To me, it means to bring pride and recognition to my family. My parents never got the opportunity I have now, and wasting the opportunity to go to college never seemed like an option to me. It did not seem fair to me to waste all of my parent's effort in coming to another country, suffering through poverty, and working effortlessly just for me not to take advantage of the opportunities they never had. Both of my parents did the best they could to provide me with a good upbringing. By graduating and earning my degrees, I do not just showcase myself but also my family. All of my work comes from and goes to my family. My recognition is not my own as my family has motivated me towards success. Success to provide them with a good future, success to provide our future generation with a good future. I hope and believe I have made my father proud. Taking advantage of the opportunities he never thought were possible and seeing me succeed in my career would have made him proud. However, my mother has also been my rock through it all. Encouraging me to continue studying even through hard nights of struggle. Encouraging me to try and better our circumstances as she feels that one day she may be here, and the next gone. In college, I started pursuing a degree in accounting. I believed that being an accountant would provide me with satisfaction. As I was attending college and trying to find a job, I randomly applied to become an ESL instructor. At the time, I had no clue what I was going to do or what I was getting into. Halfway through my degree, I changed my degree to education. I saw that changing the lives of children through teaching them how to speak, read, and write in English is what truly satisfied me. Seeing then feeling enlightened by my knowledge brings me pride and joy. It makes me feel as though I am valuable for something and that my impact is not in vain. My long-term goals are to finish all of my praxis and become a full-licensed ESL teacher. I hope to provide my students with a greater impact by becoming an ESL teacher. I am content with my job and hope to provide a better performance as I now have more knowledge and experience. I also hope to someday become financially stable to provide for my family and allow my mother a break from her struggling workplace.

I would have never been where I am today if it was not for the determination and strength of my mother. When I was sixteen, I lost my father to COVID. Through it all, my mother's only determination and motivation was our success. She has never given up; till this day she continues to provide me with the strength, experience, and wisdom I need to continue dealing with the struggles of life even though she is dealing with some herself. Every important event, every graduation, every funeral, she has been there to support and to strengthen. She has been through so much and yet, her example of strengthen and endurance continues to resonate with many people. People often come up to us and tell us that we are strong. However, I would have never been this strong without the source of my strength, the source of my wisdom, the source of my endurance, the source of my independence: my mother. My mother has been my rock through it all. She has never given up and her example continues to strike me today. Even when my father died, when we had to move out twice, when we had nothing left, she kept her head up high. She had never let the relentless struggles of this world put her down. Through all of this, she continues to tell us her inspiration, "My kids." I sometimes don't think I am worthy of having such a great mother. A loving, caring person that even when I was down, she was there to lift me up. She was there to tell me that there was no limit to what I could do. She was there to tell me that our circumstances do not determine our future. There continues to be struggles along the way. For example, my brother decided to move out and so, I have to fill his responsibilities to support my mother and my sister. Even though this event hurt her to her core, she hasn't given up. Her tears fall from her face, but her willingness and determination do not yield. Her strength continues to be the foundation of our family. Without her, I would not be getting ready to earn my provisional license to teach ESL students. ESL is not something I saw myself doing when I graduated in 2022. I believed I was going to be an accountant, working from 9 to 5 to support my family. And yet, I found my calling through a random application I submitted to my current employer in 2022. I believe that my job was temporary, that once I was able, I would become an accountant. But those students, make me feel proud when they develop their English language skills. They make me feel valued when my knowledge enlightens them. My circumstances may be difficult, but if I can help at least once student know enough English to go to college, to achieve their life goals, to make their parents proud, I consider myself valuable, worthy. Worthy of being in the position that I am in and having the life I have had.

