Hello to all reading this! My name is Milo Lugo, and I am a current Junior at Montclair State University, majoring in both Anthropology and Philosophy. I also have two minors; one is in Leadership Development Through Civic Engagement, while the other is in Public & Professional Writing. I am a first-generation college student, alongside being Latinx and Queer. Every second I have spent alive I have always been driven for change in communities all around the globe. Especially all the issues that come alongside being first-generation. I applied to FAFSA not even understanding what it was fully at first. My guidance counselor that was in my High School at no point instructed me on how to approach life after High School. My parents of course had no idea since they had never been to college. My older brother is too disabled to go to college either, so I was forced to figure everything out mainly on my own. I knew that when entering college, I was going to have to try harder than majority of the people around me to achieve my dreams of going to school and achieving a bachelor's or higher. I currently work at multiple positions on my campus just to be able to afford my massive bill each semester, while also financially supporting myself for the most part. Being previously homeless at the age of 10 terrified and currently still terrifies me so much that I will do anything and everything to make sure that me nor my family will ever be in that position again. My main position is being a member of the Bonner Leader Program. It is a 4-year community service-based program in which we have to gather 300 hours of community service a school year. It is the best thing I chose to do at college, in my personal opinion. I also work alongside the mascot, using hand signals/signs to communicate when someone is inside the suit, keeping them safe at all times too. I am a Peer Mentor, also called a Discovery Fellow as well. I help acclimate freshman in the New Student Seminar course to Montclair State University, assisting them with any possible questions they may have around campus. Finally, I am a member of "Increasing Access to College", in which I work with differently abled students on campus, helping them acclimate and succeed as well. Everything I do has its own reason, whether it be to help someone else with achieving their bachelor's or higher as well, or to help me help others. I do all of this while maintaining above a 3.2 GPA at all times, 6 classes, and medical/mental issues. Being first-generation is difficult, but it is not impossible to work with. Programs like Bonner and even EOF have helped me immensely to succeed and get where I want to go. I am grateful for everyone who has helped me along my path. To a first-generation student, who may have dealt with similar issues to me, I would say to just keep going. Life may seem impossible at times, and too difficult to get through. But that does not make it unachievable. Keep going towards your goals no matter what obstacles come your way. I believe in every single one of you reading my story right now. There is someone out there going through it too, and you can find people to help you on your journey to achieving the dream of a higher education after college. I am thankful to you all who have read this, and I hope you have a fantastic summer.

My name is Milo Lugo, and I am a first-generation college student who has faced challenges from the very start. For this essay, I would like to tell a story from my childhood that really sets the tone for why I am going down the career path that I am. It made me through the hardship. I would not be here without it all. From the get-go, my family did not have very much money. It only went downhill from there, because at the ripe age of 10 we became homeless. Often being first generation comes with many underlying issues, one of them sometimes living in poverty. Thankfully, we were not out on the streets, as we have amazing relatives. After about a year and a half, we were finally back on our feet. Living in different places across New Jersey/New York was not easy, as I did not form any solid connections that year, let alone keep in touch with anyone (no phone). I felt practically alone socially, and a complete goner mentally. This was when I was around 12 at this point. I had just gone back to school, as moving around a bunch meant I could not attend school as often as I would like to. I excelled, remembering that it was the only thing that truly brought me joy. I have loved going to school from the very beginning. Even through all of the harassment, I still managed to stick up for others, while still maintaining high grades in all of my classes. My Junior Year I helped to form a protest against the mistreatment of me and a bunch of others by our peers, along with the preventable suicide of a girl named Adriana Kuch. She was beaten and harassed so badly she felt as if she did not belong on this earth anymore. The bullying nearly pushed me to a point of no return as well. Attempted suicide and self-harm were two major things that I dealt with, all stemming from the treatment I received from my peers. Countless years of hospitalizations, outpatient programs, therapists, and medications, I can proudly say that whilst I have not made a full recovery yet, I am closer than ever to feeling like myself again. Choosing to go to college and continuing to do what I had loved to do during my entire life, which is educate myself, is the main reason that I got introduced into the Bonner Leader Program. The Bonner Leader Program is something that allowed me to give back to those in need like I have always wanted to do. It is a community-service based Program, whereby the end of the year we must reach 300 hours. It is tough at times, but just how my life wasn't easy you get through it and you push forward until you succeed. Now that I have helped myself, I wish to provide the same amount of love and support for others going through similar situations, whether that be bullying, homelessness, isolation, etc. In this Program, I work underneath "Increasing Access to College", where I assist disabled students in the classroom while also help acclimating them to college. I have also worked in food pantries, on veteran's trailer park homes, and in animal shelters. I will continue to give back until the day I die. Even though I am disadvantaged statistically, I will never let that stop me from uplifting my community any way I can. This scholarship would help allow me to continue to do so. Thank you for your time and consideration reading this.

