When the leaders in your school give up on the students, you tend to too. I grew up in Albuquerque, New Mexico, where the crime is high and the motivation is low and the public schools weren't anything different. The mirrors in our halls had been peeled back off the walls on account of the excessive drug dealing and our hopes settled as low as the smoke blown from the kid in the seat next to me. My environment isn't one for overachievers, but I was still destined to succeed, and I had been gasping for air above the smoke for too long, searching for a foreign hope. So, I took AP Spanish in hopes of a challenge but settled for the fact that I probably wasn't going to get it. Growing up in my Latino family, I believed it was going to be a breeze, but I never could've expected how it would alter my perception of school and life. A pale, blue-eyed man stood up and proceeded to describe a year-long syllabus, with daily assignments and lectures, ending with the AP exam in May. I was shocked and inclined and day after day my Spanish teacher managed to continue evoking those same two emotions in me. There was never a day wasted; he deemed it "disrespectful" for him to plan nothing if we made it a point to be in the class that day. Even with our state-mandated topics, he used his travel knowledge to dazzle us with his adventure stories of traveling through South America, inspiring us to have our own someday. He would always say that it was devastating for someone to be afraid to travel, so, he taught us everything we'd need to get around in a Spanish-speaking country. From the architecture in Spain to the corrupted government in Venezuela my Spanish teacher helped us develop a sense of the world, implementing history, art, science, ethics, and beauty into a Spanish class. As we developed our skills in travel, we also developed our AP skills, utilizing our knowledge of global issues and beliefs to improve our multiple-choice, essay, and speech-giving abilities. At the end of that year, I walked away fully confident in my ability to pass the AP test. Not only were we better off academically, but through his meticulous planning daily, he taught us what it looked like to be passionate about a career and well-educated in every aspect. He gave me a new perspective on the definition of success. As I reflect on my teachers of the past, it seemed like an occupation for those who didn't make it in other careers. Teaching was a have-to, not a get-to. But, this teacher altered that for me, showing me that success isn't based on how highly regarded you are in a workplace, nor how much money you make, but how much of a difference you make and the ease to do that in the place you love to be. He instilled some hope for me in my educational goals, that not every place was like New Mexico-there were places where lots of people were desperate to learn and grow. It's still difficult to overcome that atmosphere of people who lack motivation, but I know there's hope for the future of both New Mexico and elsewhere. I can confidently say that I left that class more fluent in Spanish and more passionate about learning and traveling the world.

My name is Micaela Romero, and I’m a high school senior! I grew up in Albuquerque, New Mexico and I’ve been blessed to be surrounded by a loving family who has supported me in my dreams. With their support, I’ve actively participated in many clubs and activities, such as Key Club, MESA, DECA, Senate, the treasurer for the National Honors Society, and the Hispanic Student Union. During the pandemic, we moved houses, relocated to Rio Rancho, and debuted my fresh start as a Ram. I had no friends, so I tried out for the Cross Country team and their Swim Team too! It was one of the best decisions I had made, making many lasting friendships, and enjoying team pasta parties and long meets every Saturday until March. Doing great in school, sports, and other extracurricular activities was amazing! But it took a devastating event in my life to realize how short life is, my need for Jesus, and to live out my calling. I remember receiving a call from my auntie on the way home from school and rushing to my grandma’s house. We all stood around the phone as my Auntie Julie told us that my cousin had committed suicide. Overwhelming defeat spread through the room that day, and even more for the years to come with my family. It was difficult to understand the full extent of the situation’s emotions and it brought so much hurt to everybody. My cousin was an overachiever, a teacher who was so loved by family, friends, and students he liked to brag on were the “best”. What seemed like a picture-perfect life was shattered, leaving us with the broken pieces, and the sad reality that you really don’t know what’s going on in someone’s mind. During the first years of grieving, and a global pandemic, I drew near to God, finding peace and forgiveness through Him. He met me right where I was, and I started developing meaningful relationships at church and reaching out about the hurt. Though it’s not something that you can forget, I learned you can heal and grow from it. As my relationship with Jesus grew, I started a Fellowship of Christians Students club to spread the love of Jesus to everybody and create a place to talk about hard things going on in life with others. Starting it was scary, especially because my reputation would be forever different; I would be labeled as the “Jesus Freak”. But sharing the love and peace of Jesus I’ve experienced with one person would’ve been worth it. I’m proud to say we’ve grown past one person, with our record of 50 students gathering to hear about God. This year, we’ve been able to take it to the next level, fundraising money for FCS t-shirts and pairing with other clubs in serving projects like a school-wide clean up around our city. My team and I have organized tailgate events and brought the ‘See You at the Pole’ day to our school. I’ve also had the privilege to give devotionals, strengthening my faith and sharing my story, my cousins, and other students have shared their testimonies too. I’ve learned that I love to lead, and I want to use these skills to speak on issues that face our world today like mental health and share the love of Jesus. I’ve seen the drastic change Jesus has made in my life and I hope to reach anybody struggling around me, even with a scholarship essay.

