I am a full-time student in my second year at Beloit College, located in my hometown, double-majoring in studio art and education & youth studies to one day become an art teacher. My current goal is to help students have a safe space, someone to care about them, and offer a creative outlet. I want to encourage young creators and other students to never give up. Students just like me, who struggle to see a purpose. I began to show signs of poor mental health at a young age and over the course of many years, I have dealt with a lot of trauma, heartache, and financial instability. The past few years of my life I have dealt with more pain than I can describe. Mental all-time-lows, dealing with complicated family relationships, adult figures in my life struggling with substance abuse, being forced to leave my home of 19 years, a recent breakup from a 3-year relationship with someone I loved very much, and the lowest financial state my family has ever been in. I have been very scared that I may have to drop out of school due to our financials. I live at home and commute as I can not afford on-campus living, but trying to afford necessities for a family of 4 is hard enough, let alone trying to pay for my tuition. However, despite all of the hurt, I have made a goal to succeed in school to achieve my dreams. Art is a way I have helped myself cope with all the stress and unfortunate circumstances I have had to overcome. Art has always been an escape for me from the troubles of life. When I am creating, I feel at peace. Art can express my world in ways that words can not. I was also very open with my teachers. Some teachers are the only reason I am where I am today. Some of my teachers may have even contributed to saving my life. I have a goal to be just like my own teachers who helped me in ways they may not even know. I want to be a safe person for children just like me. I have always felt very alone in school and my teachers helped to lessen that as best as possible. I was close with many of my teachers. I want to be that person. If there are kids who feel like they have no one, I want to be the one person they do have. I want the students I see myself in to know that life will get better; life is worth it. School is something I have trouble trying to afford, but I am hoping I can continue pursuing my dream. I do not want to give up on something so important or give up on my other life goals. I needed someone. And so will future children. My students will need someone. Even if I can change just one child's life; if I can help one person; if I can save one person, I will have achieved my goal and know that even if it was painful, everything that had led me to that point was worth it. This scholarship would help me beyond words. Every semester I am terrified to see my bill, praying I will not have to drop out of this amazing school and push my goal away to the side. I want to make a difference. I want to help those who need it and I do not want money to stand in the way of potentially changing a child's life.

In less than 3 months I turn 20-years-old. I have struggled with mental health for about 10 years. Before middle school, I began to show signs of poor mental health. I always pushed myself to succeed in school, but I was mentally burnt out dealing with sleep deprevation, very few friends, home/family issues, peers, and personal traumatic events leaving me feel broken and confused. With many years in-between, the state I am in now is still difficult. Financial instability has taken me by storm. We had to leave the house we lived in for 19 years and my parents sleep on an air mattress in the living room of our tiny apartment. Arguing, substance abuse, and toxic behaviors and events have left complicated relationships. I live at home instead of on campus because we can not afford a dorm, so as a family of 4, we try pay for food, rent, bills, and for me to continue my college career, all while having one job and one car. I recently dealt with severe heartbreak from a 3-year relationship with someone I spent vital years of my life with. For 8 months I could barely eat, I could not get out of bed unless it was to attend my college classes, and if I was not sleeping to avoid my pain, I was crying. Over 10 years, I often debated if continuing life was worth it. Being a straight-A student did not stop the pain I was dealing with. My mental health over the years has progressed into more difficult disorders, but I have not given up. I promised myself that I would create a beautiful life. I am a sophomore at Beloit College, double-majoring in studio art and education & youth studies to one day become an art teacher to help students just like me have a safe space, someone to care about them, and have a creative outlet. A teacher is not a mental health profession, but I want to encourage young creators and other students to never give up. Art is my escape from the troubles of life. When I am creating, I feel peace. Art can express my world in ways that words can not. I was also very open with my teachers. Some teachers are the only reason I am where I am today. I have a goal to be just like my own teachers who helped me in ways they may not even know. If these kids have no one else, I want to be the one person they do have. I want the students I see myself in to know that life will get better; life is worth it. School is something I have trouble trying to afford, but I am hoping I can continue pursuing my dream. I do not want to give up on my purpose or other life goals. I have been going to counseling recently and really enjoying it. I attend through school as it is free. I am working on changing thought process. I am learning to ease my anxieties as best as possible and letting myself feel the emotions I need to feel. I am journaling and connecting myself nature, where I feel most at peace and joyful. I am still very lonely but I try to reach out when I am feeling low. I have a lot of work to do but I am in a much better place than I once was. I am truly working towards bettering my mental health. It may take many years, but I want to turn my pain into something beautiful.

