Hi! My name is Nygeria Merritt-Leonard. And yes I did say Nygeria. I was named after the country, but the reasoning for it is confidential. I am 19 years old and am a current sophomore at the Illustrious Clark Atlanta University. I am majoring in Psychology but thinking of minoring in Criminal Justice. I am the oldest child of 4 to two beautiful souls, I call my parents. I have lost about 3 people in the last two years, so I hold the ones I love dearly. My dream is to become a Criminal Psychologist and to also work with young minorities, like me, who are in prison and change their life around. In today's society, there aren't very many black Criminal Psychologists. There actually aren't very many black people in a lot of fields, but I am going to change that. A lot of minorities are incarcerated due to their home environment and surroundings. They didn't choose this life, it chose them, so they don't get to experience things, since they have to grow up early. I know that this career path is not easy. I know that it takes multiple years of entering and schooling, but I believe that I will make a difference when I make it to the finish line. After college and earning my B. In Social Sciences, I want to go to graduate school and get my masters in Clinical Psychology, with a concentration in Forensic Psychology. Later I want to get my Ph.D. in Criminal Psychology. I also want to intern in private practices, so I can shadow what the life of a Psychologist is like. My dream career is going to make a positive impact throughout the world, because it will inspire others, like me to join and change the Judicial and Legislative power, in the government. I want to stop those who have power, and who have been treating minorities like trash and show them how wrong they are of us, just because of the way we look and how we talk. They always think that black people are poor, and have bad education when in actuality, we are the most educated, especially beautiful black women. Focusing on our mental and physical health is the most important part of living. Standing up for ourselves and changing things when no one is looking, is the best thing we youngsters can do, to help the world from the negative environment that impacts us today! The way I decided to pursue my major in Psychology is all of a sudden. As I grew up, I was always afraid anything that contributed to criminology. It terrified me when documentaries came on. As I grew older I became ore appreciative to the meaning of crime, so I became viewing all these cases. I eventually took AP psychology senior year of high school and absolutely loved how the brain functions

Hi! My name is Nygeria Merritt-Leonard. And yes I did say Nygeria. I was named after the country, but the reasoning for it is confidential. I am 19 years old and am a current sophomore at the Illustrious Clark Atlanta University. I am majoring in Psychology but thinking of minoring in Criminal Justice. I am the oldest child of 4 to two beautiful souls, I call my parents. I have lost about 3 people in the last two years, so I hold the ones I love dearly. My dream is to become a Criminal Psychologist and to also work with young minorities, like me, who are in prison and change their life around. In today's society, there aren't very many black Criminal Psychologists. There actually aren't very many black people in a lot of fields, but I am going to change that. A lot of minorities are incarcerated due to their home environment and surroundings. They didn't choose this life, it chose them, so they don't get to experience things, since they have to grow up early. I know that this career path is not easy. I know that it takes multiple years of entering and schooling, but I believe that I will make a difference when I make it to the finish line. After college and earning my B. In Social Sciences, I want to go to graduate school and get my masters in Clinical Psychology, with a concentration in Forensic Psychology. Later I want to get my Ph.D. in Criminal Psychology. I also want to intern in private practices, so I can shadow what the life of a Psychologist is like. My dream career is going to make a positive impact throughout the world, because it will inspire others, like me to join and change the Judicial and Legislative power, in the government. I want to stop those who have power, and who have been treating minorities like trash and show them how wrong they are of us, just because of the way we look and how we talk. They always think that black people are poor, and have bad education when in actuality, we are the most educated, especially beautiful black women. Focusing on our mental and physical health is the most important part of living. Standing up for ourselves and changing things when no one is looking, is the best thing we youngsters can do, to help the world from the negative environment that impacts us today!