My name is Micaela Romero, and I’m a recovering nervous wreck! I grew up in Albuquerque, New Mexico and I'm a senior! Through high school, I’ve actively participated in many clubs and activities, such as Key Club, MESA, DECA, Senate, the treasurer for the National Honors Society, and the Hispanic Student Union. During the pandemic, we moved houses, relocated to Rio Rancho, and debuted my fresh start as a Ram. I had no friends, so I tried out for the Cross Country team and their Swim Team too! I was able to make many lasting friendships, and enjoy team pasta parties and long meets every Saturday until March. Doing great in school, sports, and other extracurricular activities was terrific! But it took a devastating event in my life to realize how short life is, my need for Jesus, and to live out my calling. I remember receiving a call and rushing to my grandma’s house. We all stood around the phone as my Auntie Julie told us that my cousin had committed suicide. Overwhelming defeat spread through the room, and even more for the years to come with my family. It was difficult to understand the full extent of the situation’s emotions, bringing so much hurt to everybody. How could someone so loved feel like this? I struggled for years with that question, spurring my own anxiety. My cousin was an overachiever, a teacher who was so loved by family, friends, and students he liked to brag on were the “best”. What seemed like a picture-perfect life was shattered, leaving us with the broken pieces, and the sad reality that you really don’t know what’s going on in someone’s mind. During the first years of grieving, and a global pandemic, I had no clue what to do. I tried therapy, but it was useless to me. Inconsistently seeing my therapist led to consistent stress and self-reliance. I shut the world out, etching myself into a “perfect” overachieving kid with a deep hole of despair inside of me. I believed there was no reason to talk about my problems because every time I voiced them I was “crazy.” As life went on this way, I began to understand my cousin and his feeling of being completely alone, even with people around me. I was diagnosed with vertigo and anxiety disorder and that’s when I felt like I hit rock bottom. People couldn’t fill the despair hole I had and I was desperate for answers. One night as I was having a panic attack I prayed for the first time in a long time, asking God to intervene. Instantly, the room stopped spinning and my body stopped shaking. I was astonished because for the first time, I felt this overwhelming sense of peace go through me and I believed that there was hope for tomorrow. After that night, I started to draw near to God, finding more peace and forgiveness through Him. He met me right where I was, and I started developing meaningful relationships, going to church, and reaching out about the hurt. Now, I can’t say that everything was fixed and I never worried after that; because it’s simply not true. It was a daily surrender, a daily fight to get up in the morning, but I was no longer fighting alone. As my relationship with Jesus grew, I knew I couldn’t continue this path without helping others who struggle. So, I started a Fellowship of Christians Students club to spread the love of Jesus to everybody and create a place to talk about hard things going on in life with others at school. Starting it was scary, especially because my reputation would be forever different; I would be labeled as the “Jesus Freak”. But sharing the love and peace of Jesus I’ve experienced with one person would’ve been worth it. I’m proud to say we’ve grown past one person, with our record of 50 students gathering to hear about God. This year, we’ve been able to take it to the next level, fundraising money for food for Rio Rancho elementary schoolers and pairing with other clubs in serving projects like a school-wide clean up around our city. My team and I have organized tailgate events and brought the ‘See You at the Pole’ day to our school. I’ve also had the privilege to give devotionals, strengthening my faith and sharing my story, my cousins, and other students have shared their testimonies too. I’ve learned that I love to teach, and I want to use these skills to speak on issues that face our world today like mental health, and share the love of Jesus. I’ve seen the drastic change Jesus has made in my life and I hope to reach anybody struggling around me, even with a scholarship essay.