My name is Madyson Miller, I am 19 years olf, and I am a sophomore at Beloit College. I am double majoring in Studio Art and Education & Youth Studies to one day become a highschool art teacher. I have always been an artist. Ever since I was very young, creating with my hands has been my escape. I have had a rough go with mental health for almost half of my life and art has always been a way to express myself and ease my mind. When I am creating, my mind goes blank and I feel at peace. I have always relied on art and music when life became too hard. I have always been a straight "A" student with a lot of academic accomplishments, however my mental health has affected me terribly. I pushed through for my grades, though it was very difficult at times. I felt pretty alone for a lot of my schooling. I did not have many friends and I felt outcasted. I struggled with family issues and relationships so I felt like I had no one to turn to. Except teachers. I have special people in my life, but when I felt like I had no one, I turned to a teacher. They had my back and would listen to me. I felt seen and understood when I often did not. Especially with my AP Art instructor in my senior year of highschool. She was always there to support me, especially with the hectic year of being a senior. She honestly may have saved my life in a way. She was there to listen, she was a huge supporter of my art when I was very critical of myself, she helped me attended school when I was mentally drained beyond belief, and so much more. She was amazing to me. However, while she was definitely one of the most helpful, she was not the only one. Many teachers of mine did a lot more for me than they realize. That is why I want to be an art teacher. I am so passionate about art and it is an amazing way to express emotion and break free. Art is my life. I want to teach kids just like me how to use art to express themselves. Though, most importantly, I want to be a teacher because I want to be there for the kids that feel alone. Kids like me. I want to be there and give them a safe space. I know how hard it is to wake up in the morning and I want to show my students who feel the same that it is worth it. I want to be the teacher that my teachers were for me. Earning this scholarship would mean the world. As stated, I attend Beloit College. It is an amazing school and I love attending it. It is located in my hometown. However, my family has been struggling with money for a couple years now. I have wondered at times if I will be able to stay in school or not. I have always managed to scrape by because this is my dream, but it has been very hard. This scholarship would help me achieve my dream of helping out the teenagers who felt like me. For a few years now, being an art teacher is all I see myself doing. It is what I am meant to do. I am on a mission. I truly believe I can make a difference and I am determined to do so. For me, and for my students.

As a sophomore at Beloit College, I have created a lot of art throughout my life. I have countless amounts of work that I hold near and dear to my heart, it is hard to pick favorites. However, when I was a senior in highschool, I created an AP Art and Design portfolio and it was some of the best work I feel I had ever created at the time. I delved into the world of miniature dioramas. I worked for hours on each piece and they all were in the theme of Halloween since I have many fond memories of the holiday. The piece that started it all has to be my favorite. It was inspired by an old costume of mine. A candy corn witch costume. I wore it day in and day out, all times of the year. It was such a fun outfit for me and it really sparked my love for Halloween and all things spooky. The piece was a watercolor painting of a candy corn witch, sitting in her cozy living room. It was my first time working with watercolor to that extent and I was so proud of myself. It was the beginning of some of my best work. I created 10 pieces for the portfolio, 7 being dioamas. Those pieces have the most personal connection and they all started from this one watercolor. The painting feels so warm and really shows my love for fall. It was a great starting piece.

