my dream for so many years and the fact that I wouldn’t be able to fulfill this dream broke my heart into a million pieces. For the next couple days after finding out I was rejected from my dream school’s nursing program I began to really look into the health science major a little more and start researching careers. As I got further into my research, I began to see careers that fit my personality perfectly that I would have never been interested in if it wasn’t for the rejection I endured. At this point of my life I began to take rejection by it’s two horns and turn it into redirection for my future self. Through this rejection phase I was facing it redirected me to finding the perfect career that suited me and my personality the best. Even though getting rejected to my dreams schools’s nursing program hurt me a lot and caused me to reflect on life as a whole. I am happy rejection redirected me to unlock the dream of becoming a physicians assistant. All in all, throughout this whole process my dream of helping people and saving lives daily still remained the same. It just took a little bit of soul searching through redirection to find exactly how I would be fulfilling this dream of mine.

Oliver Sacks once said, “Music can lift us out of depression or move us to tears – it is a remedy, tonic. My playlist is an inspiration because all the songs remind me to always stay motivated and never ever give up when things get so hard for me. A song that particularly inspires me no matter what is Promised by Maverick City and Joe L Barnes. The lyrics of the song starts out by expressing how God is always going to be there for you no matter what as long as you don’t give up and always have faith.

Oliver Sacks once said, “Music can lift us out of depression or move us to tears – it is a remedy, a tonic, orange juice for the ear. But for many of my neurological patients, music is even more – it can provide access, even when no medication can, to movement, to speech, to life. For them, music is not a luxury, but a necessity.” Like other people, music itself is a human coping mechanism. Music has helped me through the darkest times of my life and has also shown me the brightest parts of life. There are so many different types of music and instruments put together to make a song that have helped me get through the crazy circle of life from day to day. Music plays such a vital role in my life because songs help me stay focused and calm before I have to do something urgent to do Music also plays the role of a stress reliever, especially going through this whole college process. I know I can turn on some tunes and my mind will be so relaxed. Promises by Maverick City and Joe L Barnes is a song that I can have to repeat forever and never get tired of. The song is so special to me because of the type of message it voices out and the inspiration behind what both artists are saying. This song has been so near to my heart because, of the lyrics, the song starts out by expressing how God is always going to be there for you no matter what as long as you don’t give up and always have faith. This song brings me back to all the times where I wanted to give up but even when I heard the first key of that song It would uplift my spirit immediately and recharge me with so much motivation to move and push forward to gain whatever I have started. All in all, I know whenever I am down, frustrated, lost, or conflicted I can turn on some music and renew my whole entire mindset to trust that everything will be alright.

Andrew Zanafina once said “self love is the best medicine”. To be quite honest I really do agree with that quote because of what self love has done for me and how it has impacted my relationship with my family, friends, and other people in my life who have had a significant impact in my life. My journey has been influenced with self love because before I ever do something, react, or even think about doing something I always ask myself is this what I want to do ? Is this going to benefit me in any shape, way or form? When you love yourself or even go on a journey trying to find your purpose you always have to make sure that you're in the right mind set and that always starts with loving yourself and who you are. Self love has impacted my relationships because before I even get into a romantic type love relationship where I have to love someone else I make sure that I love myself even more. This has impacted my relationships because when you love yourself you don’t need validation from no one in your relationship because if that relationship ends you have enough love for yourself to keep going with life and not dwelling upon the things that you have lost. When it comes to my dreams and aspirations my self love has impacted me through that aspect because I love myself to the point that I always push hard to motivate myself to make sure I accomplish those dreams and aspirations. Whereas, when I didn't know how to love and appreciate myself before I wasn’t as motivated as I am now. I am so happy that I have found love within my self to help me stay motivated in my career path to success. Thank you for this opportunity for me to showcase how self love has impacted me in my lifetime thus far.