Today, I can write to you about how passionate I am about Jesus, and as a result, how passionate I am about people. But it wasn’t always this way; there was a time in my life when anxiety and insecurity consumed my life and I wanted to isolate myself from God and anybody at all times. It wasn’t until I cried out to God one fateful night that I received peace that I cannot even explain. Volunteerism has taught me a lot about seeing things through the eyes of others, and the importance of persevering. Sunday mornings you can find me in either the preschool classroom herding 12, four-year-olds or the middle-school room, leading after-service small groups. I have found both positions to be extremely rewarding in their way, and both have given me a different outlook on volunteering. Preschoolers really love to try your patience, and through all the temper tantrums I’ve learned the importance of perseverance. They need to know that you’re going to be there to push them on the swings just as much as you push them to learn their memory verse. Just like talking with 7th-grade girls about the bullies and the hard times at home gives me a different perspective and a heart for what they go through. Both keep me coming back knowing that I can impact their lives for the better through building those relationships. In the future, I hope to continue my education in medicine pursuing a doctorate and succeeding in a pediatrics career that utilizes my education and experience. I strive to be a well-rounded individual, exploring multiple paths to help me grasp a better understanding of the world around me, and learn more about the rest of the world too. Not only do I use these tools to provide for my family, but I also want to give back to my community by providing care for kids and giving back money to St. Jude and other similar charities. With this, reaching the people I’m surrounded by and inspiring positive change is the best course of action I’m determined to take. Maya Angelou once said, “People will forget what you said, will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.” I hope that my life will reflect a life of encouragement and magnify confidence in the community around me. Hopefully, I can create a chain reaction of forming opportunities for generations to come. Using my career choice, I’m fixed on advancing the medical field and contributing to society through it. I would love to work with both parents and kids to provide a safe and clean doctor’s visit. Seeing kids grow, I would have the ability to motivate our future difference-makers to pursue big dreams while bandaging boo-boos. I would also like to chase opportunities with critical care units and work alongside artificial intelligence to shape the future of regeneration. In everything I do, from the preschool classrooms I’m in now, to the doctor's office I’ll be in, I am always seeking to grow to be the best version of myself, and with the resources available to me and the resources I am actively striving to get, I can shape not only my community but the whole world.