I am a nineteen-year-old, full-time student at Beloit College. I plan to double major in Studio Art and Education & Youth Studies to one day become an art teacher. Art has always been a form of an escape for me. As someone who struggles with mental health and has a hard home life, art has always been the way to express myself and a way for me to channel all different parts of who I am into physical forms. I love being able to work in all different types of mediums, creating anything I can. When I was very young, drawing and painting were my favorite things to do. As I have grown older, I have expanded my talents into all different kinds of art and have made myself extremely proud of all the work I have done. When I was a senior in highschool I did a 3D art portfolio for my AP Art class. I created ten individual pieces of art, seven of them being miniature dioramas. I earned the highest score of 5 on my portfolio and my theme was Halloween. I have so many fond memories of my experiences with Halloween over the years. It is my favorite holiday and I love all things spooky. I have always put a lot of effort into my Halloween costumes, decorating, and celebrating. I chose this theme and based the whole concept of my portfolio on an old costume of mine. I never wore it for actual Halloween, but I always wore it around the house just for fun, no matter the season or the day. It was the cutest candy corn witch costume. I danced around in it and wore it all the time. I based many of my pieces around the concept of my costume, but one piece in particular I did for my portfolio was an entire diorama of my past Halloween costumes, (candy corn witch included). I spend hours handcrafting every single detail on miniature versions of my costumes and they all looked exactly like the real deal. It looked like I shrunk human sized clothing into 2 inch long doll clothes. I created a diorama of a walk-in closet of sorts with all my costumes hanging on the wall with clothes hangers, along with other decorations such as a spilled candy bowl and some of the props I had to match my costumes on some shelves. It was so fun reminiscing and recreating all of my fondest memories into miniature work. I remember creating my portfolio and being so hard on myself. I never expected to recieve a 5 on my work at all. However, my wonderful teacher always told me that there was no way I would get anything less than the highest score. She encouraged me and gave me so much support in my artistic journey, aswell as all my art teachers before her. My teachers are the reason I want to be a teacher myself. Becoming an art teacher after college, for me, is such an amazing dream I have had for many years. Teachers have always been the reason I am who I am today. When I felt alone, my teachers supported me through everything. Especially my AP Art teacher. She supported me through a very rough time in my life, helping me succeed to the best of my ability. My teachers were always there to aid to my emotional needs when no one else did. I want to be that person for kids like me. When I felt alone, a teacher was there. I want to be there too.

As I plan to become a future educator, I am signing up to always have my students' safety in mind. I would be absolutely heartbroken to see one of my students, or any student at all, injured due to lack of safety precautions. The children being taught my myself and others have an amazing future ahead of them and they do not deserve to have that jeopardized because of lazy playground rules or design. They deserve to be having fun while being safe at the same time. School is meant to be a safe place for all. It is important to do everything in our power to obtain that goal. Children should never be hurt and especially never be hurt due to the faults of faculty. I have much experience in childcare as I have been default babysitter in my family for a long time. I have taken care of every age ranging from newborns, all the way up to 9 years old. I take their safety very seriously. I have taken them to playgrounds and have been petrified something awful would happen. I am very attentive and do everything in my power to take their safety seriously. In order to make sure I am doing my absolute best when it comes to playground safety, I would not only do my own research, but join with other teachers to make sure we all understand how serious playground safety is. Anything could happen outside of the school building and we need to prepared for it all. I would also explain to my students playground safety. It is important to teach children right and wrongs in order to maintain their safety. They need to understand why we take certain things seriously, such as bullying, horseplay, talking to strangers, and how to play safely on the playground equipment. Some playground equipment could cause extensive physically injuring if not careful. I have had my experience with extreme fear when children are playing the playground. Falling from tall heights, slipping, tripping, etc. It is very scary. Fortunately, however, no child has ever been injured on my watch. I of course would have my full attention on my students while they are on the playground because despite the importance of them being able to protect themselves, at the end of the day, it my job to protect my students. Taking safety percussions is important. My job is to do my best to prepare for any circumstance, join with other teachers on the importance, acknowledge potential unsafe parts of the playground, educate my students, and of course, be attentive. Attentiveness is key to safety.