I’ve always had a keen eye for helping people, especially those who are spiraling, mentally. In every friend group that I’ve been in, I always end up being the one that someone will talk to about their problems, and help find solutions to solve them. They also happen to be relationship advice too. The funny thing is that I had never been in a relationship, so I could never relate to any problems. I enjoyed the little therapy sessions that commenced during passing periods and lunch. During my senior year, that’s when I really became interested in Psychology. I took AP Psych and I knew that this was my career path. As I am currently a sophomore at Clark Atlanta University, I am Majoring in Psychology, aiming to be a clinical Psychologist, then eventually working my way up to be a criminal Psychologist. I have researched and have been told that this isn't an easy job, but when I put my mind to anything, I keep going until I have reached my goal. What will be my trademark? I was never asked this question before, so it made me think long and hard. My goal in being a clinical and criminal psychologist is to first help minorities, like me, who have been incarcerated, switch their life around. A lot of the time these young people have to grow up so young due to their living dynamics and the trauma that they have been through. This is normally targeted toward black people because people see them as poor and stupid. The only answer shouldn’t be to just give up and put them in jail. They won’t learn and thrive like the rest of us. I also want to look deep and study why serial killers and regular criminals have similar habits when it comes to their crimes. I want to finally crack the case as to why they do what they do. I want to be able to write a book that has everything one needs to know to fix the world. I want to build a community with others and set a standard in the Psychology field. There are many obstacles and challenges that I have come across. The first one started with actually getting into school. Due to graduating during the pandemic, I started to lose hope in school and became unmotivated. If it wasn't for my amazing mother to lift me up and never forget the future, I wouldn't be on the right path to succeeding. As I am in college now, I have lost more people than one can imagine. It hurts to even think about a loved one going off the earth, but I know that they will be proud of me. College isn't an easy job to just shortcut my way into becoming a psychologist. for the past two years, I have never experienced so much work in one week. It still amazes me how I get it done in one week.

It took a while for me to figure out what I wanted to be in the future. I didn't know where to start or how to move forward. It didn't start until I reached my senior year of high school. I took AP Psychology and it changed my life. I’ve always had a keen eye for helping people, especially those who are spiraling, mentally. In every friend group that I’ve been in, I always end up being the one that someone will talk to about their problems, and help find solutions to solve them. They also happen to be relationship advice too. The funny thing is that I had never been in a relationship, so I could never relate to any problems. I enjoyed the little therapy sessions that commenced during passing periods and lunch. I knew that the Psychology field was my career path. As I am currently a sophomore at Clark Atlanta University, I am Majoring in Psychology, aiming to be a clinical Psychologist, then eventually working my way up to be a criminal Psychologist. I have researched and have been told that this isn't an easy job, but when I put my mind to anything, I keep going until I have reached my goal. What will be my trademark? I was never asked this question before, so it made me think long and hard. My goal in being a clinical and criminal psychologist is first to help minorities, like me, who have been incarcerated, switch their life around. A lot of the time these young people have to grow up so young due to their living dynamics and the trauma that they have been through. This is normally targeted toward black people because people see them as poor and stupid. The only answer shouldn’t be just to give up and put them in jail. They won’t learn and thrive like the rest of us. I also want to look deep and study why serial killers and regular criminals have similar habits regarding their crimes. I want to finally crack the case as to why they do what they do. I want to be able to write a book that has everything one needs to know to fix the world. I want to build a community with others and set a standard in the Psychology field. Although this career path is very difficult and not for the weak, I am confident that I will leave my legacy as a future renowned Psychology.

My life so far was never easy for me. I have been sheltered for the most part until I reached college. My self-esteem was never there. I never had enough confidence to the point that everything I did made Me ugly. I feel that this triggered my mental health mostly. It got worse throughout high school. My acne was 10 times worse than it was now, I didn't have any friends, I was socially awkward and the stress from school was the kicker. As I gradually learned what mental health was and why it was so important, I started to believe that mental health was very important. Being a sophomore at a university, mental health is my number one priority. It gets hard while being an adult and not having the support system you need right next to you. For me, it became more unbalanced than high school. My being sheltered didn't help my case one bit. Since I'm dependent on my family for a lot of things, I had to start researching a lot of things on my own, such as making my appointments. Those are challenging because a lot of the information I have to either ask for or find myself. I had to find coping mechanisms to help decrease my daily moods. It wasn't helping that my college education was very critical. Some things that I did to help my stress level would be to talk to other people, more like vent to them. I would talk to my mom or boyfriend because they understood me more than a therapist would. Another thing I do is take walks around my campus. This helped me think about my day and how it can change from the events that took place. One thing that really helps my mentality, is to listen to music and read for 2 hours. It makes me channel my inner imagination and it also pulls me away from all the emotions that I'm feeling at the moment.I try to maintain wellness by trying new things every day. I started to go to the gym every two days to focus on my physical health. I will walk there which is 20 minutes so I can burn calories but strengthen my core and legs. I will try to cook something every day and eat throughout the day. A lot of times I'm tempted to eat out and those thoughts win but I pick right up the next day. I am going to different mental health panels in my college to find different techniques, but for right now, I like how I am