My name is Micaela Romero, and I’m a high school senior! I grew up in Albuquerque, New Mexico and I’ve been blessed to be surrounded by a loving family who has supported me in my dreams. With their support, I’ve actively participated in many clubs and activities, such as Key Club, MESA, DECA, Senate, the treasurer for the National Honors Society, and the Hispanic Student Union. During the pandemic, we moved houses, relocated to Rio Rancho, and debuted my fresh start as a Ram. I had no friends, so I tried out for the Cross Country team and their Swim Team too! It was one of the best decisions I had made, making many lasting friendships, and enjoying team pasta parties and long meets every Saturday until March. Doing great in school, sports, and other extracurricular activities was amazing! But it took a devastating event in my life to realize how short life is, my need for Jesus, and to live out my calling. I remember receiving a call from my auntie on the way home from school and rushing to my grandma’s house. We all stood around the phone as my Auntie Julie told us that my cousin had committed suicide. Overwhelming defeat spread through the room that day, and even more for the years to come with my family. It was difficult to understand the full extent of the situation’s emotions and it brought so much hurt to everybody. My cousin was an overachiever, a teacher who was so loved by family, friends, and students he liked to brag on were the “best”. What seemed like a picture-perfect life was shattered, leaving us with the broken pieces, and the sad reality that you really don’t know what’s going on in someone’s mind. During the first years of grieving, and a global pandemic, I drew near to God, finding peace and forgiveness through Him. He met me right where I was, and I started developing meaningful relationships at church and reaching out about the hurt. Though it’s not something that you can forget, I learned you can heal and grow from it. As my relationship with Jesus grew, I started a Fellowship of Christians Students club to spread the love of Jesus to everybody and create a place to talk about hard things going on in life with others. Starting it was scary, especially because my reputation would be forever different; I would be labeled as the “Jesus Freak”. But sharing the love and peace of Jesus I’ve experienced with one person would’ve been worth it. I’m proud to say we’ve grown past one person, with our record of 50 students gathering to hear about God. This year, we’ve been able to take it to the next level, fundraising money for FCS t-shirts and pairing with other clubs in serving projects like a school-wide clean up around our city. My team and I have organized tailgate events and brought the ‘See You at the Pole’ day to our school. I’ve also had the privilege to give devotionals, strengthening my faith and sharing my story, my cousins, and other students have shared their testimonies too. I’ve learned that I love to teach, and I want to use these skills to speak on issues that face our world today like mental health and share the love of Jesus. I’ve seen the drastic change Jesus has made in my life and I hope to reach anybody struggling around me, even with a scholarship essay.

My name is Micaela Romero, and fall 2023 will be my first semester attending college! I grew up in Albuquerque, New Mexico and I’m a recovering nervous wreck. Through high school, I’ve actively participated in many clubs and activities, such as Key Club, MESA, DECA, Senate, the treasurer for the National Honors Society, and the Hispanic Student Union. During the pandemic, we moved houses, relocated to Rio Rancho, and debuted my fresh start as a Ram. I had no friends, so I tried out for the Cross Country team and their Swim Team too! It was one of the best decisions I had made, making many lasting friendships, and enjoying team pasta parties and long meets every Saturday until March. Doing great in school, sports, and other extracurricular activities was amazing! But it took a devastating event in my life to realize how short life is, my need for Jesus, and to live out my calling. I remember receiving a call from my auntie on the way home from school and rushing to my grandma’s house. We all stood around the phone as my Auntie Julie told us that my cousin had committed suicide. Overwhelming defeat spread through the room that day, and even more for the years to come with my family. It was difficult to understand the full extent of the situation’s emotions and it brought so much hurt to everybody. How could someone who was so loved feel like this? I struggled for years with that question, spurring my anxiety. My cousin was an overachiever, a teacher who was so loved by family, friends, and students he liked to brag on were the “best”. What seemed like a picture-perfect life was shattered, leaving us with the broken pieces, and the sad reality that you don’t know what’s going on in someone’s mind. During the first years of grieving, and a global pandemic, I had no clue what to do. I tried therapy, but it was useless to me. Inconsistently seeing my therapist led to consistent stress and self-reliance. I shut the world out, etching myself into a “perfect” overachieving kid with a deep hole of despair inside of me. I believed there was no reason to talk about my problems because every time I voiced them I was “looking for attention.” As life went on this way, I began to understand my cousin and his feeling of being completely alone, even with people around me. I was diagnosed with vertigo and anxiety disorder