Imagine a problem bigger than any one person. A problem that consumes a large group of people. Social issues are a prominent aspect of American culture because America is always evolving and several things can be done to solve these issues. A social issue I am invested in is hunger in America, it’s important to me because I have faced this problem all of my life. It is devastating when a person doesn’t know whether they’re going to have their next meal. I hope to alleviate the stress of hunger in America through community service, provide information about resources and bring awareness of this issue to people in my community. My involvement in Lamar University organizations like the Cardinals Activity Board and Wesley Baptist Church helps me address the issue of mass hunger. The Cardinals Activity Board is a multi-event program that helps Lamar University students economically, educationally, and socially. Events that reach most students are the social and educational opportunities we offer, an example of such an event happens at the beginning of every semester, Late Night at the Set. This is where students have an opportunity to meet others and get a meal, and snacks, from the program. These events are important because the more people present the more people we can make aware of issues happening in the world. The Wesley Baptist Church is one of the religious communities on campus. Through Wesley, I help make snack packs and hand out food. This is important to me because I understand how hard it is to afford all the expenses that post-secondary education expects out of a young adult. When I am giving the snack packs to my peers it’s relieving knowing I’m helping alleviate the burden of buying food for the weekend break. Providing food to people is one way to address hunger among citizens but, education about healthy food practices further aids in reducing hunger among citizens. The food events held by the Cardinal Activity Board goes beyond just providing food for Lamar University students’ body. When the event includes food there’s a section about proper portions and how to evaluate how much someone might eat. It reduces the amount of food wasted at these events. This prompts people to be aware of how much food they need and decreases the amount of food that is wasted. When there’s less food wasted, more of it can be preserved for later use or donated to members of the community who can’t readily afford the food. My effort toward ending mass hunger is also shown through my social media. In university the amount of people I can reach is limited, so I post on social media actions to be taken to better preserve food and help those in need. This has made an impact on communities bigger than my own and I hope to continue to reach people who also want to put an end to this growing issue. It takes a village to solve a mass issue. Hunger is an issue present in local, national, and global communities. Through my actions I hope to alleviate the stress of hunger in America through community service, provide information about resources and bring awareness of this issue to people in my community. Food is a necessity that too many people have to worry about, so let’s work together to end the worrying.

The world is socially changing every day. The abundance of social issues coming to light has made me aware of the many issues people go through daily. A social issue I find important is healthcare in America. I am in college to become a Physician Assistant or Athletic Trainer because I want to help people. It’s hard to help people who can’t afford the medical necessities they need, that is part of why I went into my major. Healthcare in America should be more accessible because it is essential to living a healthy life. I am Michelle Lane. I am an Exercise Science Major at Lamar University entering my sophomore year. I chose Exercise Science because I am a former athlete that became more interested in helping others. Athletics was my supporting anchor when it came to academia because play my sports I had to pass my classes. I had some career injuries that required medical attention but couldn’t receive the proper help because healthcare was too expensive. This is the case for many people living in poverty, there shouldn’t be a situation where people must choose between receiving the medical care they need and their next meal. Fortunately, I received the care I needed but, it made me realize that this is the case for many people in poverty. Healthcare is a necessity, but the cost could be a decision between much-needed care or someone's next meal. Since the affordability of healthcare is hard, I got involved in programs at Lamar University that promote teaching the student body about social problems. The Cardinals Activities Board (CAB) is an organization I am in. I heard about CAB through a friend and immediately joined when I heard how the organization educates the student body. Some of the events I have been involved in are sexual health, physical and mental wellness, and history. The way we reach out to the student body is through posters, seminars, and hosting game nights like trivia that highlight these important issues. For healthcare information, we pair up with the Student Health Center to give RedTalks about safety and reaching out. These events are beneficial to all students especially the ones running the event. I am constantly learning about the different resources provided to students and low-income youth I’m able to share these with my peers at university and back home. Knowledge about the resources available to the public is the first step in becoming a healthcare professional. Becoming a healthcare professional will make the most impact on people. When I become a healthcare professional my priority will be to aid young disadvantaged individuals. A disproportionate percentage of these youths are current athletes in school, so my focus will be on these athletes. I want to help break the economic cycle amongst these youths and give them a better chance at life. When the low-income cycle is broken, students can afford the care they need and live a desirable life. When there’s help available to the younger generations there’s a decrease in medical misinformation. Ultimately, my role as a healthcare worker will benefit the greater good and help low-income people receive affordable healthcare.