In my 19 years of living, I have struggled immensely in my lifetime with mental health, money, stabilty, confidence, relationships of all kinds, etc. I never felt I belonged or was meant for anything. I never felt good enough. As a mixed race young woman who dresses differently and has niche interests, I felt left out. I love expressing myself but it has always been hard to feel proud. Except, I never felt more attached to anything than I did to creating. Art has always been my way to escape. When I make art, I forget about everything that has ever gone wrong. It is how I remember who I am. It is how I stay proud of myself and my interests. I can be proud of who I am and the talents that I have. I can create something and be proud that it came from my own hands. As an upcoming sophomore at Beloit College, my plan is to double major in Studio Arts and Education & Youth Studies to become an art teacher. Beloit, Wisconsin is my hometown and most people, like me, are not very fortunate when it comes to money or resources. My art teachers were always the most understanding people. I want to be that person for other students like me. While I am continuing my education in my hometown, I would love to teach here aswell. Maybe not forever, but I know there are a lot of kids just like me in this city who need someone and something to help them feel safe and like they belong. I want to be an art teacher to share my love for art with other children who share the same interest, or who need an escape just like I did. I want to teach them how to express themselves thought art. I want to teach them how to use a healthy coping mechanism to release all their struggles. I want to encourage them to create and use their talents. I want them to be proud and put beautiful things into the world. I want them to be proud of who they are and what they love. There is no such thing as bad art. Art is art and art is beautiful. Anyone can be artist and anyone can create. All children, especially those who are less fortunate and are in under-recourced communities, deserve a way to feel comfortable and appreciated. They deserve access to people who care and they deserve a way to be themselves. Art is the way to do it. Art does need to be expensive or unattainable. Art can use a pen a paper and still be the greatest thing you have ever seen. I want to show children that anything is possible in the art world and I want to them to never lose their creativity. Art is important and everyone deserves a way to be who they are.

I find the "Death" tarot card to be fascinating. I am not extremely educated on tarot but I am very much interested in more spiritual hobbies than most, and tarot has been something I have been trying to learn more about. I know that the Death card often scares people. People tend to think that physical death is near and tend to worry that something terrible will happen to themselves or a person they love. But that is not always the case. Most of the time, it is not the case. The Death card can also mean the end of an Era or the end and rebirth of something new. And this can be a good thing. Sometimes people are in need of change. Sometimes people need certain aspects of their life to "die" in order to he happy, to heal, to to simply let go of something troubling them. Death does not always mean someone is going to die, but something in your life is going to come to and end and usually, it is beneficial. I like this card because of how much it can be interpreted when you look past the fear. Death can be a beautiful thing and death is necessary in life. Meaning, so is the death of certain aspects of your life. Maybe you have a friendship that has been toxic and you have not been able to get the courage to leave. The Death card may symbolize that that friendship will finally come to an end soon. Maybe you have a terrible job and you have been on the search for a new one. The Deatb card may symbolize that job will soon pass and you will be able to move on and find a new one. Maybe you have a habit you have been trying to kick, maybe you are moving into a new era of your life, maybe you have been stuck in a rut and are finally getting out of it, etc. The Death card is about transformations and changes. It is not about death itself. The Death card is actually very beautiful. It is turning this often looked down upon concept into something positive. Like the changing of seasons, like fall. Everything anf everyone needs change in your life. Being able to grow and grow out of things that are no longer suited for you. That is what I think the Death card is all about. Growing and changing from things that are no longer meant for you or have served their purpose for you.

