The US Constitution created a foundation for one of the first and longest-lasting democratic nation-states, and one that remains to this day. This foundation is one I am proudly part of, and take a responsibility to uphold the same ideals that our founding fathers envisioned for the United States. While it is far from perfect it has allowed this country to become the most diverse, modernized country in the world. I attend Illinois Tech in Chicago and it has been exciting to talk with all of the different people from different cultures. Walking around campus I regularly hear Vietnamese, Chinese, Korean, Hindi, Spanish and Arabic. Thanks to the Constitution and the way our country was founded all of these people are allowed to attend the same University, learn together and become friends. I've learned so much from so many different people and cultures; this would not be possible if our founding fathers had not created the country in such a specific way. Freedom would not be the same without the US Constitution which so many countries have followed after. This freedom is what I am passionate about, and what I strive to protect. I am studying Cyber Security so I can protect the private interests of my fellow citizens be it through the government or the private sector. The European Union made privacy a civil right with the General Data Protection Regulation that granted privacy and security of personal data. The United States has no such law which allows our personal data to be harvested and mined without regulation by corporations. With Cyber threats growing all around the projected net worth of cybercrime to grow to nearly $28 trillion within the decade cyber security is more important than ever. I believe privacy should be a civil right just as it is in the European Union and I plan on working toward that goal. Even if it never becomes a law I can and will defend the people of the United States from malicious actors attempting to steal and profit off of private data. While most cybercrime may still seem like a hidden threat thanks to its inherently hidden nature it is still a very real threat to everybody with a personal device, which means almost everybody in the United States. Children, Adults and the Elderly are all victims of cybercrime and it is only going to get worse. While data privacy may never be made a civil right in the United States privacy should still be protected. I do not know where my career after college will take me, but I do know that wherever I end up I will be working for people who believe the same and together we can work to make the United States a more secure place so we can all live knowing our data remains private.

My father currently works as a cybersecurity agent for the government and military, and while not a veteran in the standard sense he still gives his life to our country. Throughout my elementary, middle school and high school careers, I have always been fascinated by history and by extension geography. I believe knowing the terrain and borders of different countries is extremely important to learn about the developments of different cultures and history as a whole. The study of geography is the study of countries, people and their cultures. It is the study of humanity and gives a special insight into what people like and how they operate. My interest in computer science and especially cybersecurity again began with my father who taught himself how to build a home network and was later recruited into a cyber division. I have always found computers fascinating and for quite a while I wanted to become a video game programmer, and I still would like to even as a hobby. Last summer and group of friends and I got together to begin making an original story and video game, while it never got far it was a great learning experience and a load of fun. As time went on I realized I was less interested in the coding aspect of computers and more interested in networks, how data is transferred and the construction of those devices. In my freshman year of high school, I co-founded our FIRST robotics team and I became the Head Technician and Designer. My favorite part was designing the robot and later constructing and wiring the electronics board. This was a fantastic experience. I made a ton of friends and learned so much from actually being able to help build a robot from the ground up. After all of these smaller experiences and my dad's influence, I eventually found myself looking for colleges with great cybersecurity programs and I landed at Illinois Institute of Technology which has a ton of opportunities so I can expand my knowledge of computer science and cybersecurity. Something interesting when comparing computer science and geography is how dissimilar they are in practice, but logically they can be pretty similar. Writing and reading code is about problem-solving, critical thinking and seeing patterns. Geography is cultural study, personal study and seeing patterns. In one you see the patterns of data and computers in the other you see the patterns of people and while it may be difficult to extrapolate a commonality between the two subjects pattern reading is incredibly important in both fields. Specifically, in cybersecurity, you can use patterns in forensics to discover a ping or a piece of malware that may have been hiding under your security scripts. You use patterns to debug programs and find errors, and when dealing with people you learn of their habits or patterns and from this, you can gain a greater understanding of their personality. Geography is the same but on a larger scale where instead of looking at a singular person you learn about an entire people and their culture. While most people would not consider Geography and Computer science to be at all similar the ways they are is fascinating. The ways I got into both computer science and geography may be different but both have affected my personality and who I am in many important ways.

I intend to protect all people using basic form of technology from malicious hackers and information stealers.

The nature of the universe relates to our nature as humans. Our curiosity is infinite as the universe is infinite. Our minds grow and humanity grows just as the universe expands constantly. For as long as humans have walked the earth, they have looked up in awe at the beautiful stars that paint our skies. They have worshipped them, and we still worship the heavens. I have always been in awe of the Hubble Telescope pictures and have a book containing some of its' more famous photos. The book is called The Hubble Cosmos and it is beautiful to be able to sit down and look in my lap at what I cannot see above my head. Now with the launch of the James-Webb telescope, I get to see the Hubble pictures in fantastic new resolutions. The importance of learning and developing our knowledge of the universe cannot be understated. The potential and the possibilities are endless. Just recently in California, a team achieved nuclear fusion. That is incredible. The power that lights the universe is within our grasp, and at the beginning of next year, the largest plasma containment unit being built in France is scheduled to begin tests. The stellar energies are almost in our grasp. Near infinite energy with almost no waste is almost ours; all of it is learned from our stars and our universe. Other exotic materials are also out there to be learned about, look at neutron stars. If we could replicate the insanely dense materials at the center of those stars we could make engineering and architectural designs that nobody could dream of now. One of the first engineering thoughts that came to my mind when I saw the article on achieving stable nuclear fusion was the possibility to create a Dyson sphere. If nuclear fusion can be created, it can then be miniaturized as all of our technological advances have done in the past like computers. It may take a long time, but it is the next logical step in my mind. We can send ships with this new fuel source to scavenge more resources to create the Dyson sphere and fulfill our energy needs even more. These are the possibilities that learning and looking at the stars create. Understanding our universe may give some an existential crisis and make them feel small and insignificant, but looking at it from the perspective of infinite opportunity creates an entirely different view. This is what I use when studying the universe and all of its thought defying natural objects. The ability to look and learn without feeling useless is important because otherwise, your discoveries become pessimistic and nihilistic. If everyone could look out into the stars and realize the potential of just our solar system, never mind our star cluster and galaxy, then they would realize that our quarrels on Earth could be solved if we expanded where there are an infinite amount of resources. Our there in the stars is where we belong, where we should embark to. And it is possible, even more so with us being so close to stabilizing Fusion power. These possibilities should give us hope and that is what humanity needs right now, and that is why it is so imperative to study the universe.