Being a young black woman in today's society is a lot to handle at once. There are so many obstacles to go through just to accomplish anything that has something to do with my black culture. All throughout my education, my race did have an effect on me and everything around me. I've been bullied and treated differently. As for my learning, I was always taught the western way, so I never truly learned about African-American culture until I got accepted to Clark Atlanta University. Every day it doesn't get easier, but I have people who remind me that it's okay to want different, but Being black is a beautiful blessing. As I am an adult, I see the problems, in society, that are forming through identity. Specifically, gender and race are the main targets. Women are constantly getting berated for something so simple, while men aren't for the same thing. It is much worse when race is brought into it. A lot of people are viewing being colored as a curse. 9 out of 10 times, black people are turned around and ignored more than white people, when it comes to doing the same thing. This happens more in the business industry and education. As I am majoring in and studying Psychology, there are multiple topics that I want to explore and study, especially when it comes to race. My dream career is to become a Clinical/Criminal psychologist. I want to help young minorities who were incarcerated, due to them growing up in a harsh environment, when they didn't have a choice but to grow up faster than others. Colored people are more likely to grow up in poverty and slums than white people. I want to be able to turn those young adults' life around and live the life they wanted. As I am aiming for the Psychology field, there are others jobs that interest me. One of them is being a physician assistant. My personal identity will influence my interactions in the healthcare setting, by helping others like me. being a clinical psychologist and a physician assistant are alike in many ways. One is that they help people that have issues. That is the one reason why I choose this career path. I love helping people and I have always been the one that someone can go to when they have trouble. In this generation, more black people are stepping up and changing the way the world works for colored people, and I will be the next. My legacy will inspire more young black adults that it's okay that others won't like you but being black is a beautiful blessing and that you deserve to show off.

There are many reasons why I choose an HBCU. The main reason why is that I was tired of schooling with Caucasians. What I mean by that is that I am tired of sharing and learning information about all history, especially black History, from a western perspective. Since the beginning of my education, my dad has been in the military, so we would move every few years, until high school. In those years, all of my education went into all predominantly white schools. It wasn't horrible, but I was being taught the same thing every year, especially for black history. It was hard to make friends due to me being one of the only black kids in school, and it was hard to fit in because I didn't dress or look like everyone. Whenever I did conversate with other black people, I was always told that I spoke white. I never knew what that really meant, but when I found out, I took it into offense. Come to find out, I just spoke properly. It hurt my feelings. When I got accepted to Clark Atlanta University, I had only been to Atlanta once, so I didn't know what I was getting into. I have never had a huge culture shock. There were people like me everywhere. I felt like I fitted right in without being judged and criticized. It was a little overwhelming, but I wouldn't change it for anything else. Now as a sophomore, I am proud to say that I know so much more about black history than I ever did in my life so far. I have connected and related to others through spiritual and physical connections. It feels so good and I am proud to continue and major in Psychology at the Ilistrious Clark Atlanta University!!!