I have been a Harry Potter fan since middle school but only really started to delve real deep into the franchise and I went from a casual fan to absolutely obsessed. I find that the wizardung world is a place where if I were there, all my worries would go away. I always envisioned myself as a Slytherin. Slytherins get hated on and there is a stigma against them that they are evil. This is completely not true. I think Slytherin seems to birth out so many evil witches and wizards is because of the stigma that all of them, even if they are the best student, are evil. So when kids are sorted into Slyhterin, they automatically get outcasted. The reason so many Slytherin turn "evil" or turn to the dark side is because there, at least they are accepted. There is a group that will accept them unlike the rest of the world and their peers. I always felt outcasted. Maybe not as much as some other kids but I definitely felt it. I was disliked by many kids at school and talked bad about behind my back. I felt I never really fit in like everyone else. It has always been a dark tunnel when it came to fitting in and having a group of friends. It never really worked out for me and I feel that is a reason I could relate to the Slytherin house. I also feel like Slyhterin are determined people. I try hard to be determined when it comes to schooling. I work very hard and make sure I am in the position to get everything done. Sometimes, I am OVER determined and overwork myself. Slyhterin are very determined to do what they have set out to do. Loyalty is another trait within the Slyhterin house. I consider myself loyal. I will defend those that I love very heavily and do what I can to help them. I will especially do what I can for them if they have done much for me. For example, my sister. She has helped me so much when it comes to my college experience and my life as a whole. When she needs me, I am there. Slyherin are also smart, however, so is Ravenclaw. And this leads me to how as I have grown older, I do not only find myself relating heavily to Slyhterin, but also Ravenclaw in some ways. Ravenlaws are smart, witty, and creative. I have always done very well in school so I would consider myself "book smart." Ravenclaw is known for their smarts so I find myself relating to them in that aspect. Also, witty and creative. I would like to say I am a pretty funny person. I love to joke and make people laugh, but also throw in little suble hints of humor in everyday conversation. I also am incredibly creative. I love art and creating things. I always excelled in art and it has always been an escape for me, just like Harry Potter has been. Of course, the sorting hat can only sort a person into one house, but in real life, people are more complex, hence why I feel I connect very well to two. However, every since I was young, I felt like I was supposed to be in Slytherin. Ravenclaw is probably a very close second but if I had the opportunity to chose, I think I might go with Slytherin to honor little me and make her proud.

I have always enjoyed fall and Halloween. It is my absolute favorite time of the year, and I will eat and drink anything pumpkin-flavored all year long. When fall comes around and the air gets crisp, all the restaurants, stores, and fast food come out with their own versions of fall. The halloween decorations come out, the food and drinks have all these warm flavors that come around once a year, and everywhere you turn you see shades of red, orange, brown, and yellow. I take it all in and love to experience it all. So with me also being a big coffee fan, when I saw that Starbucks had come out with their fall drinks this year, I had to get one immediately. I ran to my significant other and told them I needed to try the Pumpkin Cream Cold Brew or the Pumpkin Spice Frappuccino, and they so kindly agreed to take me. We ended up going within a couple days, and I ordered the Pumpkin Cream Cold Brew with my own customizations. I ordered caramel Drizzle, 2 pumps of caramel syrup, 1/2 inch splash of almond milk, 1 pump of pumpkin sauce, and blended. While next time I may add more almond milk and more pumpkin syrup, I still absolutely loved it. I will be trying more of their fall drinks, for sure. I found myself continuing to sip on it more than I usually do with my other coffees and finished it sooner than I expected to. I was terribly nervous that I would not like it, but that fear completely went away when I took my first sip. To me, fall is such an amazing time of year that more people do not appreciate. It is warm, cozy, beautiful, and has some amazing food and flavors that go along with it. Starbucks being so widely known is so awesome for taking advantage of the fall season and coming out with their fall inspired drinks with some pretty unique varieties. Many other food and drink places also offer fall inspired options, but not nearly as much as Starbucks has. It was just so cool to see, especially how they did the "Buy One Get One Free Fall Drinks" deal on Thursdays for all of September. It's very generous considering how popular they are. I have been so excited for fall and being able to eat fall inspired treats adds to the immersion of the season. The Pumpkin Cream Cold Brew from Starbucks made me so happy as it was only the second fall drink I have had this year. It was a start to my fall narrative for this year and makes me so excited for fall to really show its colors. It makes me so excited to enjoy more fall treats and more Pumpkin Cream Cold Brews doing my everyday tasks like studying in my favorite campus seating area, walking to and from class while the leafs fall, or even just relaxing at home after a long day of classes. I can tell that this drink will play a big character in my fall adventures this year considering how amazing it truly was. The customization and the uniqueness that can be added to the drink along with the environment of campus life in the fall is honestly going to make my fall this year even better.