I was doomed from the very beginning per my genetics to develop some sort of mental illness later on in life. My family has a large history of a few things such as Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, ADHD, Bipolar Disorder, and pretty Severe Anxiety/Depression. I got nuked with both OCD & Bipolar Disorder. Let me tell you they are not easy to deal with. At times I have practically destroyed myself while being stuck in compulsive thought processing, mania, and even suicidal thoughts at some unfortunate points in my life. I went to a Psychiatric Unit 4 times in my younger years, each time around the Holidays. However, I did not just destroy myself with my illness, as it has made me who I am. While it nearly killed me at times, I have grown to be thankful for the cards I have been dealt. Without my illnesses I am not Milo. My large mood swings, attention to detail, strong passions, and empathic nature would not be nowhere as prominent I feel without the disorders I do have. They have made me understand people in a way deeper sense than I could have ever imagined. I am extremely understanding when people wrong me, as I know sometimes people truly just do not mean to cause any damage. I have made many mistakes because of just how strong my emotions can be at times, so whenever I see someone else do the same, I instantly sympathize with the situation. Controlling one's own emotions is not an easy task for someone who has what I has, which is why I will never judge someone for being unable to. As an extremely empathetic person, I have gone into the realm of non-profit and community service work heavily. I love seeing the smiles on people's faces whenever I assist them with what they need. I have also leaned into working with disabled people in classrooms so that they get an equal opportunity just like everyone else to receive an education. I have also worked at animal shelters previously, alongside multiple food pantries all throughout New Jersey. I do all of the work I do through the Bonner Leader Program. My boss is extremely understanding when it comes to my disorders, especially my sensitivities in social environments as a very anxious person overall. I am a very understanding individual, who cares a lot about others. I know for a fact without my disorders I would have gone down an entirely different path in life. Nonetheless, I am proud to be Bipolar and have OCD. Even though they do torture me at times, it is better to work with the problem rather than against it, as being in denial of needing help is what made me so bad in the first place if I am being honest. For so long I thought I was fine, when in reality for around 6 months I was in a rapid back and forth between manic and depressive episodes. I am sure that in the non-profit world that I will go far. With the help of scholarships like this one, I can continue to serve my community in any way possible. I can continue my education and beat the odds of those that came before me with these disorders. I will not become a statistic. Thank you so much for reading my mental health journey, and I hope you all have a lovely day.

I believe that everyone has it in them to change the world. Not alone, of course, but with the help of others. Not everyone wants to, which is the difficult part of the problem. People are often sadly self-centered, not caring about how others are being treated right before their very eyes. The news each day just keeps getting darker and darker. Political and social tensions are rising, all because of a lack of empathy for those that are different than them. I am an extremely empathetic person. I feel people's emotions around me, and while it is sometimes overwhelming, I call being an empath a gift. I want to use the knowledge and life experiences I have to help everyone understand each other just a bit more. I would like to say that I have a different experience with the world than a lot of people. For one, I am Transgender. Only around 1% of the population is according to a quick google search, however I know for a fact that number is higher. My experience as a trans man has shaped me to be who I am. From years of severe bullying, isolation, and overall ridicule from my peers, I now try my best to be as kind as I can be to everyone that I come across. You never know what secrets someone is holding inside. Because of how horribly I was treated in my past, I joined a community service organization called Bonner Leader as soon as I entered college. I needed to enact the change I saw in my head. Through this position, I have done over 450 hours of community service, working everywhere from food pantries, animal shelters, to even being on a roof of a trailer home painting! All my life I have wanted this. Seeing the smiles on people's faces as you hand them a bag of food they need, the wags of dog's tails as you take care of them, and even the finished project of the trailer home; It all means so much to me. I hate seeing people say online that say, "It doesn't affect me, why should I care?", as to me, that is exactly WHY someone should care. You never know when what effects someone else, can affect you. Also, even if it never effects the person down the line, why would you not want to help your struggling neighbor? Not everything you do has benefit you. it is always so important to give back to your community. Without that, there is no such THING as community, only individuals living in the same realm simply not caring about each other. This world would do a lot better with some empathy, and overall sharing of resources. With the experiences I have had working with communities, I believe that I can create change, just like how each one of us can. I just can't do it alone. I want to eventually work for the American Red Cross/AmeriCorps, as continuing my passion for Non-Profit work is ever so important to me. I want to use my unique perspective as a Transgender individual to shed light on nuanced communities, while also uplifting them as well. This scholarship would go extremely far for someone like me. I am a member of the Educational Opportunity Fund who is in great financial need at this moment. Any help would be greatly appreciated, as I just want to achieve my dreams to make the world a better place. With your help, I can do that. Thank you for reading this! :)