This is my younger sister Lynne. I am so thankful for her because of her nice heart, beautiful attitude, and the way that Lynne lives her life. Lynne is an important part of my life because not only is she my sister but she is my best friend, ride or die, and my protector. Lynne has been there for me through the toughest parts of my life. My sister always knows how to cheer me up when I'm sad and knows how to give me space when I need it. I am also thankful for my sister because she is kind and always fun to be around. Lynne is the best dancer I know she tells so many funny jokes and always has such a positive attitude. She is important to me because she defends me when I can't defend my self and she always fights for the good of other. I am beyond grateful to have an amazing little sister like her in my life. I love Lynne so much and I know she loves me and will do anything to see me and my family happy that is why I am so grateful for my little sister.

In life, we are often told that challenges are what build the greatest foundations within your lifetime. Without facing challenges in your life, you’ll never be able to build a stronger character for yourself. Personally, I can say that I have faced many challenges in my life that have helped build and shape me into the person that I am today. One of the greatest changes that I have faced in my life time thus far was learning how to put myself first. Yes some people may say that a challenge is something that has to do with school or society, but my greatest challenge was within myself. Furthermore, this was the greatest challenge that I faced in my life because growing up I was always trying to please other people before I even made sure I was happy myself. In order to overcome this challenge I decided to stop seeking validation from everyone around me and finally live for me. I started to do things that would make me feel joyous and bold within myself. As a result of me finally starting to put myself first I saw a happier and more resilient version of myself, I started to notice a difference in my attitude and self esteem. Moreover, overcoming this challenge wasn’t just good for me but it was also a blessing to my family. I would actually speak up for myself and voice my opinions at family gatherings, share my fantastic ideas. This really made my family happy seeing me overcome this challenge because I no longer had to speak from their shadows. Nevertheless, overcoming this challenge opened my eyes to a variety of lessons. Not only did I learn to put myself first at all times but I learned how much better life is when you speak up for yourself and don’t seek validation in others. All in all, challenges will always shape and build an abundant foundation in your life as long as you don’t give up through the process.

To commence, Amanda Gore once said, “some people experience failure and give up. I see it as a new way to grow and develop!” There have been many occasions in my life time that I endured failure and it led me to not only giving up on myself but others that believed in me. With that being said, a personal failure that I have endured in my lifetime that has helped me build and find a great foundation about myself today is, not getting accepted as a finalist for a scholarship that I worked so hard for. I took this as a downfall in life because I didn’t understand why I wasn't a recipient when I worked so hard and put all my blood sweat and tears into all the writing requirements. In order to overcome this stumbling block in my life, I knew I couldn’t spend time being sad or upset about it because this was an opportunity to look back at myself and see what I could to better my chance of winning next time. Additionally, when I failed at receiving the scholarship I knew that it was time to get up and move forward with life. I knew I couldn't spend time dwelling over something that wasn’t for me. Furthermore, there were so many lessons that I took from this small failure in my life. I learned that sometimes in life that you can’t win everything and even, if you don’t win what you had your eyes set on that means that God has something way better planned for you. I also learned that failure comes with success and takes a person to pass through the dark before they eventually see the light. When you want something it’s not going to come easy you must work hard for it and never stop even when you fail.