and that’s when I felt like I hit rock bottom. People couldn’t fill the despair hole I had and I was desperate for answers. One night as I was having a panic attack I prayed for the first time in a long time, asking God to fix me. Instantly, the room stopped spinning and my body stopped shaking. I was astonished because for the first time I felt this overwhelming sense of peace go through me and at that moment I believed that there was hope for tomorrow. After that night, I started to draw near to God, finding more peace and forgiveness through Him. He met me right where I was, and I started developing meaningful relationships, going to church, and reaching out about the hurt. Now, I can’t say that everything was fixed and I never worried after that; because it’s simply not true. It was a daily surrender, a daily fight to get up in the morning, but I was no longer fighting alone. As my relationship with Jesus grew, I knew I couldn’t continue this path without helping others who might be going through the same thing as me. So, I started a Fellowship of Christians Students club to spread the love of Jesus to everybody and create a place to talk about hard things going on in life with others at school. Starting it was scary, especially because my reputation would be forever different; I would be labeled as the “Jesus Freak”. But sharing the love and peace of Jesus I’ve experienced with one person would’ve been worth it. I’m proud to say we’ve grown past one person, with our record of 50 students gathering to hear about God. This year, we’ve been able to take it to the next level, fundraising money for food for Rio Rancho elementary schoolers and pairing with other clubs in serving projects like a school-wide clean up around our city. My team and I have organized tailgate events and brought the ‘See You at the Pole’ day to our school. I’ve also had the privilege to give devotionals, strengthening my faith and sharing my story, my cousins, and other students have shared their testimonies too. I’ve learned that I love to teach, and I want to use these skills to speak on issues that face our world today like mental health and share the love of Jesus. I’ve seen the drastic change Jesus has made in my life and I hope to reach anybody struggling around me, even with a scholarship essay.

My name is Micaela Romero, and I'm a senior in High School! I grew up in Albuquerque, New Mexico with my Mom, Dad, and Sister. I’ve been blessed to be surrounded by a loving family who has supported me in my dreams. With their support, I’ve actively participated in many clubs and activities, such as Key Club, MESA, DECA, Senate, the treasurer for the National Honors Society, and the Hispanic Student Union. During the pandemic, we moved houses, relocated to Rio Rancho, and debuted my fresh start as a Ram. I had no friends, so, I tried out for the Cross Country team and their Swim Team too! It was one of the best decisions I had made, making many lasting friendships, and enjoying team pasta parties and long meets every Saturday until March. Doing great in school, sports, and other extracurricular activities was amazing! But it took a devastating event in my life to realize how short life is, my need for Jesus, and to live out my calling. I remember receiving a call from my auntie on the way home from school and rushing to my grandma’s house. We all stood around the phone as my Auntie Julie told us that my cousin had committed suicide. Overwhelming defeat spread through the room that day, and even more for the years to come with my family. It was difficult to understand the full extent of the situation’s emotions and it brought so much hurt to everybody. My cousin was an overachiever, a teacher who was so loved by family, friends, and students he liked to brag on were the “best”. What seemed like a picture-perfect life was shattered, leaving us with the broken pieces, and the sad reality that you really don’t know what’s going on in someone’s mind. During the first years of grieving, and a global pandemic, I drew near to God, finding peace and forgiveness through Him. He met me right where I was, and I started developing meaningful relationships at church and reaching out about the hurt. Though it’s not something that you can forget, I learned you can heal and grow from it. As my relationship with Jesus grew, I started a Fellowship of Christians Students club to spread the love of Jesus to everybody and create a place to talk about hard things going on in life with others. Starting it was scary, especially because my reputation would be forever different; I would be labeled as the “Jesus Freak”. But sharing the love and peace of Jesus I’ve experienced with one person would’ve been worth it. I’m proud to say we’ve grown past one person, with our record of 50 students gathering to hear about God. This year, we’ve been able to take it to the next level, fundraising money for FCS t-shirts and pairing with other clubs in serving projects like a school-wide clean up around our city. My team and I have organized tailgate events and brought the ‘See You at the Pole’ day to our school. I’ve also had the privilege to give devotionals, strengthening my faith and sharing my story, my cousin’s, and other students have shared their testimonies too. I’ve learned that I love to teach, and I want to use these skills to speak on issues that face our world today like mental health and share the love of Jesus. I’ve seen the drastic change Jesus has made in my life and I hope to reach anybody struggling around me, even with a scholarship essay.