Teachers make the second biggest impact on a child's life after their parents. Students spend a lot of time with teachers. Teachers can decide to provide a positive impact on the life of a child they care for. That is why I am here. However, this was not my first choice. When I started pursuing my bachelor's degree, I believed I would become an accountant. I took a job in education as I needed to start working. I did not get to be the teacher I am today on my own. My students and their potential made me want to change my career choice into education. It all started when I began teaching these children. Even though I had no prior knowledge, seeing these students understand what they were learning with my support opened my eyes to the reality of helping these students achieve opportunities they could never have dreamed of. Coming from a family of low opportunities, I saw this as my opportunity to help others. These students are brilliant and their intelligence should not be hindered due to a language barrier. I want to be the bridge from which my students can cross and achieve their dreams. I have faced some challenges. Due to not having my bachelor's degree until this year, I have been underpaid for my performance. I lost my father when I was younger and supporting my family while working has been a challenge. However, I know my place is in education, and supporting these students compels me to continue my journey. My students have been the motivation for me to finish my degree. Without their success, there wouldn't be a Ms. Nunez. Having an impact on the lives of these children makes me feel like I am not wasting my breath or time. I feel successful and useful. I feel like I have a goal to work towards. There are many current issues in education. One major issue that I am currently facing is how core teachers can provide enough support to ensure the success of ESL students. While core teachers try their best, students should be allowed more time with their ESL teacher to build a strong foundation in the English language. As of now, I am also facing the issue of teacher shortages. In my current workplace, we are missing three core teachers. Many professionals have left due to the unsafe conditions of the workplace, the low wages being provided to them, and the lack of proper care for their needs. All of these issues seem to grow exponentially as the years go by.

I pursued higher education to accomplish my life goals and make my parents proud. While my father and mother worked their entire lives, it did not set well with me to allow their efforts to be in vain. Through their hard work and efforts, I was able to apply to college. Although my father never saw me graduate from high school or Purdue Global, I am very grateful to have had a father who cared for me and taught me that there was no limit for me. My mother has been my rock through it all and I hope to one day be able to repay her generosity. I aim to one day be financially stable enough to support her. Through higher education, I have been able to work with an amazing group of students and staff. Every day when I get to work, my students put a smile on my face. They are fun and watching them learn a new language makes me rejoice as they are opening themselves doors for new opportunities. So many of these students have career goals and my goal is to help them achieve their dream careers. While college had always been a goal for me, I tried to prepare myself through excelling in school. Taking calculus and biology in school was very difficult but in the end, they helped me finish my associates earlier. I also learned helpful study habits that have helped me pass one of the five praxis tests ahead of me. When scholarship season came around, I applied to all of the scholarships available to me. I wanted to get the most help I could as I would never expect my mother to pay my college tuition. I look forward to supporting her and not having her support me. I still have a long way to go to get licensed, however, my motivation remains strong. Wanting to make my family proud and taking advantage of the opportunities they never had continues to move me towards pursuing higher education. If in the future I am able to pay my current student loans and earn a scholarship to get my master's, I will continue to further educate myself. Not only to be knowledgeable in my field but to also benefit my students. With your help and generosity, you can help me come closer to my dreams and goals. Thank you very much!

When I started my journey in college, I believed that I wanted to be an accountant. I began to seek a job and found myself working as an ESL instructor for a school in my city. I believed this job would be temporary, but it was not. I grew to enjoy working with middle school children. In response to this new love for helping children learn a new language and make an impact on their lives, I changed my degree to focus on education. My plan for the future is to become an ESL teacher. As an ESL teacher, I will get to have more resources and time to help my ELL students. I truly enjoy working with my ELLs and nothing feels better than receiving that thank you and goodbye hug from one of them at the end of the school year. I also plan to take my praxis tests to get an endorsement in ESL and truly become an ESL teacher. With your help and this scholarship, I will be able to pay off one of my classes that a Pell Grant does not cover. I currently work full-time, help my widowed mother take care of my siblings, and study at PG. This will also allow me to continue impacting and benefiting the lives of my ELLs without having to worry about how I am going to pay for this class. With your help, I can pay for this class and continue earning my degree. I appreciate all of your help and support. I impact my students by maintaining constant communication with their parents and seeing which ways I can benefit them most. I also try to be creative and fun when it comes to teaching them English. I have made a dictionary game where I put a funny song on and they have until the song ends to find a word in the dictionary. It is spectacular to see how they get excited when they find the word before their other peers. They are growing academically, socially, physically, and mentally at this phase in their lives, and that it is very important for me to have a ton of patience with them. I also impact my student's lives by teaching them something beneficial which is English. Even though it is not easy, it is able to be done. I plan to create a bigger impact on my students by earning my degree in 2024.