In life, I have gained an abundance of achievements and reached my heights potential in everything that I do. Yes some people say that their greatest achievement is winning first place in a sports event, or reading the most books, or maybe winning class officer. However, for me an achievement could be emotional or physical. With that being said my greatest achievement in life is learning how to put myself first and appreciate everything that I have to offer as a person. This is my greatest achievement because growing up I've seen a lot of people trying to please others instead of pleasing themselves or making sure that they are happy before they try to make another group of people happy. Seeing this in my everyday life I began to pick up on some of the same traits that I saw around me. I began to look for validation in people based on the way I would dress, eat, or feel. Moreover, as the year went on I began to look at myself and love myself for the person I was, and for the person that I would choose to become in the near future. This personal growth and achievement taught me so many different things about myself. For instance, when I stopped looking for validation in others I began to do things that I didn’t even know I was capable of doing in the past. I noticed a sense of positive energy coming from within every time I chose to put my needs first. With this achievement, I began to see myself grow into a much bigger and influential person. When I got past the point of always listening to other people’s input in my life I began to use my story as a testimony for anyone else that went through and saw the same cognitive behaviors growing up. In addition to learning new things about myself through this achievement, I learned to not be so hard on myself. This is because before I wouldn’t appreciate the things I did in that moment I always looked for more when I knew I’ve done my absolute best. So learning how to appreciate myself taught me to humble myself as well in tough situations. Today I can say I am forever grateful for the foundation my achievements have built upon me. Furthermore, there is so much that I want to achieve in the near future.I would like to achieve the title of best neonatal nurse practitioner. This is something I would love to achieve because as a child I always dreamed of offering my help to people from a medical standpoint so that title would be amazing to have. Along with that, I would like to be presented in the medical hall of fame. I look forward to achieving that honor because it would make me really happy to know I am among a lot of people with the same dreams and aspirations of helping children all over the world. All in all, I know achieving my dreams and appreciating myself for what I have to offer makes me a much happier, self resilient, and powerful woman.

Us Against the World As a child, I was always very interested in problem solving. I loved figuring out what was wrong in a situation and I always wanted to be part of a greater cause. Things like making the world a better and safer place was very intriguing to me. To be quite honest, I would be wrong to say the world doesn’t have many problems that need attention brought to it. One of many the biggest issues that I see wrong nowadays is police brutality and racism especially towards African Americans. Many people here primarily in the United States don’t pay any attention to this problem because it isn’t affecting their community. Due to this being a problem in the United States today I can honestly say I fear for my life, my family's lives and anyone who is connected to the black community. The topic of racism and police brutality towards African Americans today especially in America is very significant to me because I always have this fear of being next ? Could someone I love who happens to also be in the black community be the next to die in the hands of a police officer or rather worse a racist person? Racism towards any race is so important to me because I believe that everyone should feel comfortable in their skin color no matter how dark or how light the color appears to be. At the end of the day we are all human. This issue is also very important to me and makes me want to solve the problem of police brutality and racism even more because in second grade I was bullied because of my skin color. I was the darkest kid in the classroom and I just remember being outside for recess and a girl asked me why my skin looked different from everyone else’s and I just remembered how much that hurt and broke me. Since that day I was eager to help more people feel safe and comfortable in their skin no matter what anyone thinks or says about them. The most important reason why I am determined to put a stop or try to end racism and police brutality here in the States and all over the world, is because I don’t want to worry that one day my children will have to scared to walk down the street because of the fear a racist police officer or a racist person will hurt them because of the color of their skin. There are so many ways I could go about solving this problem or be of assistance to bring police brutality rates lower. I plan to bring more awareness to this subject in my everyday life . I plan to attend upcoming protests there to help bring to better educate myself on the issue. In addition, I also want to be able to solve this problem by not only educating myself but others around me on how to help and tell others about what is happening in this country. The best way to end this issue which I believe would help solve many other global problems is to teach the youth and generation to not judge anyone based on the color of their skin or the way they look but judge someone based on their character. All in all, police brutality and racism towards black peoples is one of the biggest issues here in the United States and it must stop. The best way to stop this is if all stand together as one and continue to use our voices to fight and defend for victims of this problem.