“Thank you, for trusting me to care for you.” is what every healthcare professional feels after helping a patient. There aren’t two that are the same, everyone has differences that set them apart from the group. I know that diversity amongst any group of people is important, so that is why I want to become a physician assistant. I, an African American and LGBTQ+ student, want to help my patient to the fullest of my capacities both physically and mentally. Being African American comes with a lot of stigmas. African Americans are sometimes classified as lazy and unmotivated. I recognize the standard of my community is lower than the standard of others. I know that being African American puts no limitations on what I’m able to achieve. Having diversity in the workplace puts both my coworkers and patients at ease because it reinforces that there are many options for care. I am a literal thinker meaning that I like to take into consideration things I know that are practical, my coworker could be a creative thinker and with our opposing outlook on situations, there is an increased chance of us coming to a productive treatment plan for the patients. Along with many options of treatment for the patient, they would have an input on what type of treatment they want to receive. Being African American to me means having a great work ethic and being outgoing, it encompasses being reliable and open with my patients and coworkers. Sexuality and gender expression are identities that should be explored freely. In high school, I had questions about my gender and sexual identity and decided to explore the options. While exploring these options I become more receptive to retaining information about things I don’t know much about. One of the great things about being a physician assistant is the people that I will meet. I was fortunate enough to grow up in an environment that was open towards different sexualities, but when it came to genders it was a learning opportunity for many people in my life. Safety around the exploration of sexual and gender identity is essential to finding out who you are and I want my peers to know that they are safe. Specifically, with youth exploring their sexual and gender identities, it will be helpful to know an adult who can help and offer resources when needed. I want to help people with receiving help and making informed decisions about their life. Working in a diverse profession comes with working with diverse people. A huge part of healthcare goes beyond what we can physically do. Mental health is very important and has a huge impact on the minority community. I want to become a physician assistant to help my patient get better and back to their daily life and to make sure that they’re okay mentally. I also want to learn about the many communities in the profession. When I am a physician assistant I will learn more about different cultures and more about my own. This is exciting because not only will I be able to know more about myself I will also know more about the people I’m caring for. Lastly, being a healthcare professional has always been something instilled in me. I knew before entering Lamar University that I wanted to help people. Becoming a physician assistant is my ultimate goal and I’ll achieve it while meeting new people along the way.

Life is the baseline for all existence, and without it, Earth would just be a boring rock floating through a never-ending void. That makes me wonder, what happened for life to become reality? There are many justifications for the creation of life, whether that be to please a higher deity or because the chemical balance of the universe was just right for us we’ll probably never know. What we can conclude though life is what we make of it. There are so many things to do with the life we’ve been given, whether it’d be well spent is up to the beholder of that life. The meaning of life is such a hard question to ask. There’s no blueprint to follow, it’s a never-ending cycle of trial and error until we come to a conclusion we’re satisfied with. My perspective of what life is meant to be is to achieve something better than what you started with. I grew up in poverty, I didn’t always receive the latest new toys or the best clothes but I can say I’ve gotten a good education. Education has been something I’ve always strived for because I believe it can change your perspective and broaden your horizons. Life is to become the best you possible. How I am achieving life is through continuous acts of learning and experimenting. Every day I’m defying the odds, my parents had never had college in the future of their children but now I’m a first-generation scholar. I’ve never thought I’d break the cycle of going straight into work after high school but I did and now I get to experiment with the opportunity I’ve been given with higher education. Achieving life isn’t the goal for me, getting comfortable with life is.

Sports are a huge part of my life and impact me in every way imaginable. I played many sports growing up and they’ve been my go-to activity when I have free time. Apart from sports I also involve myself in more creative expressions like drawing. These hobbies helped me broaden my creative spectrum and give me the opportunity to make new projects. One of the sports I play is Colorguard. It entails spinning many pieces of equipment, usually flags, rifles, and sabers, to music. It’s a choreographed sport that originated in the military and soon broke off into competitive arenas. I figured out about this sport through high school and continued with it throughout all four years. This sport makes me feel creatively free while still getting to work out. I use colorguard primarily to create new routines to songs that I get stuck in my head, just making my own choreograph gives me hope of teaching these routines to future colorguard members and hopefully becoming a coach or tech. Colorguard has a huge influence in my life and was one of the leading causes when it came to choosing my major. One of my other hobbies is drawing. I picked up drawing again throughout the pandemic, and fell in love with it. When I was younger my mother would draw for my siblings and I to calm us, so when I started drawing in elementary it was immediately associated with good vibes. When restarting my journey with drawing I found myself to be more immerse in the art and having more success in what I wanted to express. Drawing ultimately provides me with the escape I need from reality from time to time. These are a few of my bold hobbies that make me empowered!