I am a current sophomore, majoring in Psychology. Some potential jobs I want to explore in college are any that have to do with socializing and understanding the mind and body more. I want to talk to people or at least be part of a psychology group and work to build a better environment for the students at my school.My dream is to become a Criminal Psychologist and to also work with young minorities, like me, who are in prison and change their life around. In today's society, there aren't very many black Criminal Psychologists. There actually aren't very many black people in a lot of fields, but I am going to change that. A lot of minorities are incarcerated due to their home environment and surroundings. They didn't choose this life, it chose them, so they don't get to experience things, since they have to grow up early. I know that this career path is not easy. I know that it takes multiple years of entering and schooling, but I believe that I will make a difference when I make it to the finish line Since you have to be licensed and registered to be in any psychology job, I honestly will take anything right now. I am still figuring out my schedule and what I need to do to make it through each year. I love to socialize, but it's also hard at the same time. I want to find a job that will help me get better at speaking professionally and face my fears of stage fright. That's where volunteering comes in. I want to join groups/clubs that are connected to me as a person and to my major. I just want to get a head start on my Psychology career, even if it's little to nothing, at least I tried. The hard part is money. Since I am a college student, there are lots of things I want to do and see, but money doesn't come easy. All of my jobs were in retail, but now I want to get a real job that lets me reach my goal. I am currently trying to create a profile and seek jobs that are built for college students, but most require enough experience. I have made several and have been joining seminars that push me to the right path. This isn't going to be easy but I am never giving up.

I go to an HBCU named Clark Atlanta University. The most exciting part about college is that I am learning things I've been taught before, from an African-American perspective. Another thing is that I am in a community that accepts me for who I am and there's no one to judge because we all are minorities. Although there's no judgment, it is still hard to fit in. I have always had trouble making friends and socializing. I am what people consider a "homebody". I love to stay in my room, but now that I'm in college it's important to build character and face your fears. One thing that I still struggle with is my mental health. There are times when I get very moody and can't figure a way out. I usually will feel stuck in the same continuous routine that I can't get out of. I know my life is boring but I am trying really hard to break out of the circle. To maintain my healthy body, and soul, I tend to take walks around the campus while listening to music. This may not work for everyone, but it's the main thing that works for me. Music is the sole purpose of being who I am. I eat, sleep, and breathe in music. The reason I take walks is to stimuli throughout my body. I like to take in the fresh air, and scan my surroundings even if I have seen them a million times. I've tried to go to therapy, but it just doesn't help me, like I thought it would. Taking a walk helps me think over my life so far and how I can make it better than it is. Another thing I will do is talk to my boyfriend and mother weekly. They will let me vent on everything, but I do this because They will actually listen to me and ask questions that benefit both of us. I sometimes will switch it up and make video journals. the reason I do this is so I can go back and mark off the things I said in the video. There are other things I have started that will help me stay on the positive side and get rid of things that I don't use anymore. I also love to clean Those things are working out daily, reading more than I have, going to group studies to help me destress overwork and diamond painting. It might take me time to get back to normal, but when I do, I know that I had many ways to help me positively.

Since I was little, my mother has been my inspiration. She has been my rock. She has pushed me to be the woman I am and thrive to be. She wasn't only there physically, but also mentally. She might not be the same color as me, but she has taught me to love my beautiful black skin and give a crap about what other people say, especially when it came to my hairstyle. My mother is the most hardworking and fierce woman you could ever meet, and I'm proud to call her my inspiration. Middle school wasn't the best experience I had. In a sunny part of San Diego, California, I went to a school called Wanenhiem Middle School. The school was predominantly white and Asian, with a small percentage of black students. Me being in a small black community, I had always felt left out. And not just with my skin color but with social trends. When I mean by trends, I mean fashion and technology. My parents always thought it wasn't necessarily having a phone, and a new one at that. So having friends was hard, but I made way. My mom also didn't dress me like every other middle schooler. Kids would wear the latest clothes from Forever 21 and Tillys, meaning crop tops and tight jeans with Air Force 1's. I have dressed appropriately, consisting of "cute" shirts and not-so-tight jeans, with converse or off-brand shoes. My hairstyles were specifically made for black girls. They were in cornrows, different styles of braids, twists, or just natural. I was always embarrassed because I didn’t have nice things or long black straight hair like the other girls. I didn’t have piercings. I was just normal. It got bad to the point where I was bullied because I was different. I can remember a girl spreading rumors saying I didn’t have hair. It brought my insecurities way down. I came home crying wanting to take my new braids out. My mother ran to me and hugged me tightly. When I told her, she did something I’d never thought she had in her. She went to my school the next day and talked to my principal, then she walked through my campus and walked up to the girl that was talking junk. I was very embarrassed, but Since that day I knew she had my back. She taught me a very important lesson that day, that I can never forget. She said “Even though God created you differently, always remember you were created differently for a reason. You are a beautiful young Black girl, and there will be people that say different, but it’s up to you to make a difference in the world”. Ever since that conversation I never gave a once of care to what people thought about me. Although my mom is an Asian woman, she has taught me so much about a black young woman and just being a woman in general. I inspire to have the personality she has and to strive for the best that I can be. As I grow, I hope to be part of an organization made by women and inspire others that being who you are and finding your way is truly the best feeling that anyone can have. Especially when it comes to women of color, life can be hard when you're brought down with every step you take, but it's never to late to show yourself that nothing will stop you from being the greatest.