Hi, my name is Lois Berchie ,I like to look at myself as someone who always fights for what they want and believe is worth fighting for. As a child I always dreamed of the day that I would go to college. I always thought about how exciting and amazing it would be to meet new people from all over the world. I always talked about my dream and passion for helping people and building great networks with people which lead to my dream of becoming a neonatal nurse practitioner. My first day of high school I was really at a loss for words for all the different types of activities and clubs my school had to offer. Honestly if I could join all of them I would. I started my freshman year off with track and field where I learned that if you work as a team you’ll all accomplish many things as an individual and within yourself. As the school year went on I wanted to branch into a more career based type club which led my interest into what my school calls the future health careers club. This club was one of my absolute favorites because not only did this club teach me responsibility it gave me the opportunity to meet all different types of doctors and nurses. In addition, there have been many people who have walked in and out of my life who’ve really impacted me and the way I view this world and everything that the world has to offer. My biggest influences are my family members. My family has impacted me the most because they always push and encourage me to do and be the best that I can be at all times. My family is one of the main reasons why I continue to work hard and try my very best each and every day because I love making the people I love the most proud. Furthermore, a girl can only dream right? I mean that’s what they all say, but what’s a steam without action or working for it. My biggest dream that I look forward to accomplishing is becoming the best neonatal nurse practitioner in the country and I believe and know I have all aspirations to be a great college student. I've done many things to impact and inspire all the people around me. In my freshman year of high school I came up with a group called dancing sharks of Plymouth Place Apartments in my neighborhood. In this organization I would gather all the neighborhood girls teaching them how to dance and express themselves through dance. When I did this club in my community it taught me many things about myself like self management and how to have self control and respect for others people's tips and opinions. All in all, I am so very happy that I can express and showcase my talents through all the activities that I have participated in.

My biggest role model in my life today is my grandmother Rose. This is because she basically raised and shaped me into the great young woman that I am today. My grandmother has taught me many things such as loving myself and the person that I am to always speaking out against what is wrong. She has also made a big impact on my life because she always spent quality time with me to get to know things that make me happy and things that make me upset. My grandmother was always helping me when I needed it the most, especially when I had no one to turn to. I felt like I can always turn and talk to her about anything without feeling judged. My grandmother also has impacted my life because she gave mother to me then she took from me that’s why she impacted my life so much and to this day I adore her for doing that for me. I will always love and adore my grandmother for teaching me all these amazing things that have shifted my life for the better. My grandmother has helped shape me into who I am today because she always told me how I could better my self and how I could make the world a better place as long as a I tried and never gave up. My grandmother always spoke words of wisdom and encouragement to me whenever I felt like giving up. Anytime I would fall she would be right there to pick me right back up. Furthermore, my future plans as far as academics go I would like to pursue a nursing major and move on to become a neonatal nurse practitioner. Moreover, I chose nursing as my major because all my life I wanted to pursue a career in the health field. I didn’t only choose a nursing major because I want to become a nurse, but because I wanted to always be on my toes and wanting to learn more each and every day. I believe that nursing connects you to so many people causing you to learn many different things that you didn’t even know about yourself. There have been many people who have walked in and out of my life that influenced me on wanting to major in dancing. My first biggest influence was my mom of course, she’s a nursing aide and even though that isn’t a certified nurse I see how much she loves her job and how much she appreciates the work that she does. When I saw how happy that made my mom I knew it would make me happy myself. In addition, I envision myself as a neonatal nurse practitioner in a big hospital taking care and healing many sick children. In brief, I can’t wait to be part of such a life changing experience in the lives of many. I owe all thanks to my grandmother for installing the sense of courage and bravery into me for me to become who I am today.

In life I believe that there are many things that can cause you to fail and turn your whole entire world upside down. To me I know failure doesn’t define who I am or stand for what I know is for me. There are many things that have caused my downfall but one particular fail that I had in my life that I am most thankful for is when I got a nine hundred on my PSAT my sophomore year of high school. The reason why I am most thankful for this failure in my life is because it really taught me responsibility. Before I even took the PSAT I remember saying to myself “you shouldn’t even study for this because it doesn’t count” and then after I got my scores back I remember how sad I was because I thought I wasn’t smart. Now what I didn’t know is those scores would open a door for me to use that score to help me push and persevere through my other courses. My PSAT score influenced me today because it taught me that no matter what scale a test is on you must always try your absolute best because you never know what that test could help you achieve or help you become. All in all, I wasn’t happy with the results of my PSAT. I am very happy that I took such a big lesson from a situation that I was very devastated about two years ago. This small stumbling block in my life has always shown me that no matter how hard things may get it’s about how you rise from the situation turn it around and control it again.