My passion for engineering and working with others has allowed me to go to, and afford the school I wanted to go to. I earned a large scholarship with FIRST Robotics after spending a lot of time forming and building the robotics club at my high school. My love for lacrosse also allowed me to get recruited and I am now going to play Division 3 lacrosse at my college. I am extremely excited and I cannot wait to see where my passion will take me next!

I believe my ability to adapt and meet new people in a positive way are the two things that I value most in myself. When I was a child my mom told me how at birthday parties I would always throw myself into the crowd in an effort to make friends and have a great time. Another story she enjoys telling is how when our neighbors first moved in I walked over to greet them, and when they opened the door I proceeded to let myself in and give myself a tour of their house and greet them before my parents could say anything. This sure left a memorable impression and we are still family friends with them more than a decade later. I still retained this and on my first day of college, the day I am writing this, I met all my lacrosse teammates and was able to make friends with all of them. I am super excited to continue to meet all the unique people from across the world who are attending my college. Now my ability to adapt I discovered mostly my senior year of high school on the robotics team. The day of the regionals competition our robot could not shoot properly as the motors kept breaking, and when they did work the ball would not shoot accurately out the barrel. So I took some duct tape and fixed the barrel by forcing it upwards and smoothing out the inside. Then I took apart one of the motors and regreased the inside to stop it from seizing up. Both of these things helped the problem and we were able to score the amount of points needed to continue through the competition.

Last year my best friend attempted suicide. I knew he was suicidal, and so did many of our friends. He would reach out to me and I would respond in the best way I knew how, but it wasn't always the best. He taught me a lot about mental health, specifically depression and bipolarism. Thankfully he has gotten professional help and has been feeling a lot better since his attempt. I want to bring to light how dangerous these conditions can be, and how sudden suicide can come upon a person outside. I had no idea he was going to attempt suicide, and when I said goodbye to him that day I didn't realize it could possibly be the last time I would ever say goodbye. It is quite frightening when I think about it now, how different it could've gone.

I am a writer. I love to spend some of my free time writing stories, mostly existential stories about the purpose of life. Some of them are nihilistic, even though I myself am not. I find it fascinating to delve into the deeper, and darker parts of humanity. See what makes certain people think that way, and why many people fall into that pit and ask, "What is the point?" Currently, some friends and I are developing a video game. My co-writer, Gryphon, pitched a highly symbolic 2D horror game which we may do. I am working on a pitch for a linear, character-driven story between two friends who are legionnaires in the roman empire. It'll dive into the barbaric side of humanity as they follow Caesar's conquest of Gaul and the millions of souls that were lost in the forests of modern-day France. These kinds of stories, creating them, are what I spend a fair amount of my time doing. In school, I've always taken a more creative side to essays, even academic ones. They are far more interesting to read than the standard academic paper. I am also in the creative writing club where lots of people interested in the same thing I am come together and share stories, poetry, or pretty much anything. We bounce ideas off of each other and it is a blast. Writing is a good way to escape the material world for me, and an enjoyable hobby.

I am Kaleb A biker A lacrosse player A marching band lover A coach A technician A friend A future college student looking to get out of debt

i love teaching people. I help tutor at my school and stay after everyday about an hour to help people who are struggling. Knowledge, if used, can be far better than any materials that I can offer.

Playing grand strategy video games is a great way for me to relax. Some time to myself and still using my brain to defeat the AI. And it is a lot of fun. Biking or going outside in general is also a good way to unwind. Nature and sunlight are the two best cures someone can ask for. De stressing is super important in the modern society we live in, and I will often ask for extensions on my homework in order to reduce my stress levels and give myself time to take a walk or go for a ride.

My favorite hobbies are electronics, biking, lacrosse and music. I am the head technician for our school robotics team and love building circuits. I spend some of my time working with Arduino kits. I've been biking for 14 years, ever since I was 4. I love mountain biking and was on a race team for one year and have been coaching for Kids on Bikes for 5 years and was a student with them for 6. Colorado offers a ton of mountain biking opportunities and I am sure to take advantage of them. Lacrosse, oh my I love lacrosse. I've been playing for 13 years and am playing in college. It's my main sport. I made all-state my junior year and all-conference my sophomore year. It is an incredible sport and I love it to bits. For music I play the trombone and euphonium and know how to play the piano. I am in jazz band, wind ensemble and the marching band. Music is a ton of fun and I've met some amazing people through it.