People think I’m weird. I like to match with my mom at Disney World, I actually enjoy going to school, and I still sleep with stuffed animals. I never change because I like my quirks. Every day for a year, I choked down walnuts, pecans, and hazelnuts. When I was six years old, I was diagnosed with a tree nut allergy. From then on I had to avoid all tree nuts and foods that were cross-contaminated with them. When I was twelve I undertook Oral ImmunoTherapy to overcome this allergy. This meant eating something that could kill me every single day for five years until I wasn’t allergic anymore. It worked. Reaching my potential was difficult for me until seventh grade. Kindergarten through sixth grade I went to a private, Catholic school, with little to no diversity, and almost no academic challenge. I wanted more. During the pandemic, I decided blindly to take a leap and switch schools. I entered a school where I did not know a single person, teacher, and had never set foot in the building. This was the best decision of my life. I was able to take classes that were academically rigorous and challenged me in ways I hadn't been challenged before. I found myself in a diverse environment that I had longed for. This community displayed racial, social, and economic diversity, as well as LGBTQ+ representation. Sophomore year I started to mentally struggle. Taking 3 AP classes, playing a year round sport, and trying to keep all A’s wasn’t the main struggle. It was having to come home every day and keeping my cool. I would lash out on my parents, throwing myself on the floor and crying because I didn't know how else to express the emotions that had built up throughout the school day. This was something that happened often since I was little, but it had never been this intense. Eventually, when I hit my junior year of high school, I struggled even more. I finally got the diagnosis I needed, attention deficit hyper-activity disorder. Little did I know, I was a high-masking individual. This meant I spent all day forcing myself to fit the “perfect student” stereotype. By the time I got home, I took off that mask, without even realizing it, and took everyone crashing down with me. My diagnosis was hard to accept at first, but medication and understanding of how my brain works gave me tools to advocate for myself. Volleyball has played a significant role in my life. This is a sport that is dominated by size and I was much smaller than other players. I was underestimated and overlooked, yet I still excelled. I became 2nd all-time career leader in digs for my high school. Effort is my gift. I may not always be the best, but no one will outwork me. That mindset was instilled in me from a young age, and it drives everything I do—from academics to athletics. For instance, when I was in fourth grade I had to memorize and recite a twenty-line poem in front of the class; instead I chose a sixty-line poem; “Phenomenal Woman” by Maya Angelou. Running was something that I never thought I could do. Asthma has been with me for as long as I can remember. I once ran a Girls on the Run race clutching my rescue inhaler—and placed 7th. I refuse to let anything hold me back. Even though I am different, I don’t care. I’m not perfect or conventional. I’m resilient, passionate, weird, and unapologetically proud of it. I PERSEVERE.

People think I’m weird. I like to match with my mom at Disney World, I actually enjoy going to school, and I still sleep with stuffed animals. I never change because I like my quirks. Every day for a year, I choked down walnuts, pecans, and hazelnuts. When I was six years old, I was diagnosed with a tree nut allergy. From then on I had to avoid all tree nuts and foods that were cross-contaminated with them. When I was twelve I undertook Oral ImmunoTherapy to overcome this allergy. This meant eating something that could kill me every single day for five years until I wasn’t allergic anymore. It worked. Reaching my potential was difficult for me until seventh grade. Kindergarten through sixth grade I went to a private, Catholic school, with little to no diversity, and almost no academic challenge. I wanted more. During the pandemic, I decided blindly to take a leap and switch schools. I entered a school where I did not know a single person, teacher, and had never set foot in the building. This was the best decision of my life. I was able to take classes that were academically rigorous and challenged me in ways I hadn't been challenged before. I found myself in a diverse environment that I had longed for. This community displayed racial, social, and economic diversity, as well as LGBTQ+ representation. Sophomore year I started to mentally struggle. Taking 3 AP classes, playing a year round sport, and trying to keep all A’s wasn’t the main struggle. It was having to come home every day and keeping my cool. I would lash out on my parents, throwing myself on the floor and crying because I didn't know how else to express the emotions that had built up throughout the school day. This was something that happened often since I was little, but it had never been this intense. Eventually, when I hit my junior year of high school, I struggled even more. I finally got the diagnosis I needed, attention deficit hyper-activity disorder. Little did I know, I was a high-masking individual. This meant I spent all day forcing myself to fit the “perfect student” stereotype. By the time I got home, I took off that mask, without even realizing it, and took everyone crashing down with me. My diagnosis was hard to accept at first, but medication and understanding of how my brain works gave me tools to advocate for myself. Volleyball has played a significant role in my life. This is a sport that is dominated by size and I was much smaller than other players. I was underestimated and overlooked, yet I still excelled. I became 2nd all-time career leader in digs for my high school. Effort is my gift. I may not always be the best, but no one will outwork me. That mindset was instilled in me from a young age, and it drives everything I do—from academics to athletics. For instance, when I was in fourth grade I had to memorize and recite a twenty-line poem in front of the class; instead I chose a sixty-line poem; “Phenomenal Woman” by Maya Angelou. Running was something that I never thought I could do. Asthma has been with me for as long as I can remember. I once ran a Girls on the Run race clutching my rescue inhaler—and placed 7th. I refuse to let anything hold me back. Even though I am different, I don’t care. I’m not perfect or conventional. I’m resilient, passionate, weird, and unapologetically proud of it. I PERSEVERE.