To get to know a person you must really dig deep from the surface. My name is Lois Berchie. I am from a small town in New Jersey called Hammonton. There is so much that I could say about myself in such little space but if there was one thing I could say about myself that highlights who I am is that I am a very hard worker and love learning new things. I desire and aspire to take my life onto the next level by impacting people that I come into contact with every single day. Ben Franklin once said “you can do anything if you set your mind to it.” To commence, there are many things that I wish and hope to achieve in my lifetime. Things like becoming a nurse practitioner, selling the most homes in the entire country and much more. As a child I always dreamed of helping people and caring for others feelings before my own. Which is how I came to choose my major of nursing. I chose nursing as my major because all my life I wanted to pursue a career in the health field. I didn’t only choose a nursing major because I want to become a nurse, but because I wanted to always be on my toes and wanting to learn more each and every day. I believe that nursing connects you to so many people causing you to learn many different things that you didn’t even know about yourself. There have been many people who have walked in and out of my life that influenced me on wanting to major in dancing. My first biggest influence was my mom of course, she’s a nursing aide and even though that isn’t a certified nurse I see how much she loves her job and how much she appreciates the work that she does. When I saw how happy that made my mom I knew it would make me happy myself. In addition, I envision myself as a neonatal nurse practitioner in a big hospital taking care and healing many sick children. Furthermore, there are many things that I am doing to achieve my goal in wanting to become a nurse practitioner. At my school I am in a club called future nurses club which I happen to be the secretary for the club it’s self has helped me network with different types of doctors and nurses that I have met and have gotten to talk to first hand. The club taught me responsibility inside and outside of the medical field. All in all, each and everyday I am granted another day of life I aspire to be better than I was the day prior to that with all the things I do and plan to do. No I am not perfect but I strive to be for the better of my future and beyond that. I strive to be open, to always connect, and learning more about the career I wish to be in.

Hi, my name is Lois Berchie ,my family is originally from Ghana. I like to look at myself as someone who always fights for what they want and believe is worth fighting for. As a child I always dreamed of the day that I would go to college. I always thought about how exciting and amazing it would be to meet new people from all over the world. I always talked about my dream and passion for helping people and building great networks with people which lead to my dream of becoming a neonatal nurse practitioner. My first day of high school I was really at a loss for words for all the different types of activities and clubs my school had to offer. Honestly if I could join all of them I would. I started my freshman year off with track and field where I learned that if you work as a team you’ll all accomplish many things as an individual and within yourself. As the school year went on I wanted to branch into a more career based type club which led my interest into what my school calls the future health careers club. This club was one of my absolute favorites because not only did this club teach me responsibility it gave me the opportunity to meet all different types of doctors and nurses. In addition, there have been many people who have walked in and out of my life who’ve really impacted me and the way I view this world and everything that the world has to offer. My biggest influences are my family members. My family has impacted me the most because they always push and encourage me to do and be the best that I can be at all times. My family is one of the main reasons why I continue to work hard and try my very best each and every day because I love making the people I love the most proud. Furthermore, a girl can only dream right? I mean that’s what they all say, but what’s a steam without action or working for it. My biggest dream that I look forward to accomplishing is becoming the best neonatal nurse practitioner in the country and I believe and know I have all aspirations to be a great college student. I've done many things to impact and inspire all the people around me. In my freshman year of high school I came up with a group called dancing sharks of Plymouth Place Apartments in my neighborhood. In this organization I would gather all the neighborhood girls teaching them how to dance and and express themselves through dance. When I did do this club in my community it taught me many things about my self like self management and how to have self control and respect for other's people's tips and opinions. All in all, I am so very happy that I can express and showcase my talents though all the activities that I have participated in.