There are many, many answers to this question as each person has their own perspective on what they believe is right or wrong for this world. Some want to create world peace; others want to end world hunger. I am not trying to say that any of these answers are wrong, just that they do not take into account a few things. People are too comfortable being uncomfortable in today's world, often living side by side such major problems, yet with no will to fix them. We can't fix the problems around us if we are unwilling to fix ourselves first. People are often self-centered, selfish, and lacking the drive and want to do good things for the world. As a Transgender Queer Man, I used to fall into this bubble when I was still identifying as a girl. I hated myself so much that I took my anger out on others. I feel as if a lot of other people dealing with self-hatred did that too. I often hated everything around me along with myself. I was too young to even fathom what the idea of being trans was, let alone what being different was. I did not understand why everyone around me seemed to want to fit into societal norms as they seemed harmful, such as the Patriarchy. Turns out, they were just trying to fit in to stay safe from those wanting to harm them. Everyone around me as a young child, including close family/friends, were alright with more traditional values such as a man running the household, or a woman staying home to take care of all the children. I have also heard the ideas that homosexuality is a sin, anything immodest means the person is automatically "dirty", and that men are superior to woman in all regards. Even if people do not outright say these things, actions speak louder than words. You often see being put down for being either a woman, plus-size, a person of color, disabled, LGBTQIA+ etc. Anything deemed as being different is seen as automatically the worst thing ever. People are often put into these positions and boxes where they are made to look insane simply because of these uncontrollable factors. Not many people claim to be traditional, yet any time something new is shown in front of them, they instantaneously reject it. So, with everything said, I would say that the one change I would want to see in this world is the idea of traditionalism, or in some cases close-mindedness. I want to see a world where all sexes and genders can live in harmony without fear of ostracization by their counterparts. In conclusion, I want those living on Earth to be able to express themselves however they may please, with whomever they may please. Everyone has a right to happiness in my brain, and I hope for a future where everyone is. Be your true authentic self and never stop fighting for equality/inclusion. Thank you so much for reading my application, and I hope you all will deeply consider.

I have lived my life the way younger me would have wanted me to: as *me*. I am a Transgender Queer Man, who no matter what other people have said/done to me, has continued to be myself. I have been hate-crimed, nearly beaten, and have been threatened violence against me simply for who I am. Multiple police reports have had to be filed, because simply the children in my town were horrendous, and saw me as the laughing stock who had no emotions behind the makeup. I went to a High-School that did not give me the support I needed to flourish. I dressed in an alternative way, wearing whatever I pleased on the daily, with constant harassment because of said outfits too. I wore large platform shoes, chokers, large amounts of makeup, tons of jewelry, and so much more components that made others think I was a target. What I went through there made me want to escape, and in turn find somewhere that I can help others through my designs. My major is Fashion Design & Merchandising at Montclair State University in New Jersey. However, I also plan to double major in Psychology if financially possible. A P.H.D is something I have wanted to get since a young child, and I would absolutely be honored to get mine in Clinical Psychology. My goals are to eventually run a clothing brand in which anything and everything is possible to be made, for the vast majority of people in the world, and especially those like me. After I complete my undergraduate degree, I plan to begin my career off as a manager, donating what I can to organizations, and helping stand up for the LGBT community in whatever area I am in by then. I am very outspoken, and will never let anyone stop me from using my voice. If I am able to double major in Psychology, I plan to be a Therapist for young adults who never had someone to help them in life, and who may have been shut out by there peers for being authentically them. I want to make my presence known on this earth throughout the little time I may have. Queerness may be looked down upon in some places in todays society, but I hope with the work I plan to do in the future, I can maybe close the gap between us, and them. At the end of the day, we are all human, and there is absolutely no place for hate in such a short lifetime. The money from this scholarship would help me achieve the goals I have always wanted to, which would be to double major and then pursue a P.H.D. Thank you.