Empathy is within all of us and builds the foundation of the relationships we share with others. When making connections with people, I want to make everyone feel involved and valued without limitations. Ultimately, empathy is an expression I share with others regardless of our differences. I interact with various age groups such as children, the elderly, and teens like myself. Being involved with a diverse community allows me to learn about the different encounters people have. Upon these interactions I see many variations of the reality we all live in; some are filled with incredible memories reminding people why they matter and belong while others contain unfavorable memories having people longing for a better life. No matter the relation between the people and their life I’m glad to be involved where wanted. Whether it’s someone's best or worst day, I want make sure they have someone who they can share their day with. I love being surrounded by others because it gives us the chance to unwind and be relaxed; without fear of judgment. Having a support system where your anchor person can relate to or listen to you helps improve a person's mood significantly and could be the leading hand in causing a bad day to turn into a better one. Some of the ways I like to show empathy to others are by letting them rant, hanging out with them, or buying them food. Part of being human is accepting the fact that we’re all emotional beings, and that’s it’s okay to express these emotions. It helps a lot more when there’s someone else you can lean on.

My values consist of furthering my education and keeping myself and others safe and healthy, so when it came to determining what I would pursue in university, I knew it’d be a no-brainer. STEM is vital in figuring out how people function and how to help them most efficiently. Unfortunately, only a minor percentage of the professionals involved in this field are African Americans; I hope to contribute to the increase of this percentage and become a physical therapist. When first deciding on a degree path, I considered what I enjoy doing the most. I realized that I like to exercise and help other people more than anything else, and this helped me settle on becoming a medical professional of some sort. Fortunately, I did know some of the professions, but none of them seemed like they’d line up with my priorities until I visited a physical therapist myself. Being involved in many sports left me vulnerable to injury, and this proved to be prevalent when I sustained a rotated hip. My hip injury was a result of playing too many sports. Doing so resulted in my hip turning on top of my pelvis, making it harder for me to walk and sit comfortably. Initially, I believed this was an unfortunate reality I’d have to face, but I soon saw that this didn’t have to be the case. Going through physical therapy myself made me realize how much more it’s essential to take care of our bodies and pushed me to make that a priority, which is what I want to do for others. Pursuing a degree in Health Sciences is something I’m excited about, and I can’t wait to help as many people as possible. I envision people linked by their weaknesses and strengths when it comes to community. I love to give back to my community by volunteering and providing support when I can; with a degree in Health Sciences, I can come back to help my community and many more. I grew up in poverty, most of my community don’t have access to affordable health care, and either can’t work to earn money or can’t work due to pre-existing medical conditions. So I want to return to my community and provide them with efficient, affordable, and accurate medical attention. So when I achieve my goal of having a degree in Health Sciences, I will become the person my community needs to ensure everyone's safety. Altogether I just want to see my community prosper; I know I can be stable support to help others reach their goal.

Throughout the pandemic, many doors have opened for me. I got accepted into colleges, I am graduating soon and I get to end my high school career around the people I care about most. Along with new beginnings came harsh endings. I faced struggles, but they did not deter me from reaching my goal of being the first in my family to go to college. The pandemic has provided me with the opportunity to grow, connect and learn about how to be responsible for my future. The spring break of 2019 changed my life for the better. Students were notified of an extended spring break, not knowing it would be the end of our sophomore year. I received an overabundance of time I was not prepared to use. Maybe I could have exercised more, focused on my education, or found a new hobby altogether, but I opted to focus on my education. I attended virtual educational camps geared towards preparing students for the ACT. Standardized testing has always been something I struggled with. When I am in an environment where I must remember all I know in a short amount of time, I lose track of anything I have been told. Texas State University sponsored the camp that I attended. It centered on test-taking strategies and understanding what the test questions were asking. Through this camp, I gained confidence in my test-taking abilities and took the ACT the following school semester, earning an impressive 20. I was proud of this score, but I knew I could do even better and took the SAT, making a staggering 1120—170 points higher than my last attempt. Before the pandemic, I had done only what others expected of me and just reached the baseline of my capabilities, but throughout the isolation of quarantine, I realized I could achieve more if I spent my time wisely. While already attending educational camps, I still had a lot of free time. I was not used to having so much time to myself because I would usually keep myself involved in other activities like marching band, color guard, and softball. Though I enjoyed the camps, I knew I could be productive in other ways too, so I got a job. I applied to become a cashier at H-E-B, one of Texas’ biggest grocery stores. I intended to save money for university, but this was unfortunately not to be. Over ten months, I was able to save $1,500 for my tuition, room, and board; but in February 2021, a huge snowstorm hit Texas. This storm threw a huge wrench in my plans—the damage it caused prevented my father from going to work, and my savings had to be used so my family could still have shelter. I still work at H-E-B, and I am slowly recovering my savings. The pandemic has taught me the responsibilities that come with money, that it is not something easily earned and should be spent with thought. The entire pandemic has opened my eyes in ways I could not imagine before. Without the pandemic, I would not have gone through these hardships, which have encouraged me to work harder in school, given me a new appreciation for the value of money, and made me the responsible person I am today. Ever since the pandemic, I have been more productive than ever before.