I have dealt with anxiety and depression since middle school. It has had a big impact on my life and caused many problems. I have always felt misunderstood by my family or made to feel like my issues were not serious. My mental health has affected my friendships, relationship, schooling, and almost every other aspect of my life but I always seemed to push through. I tried very hard all of my life to make sure no matter how hard life got, to make sure I keep on my path to become successful. I tried to remind myself that it won't always be this way. My household has been heavily affected by mental health too. I have been directly affected by other people's substance abuse. It has caused fights and many problems that could have been avoided. I have felt scared and hopeless due to close relationships that involved substance abuse. I've seen first hand what substance abuse can do to someone. They could be so wonderful when sober but a completely different when not, but I understand it is an addiction. It is very sad. It has impacted me on numerous accounts. Some incidents of unfriendly behavior could stem for weeks at a time. I have told myself that no matter what happens, I will not end up making someone else feel the way people have made me felt. I will not abuse substances and I will always be considerate to those who struggle with mental health because I know how it feels to be stuck. I know how it feels to feel like nothing will ever get better and I will never get out of some situations. I know how it feels to feel alone. I never want to make someone else feel that way. I am healing everyday and taking steps to better myself and my life. I want to be able to help others as well. I have always been very passionate about mental health since middle school and I can not see that ever going away. I still struggle very heavily with my anxiety and depression but I am working on myself to better my relationships and my future. I want to better myself so I am able to enjoy life the way it should be enjoyed. I have hope that days will one day be easier. I have hope that I can be happy and I can make others happy as well.

I have loved art all of my life. I try to create art out of anything around me. I love walking around in nature and seeing the beauty around me, picking up feathers or leaves ans pinecones to encorporateinto my art or simply keep in my space. I love walking around town and taking pictures to look at and remind me of how beautiful life is. I often take a lot of inspiration for my art from my personal life or things I have seen and experienced. There is so much to look at and so much to admire in everyday life if you just take a second to do so. Everyday life can really have a big impact on artists, including myself, because it pushes you to think about how life itself is so creative without even trying. We can be creative just like how the life around us is.

I have always loved to create art ever since I was young. I have making art all of my life. For as long as I can remember everyone would tell me my drawings and art pieces were amazing. They would always ask me how I was able to create art so well and all I could respond with was, "practice." I never truly believed that my art was phenomenal despite the amount I have heard it. Though I never believe all the kind words, art always made me happy. It has always been an escape for me from the real world. No matter how hard I have always been on myself, I knew art was something I wanted to do for the rest of my life. I am going to Beloit College in Beloit, Wisconsin in Fall of 2023. My plan is the pursue a 4-year Studio Art degree and to recieve a teaching certification to one day become an art teacher. My art teachers have always been so amazing to me and my art classes were a great place for me to relax and let loose of all of my stress and my tension. It was a safe space for me to create and not be judged. I have had many teachers, especially during middle and highshcool, that I could turn to. People I could talk to and ask for advice from. They were people I knew I could run to and they would always be there to support me. I want to be that teacher for someone. I want to help students just like me. I want to help the kids who need someone. Even better yet, I want to help those kids be able to express themselves and their emotions through art. I want to create a safe space for kids like me who did not have any friends in highschool, who were stressed and sad and anxious, who felt the only thing they had was art and music to turn to. If I could be that person for a kid just like me, even just one student, I would feel like I am changing the world because I could be changing their world. When it comes to receiving my degree to pursue this dream of mine, I was very passionate about staying in my hometown for my college experience. I wanted to stay close to family and have a chance to get on my feet before I move away. The only problem is, Beloit College is an amazing private school, which means it costs a lot of money. The city of Beloit, Wisconsin is not too well known for its riches and very few Beloit residents actually go to the local college for this reason. I am sure some students do not even know we have a college right around the corner. This scholarship would help me tremendously in paying for my college tuition. My parents and I made do with the money we earn and they encouraged me to attend Beloit College because they know how great a school it is. They knew I would fit right it and be successful there despite the cost. Though they say all these things, I know money is a stressful thing for us, especially now that I will be driving and go to college. This scholarship would be a great step to keep me on my path to further my education. The next few years of my life has so much potential and I am really looking forward to doing everything I can to live a meaningful life.