My name is Nygeria Merritt-Leonard. I am a current sophomore at the Illustrious Clark Atlanta University. I am majoring in Psychology but thinking of minoring in Criminal Justice. My dream is to become a Criminal Psychologist and to also work with young minorities, like me, who are in prison and change their life around. In today's society, there aren't very many black Criminal Psychologists. There actually aren't very many black people in a lot of fields, but I am going to change that. A lot of minorities are incarcerated due to their home environment and surroundings. They didn't choose this life, it chose them, so they don't get to experience things, since they have to grow up early. I know that this career path is not easy. I know that it takes multiple years of entering and schooling, but I believe that I will make a difference when I make it to the finish line. Being black, to me, is struggling in a community together. Being melanin and having the freedom to express my culture is a blessing in disguise. It's outstanding to see today's minorities bring out their inner self, and just have absolute respect for everything that our ancestors have gone through, so we can become who we are now. It's about not letting others try to bring us down and proving that we are so much more without doing too much. It hurts to see others be like us, but holds power on our end, significantly.

Hi! My name is Nygeria Merritt-Leonard. And yes I did say Nygeria. I was named after the country, but the reasoning for it is confidential. I am 19 years old and am a current sophomore at the Illustrious Clark Atlanta University. I am majoring in Psychology but thinking of minoring in Criminal Justice. I am the oldest child of 4 to two beautiful souls, I call my parents. I have lost about 3 people in the last two years, so I hold the ones I love dearly. My dream is to become a Criminal Psychologist and to also work with young minorities, like me, who are in prison and change their life around. In today's society, there aren't very many black Criminal Psychologists. There actually aren't very many black people in a lot of fields, but I am going to change that. A lot of minorities are incarcerated due to their home environment and surroundings. They didn't choose this life, it chose them, so they don't get to experience things, since they have to grow up early. I know that this career path is not easy. I know that it takes multiple years of entering and schooling, but I believe that I will make a difference when I make it to the finish line. After college and earning my B. In Social Sciences, I want to go to graduate school and get my masters in Clinical Psychology, with a concentration in Forensic Psychology. Later I want to get my Ph.D. in Criminal Psychology. I also want to intern in private practices, so I can shadow what the life of a Psychologist is like. My dream career is going to make a positive impact throughout the world, because it will inspire others, like me to join and change the Judicial and Legislative power, in the government. I want to stop those who have power, and who have been treating minorities like trash and show them how wrong they are of us, just because of the way we look and how we talk. They always think that black people are poor, and have bad education when in actuality, we are the most educated, especially beautiful black women. Focusing on our mental and physical health is the most important part of living. Standing up for ourselves and changing things when no one is looking, is the best thing we youngsters can do, to help the world from the negative environment that impacts us today!

As I am a full-time student at an HBCU called Clark Atlanta university, I have witnessed so many unpopular opinions. The main one that has stood out to me is that colorism is just as bad as racism around us. When I came to Clark, I expected to feel at home and everyone was friendly to each other. Oh, man did I learn the hard way. I first noticed this in relationships. Black men are shaming and rejecting black women because of their color. If you were dark, men wouldn't choose you. They prefer lighter women. As a brown skin woman, I felt very attacked. They portray us as loud, crazy, attitude girls. We get called nasty names. We are looked upon for no reason. We are stereotyped to the core. I also noticed this with men as well. Black women tend to dislike black men with a lighter completion. To this day, I don't know the reason for it, but it's shown everywhere. It's also brought upon in social media. A lot of videos, like youtube have content where you have to find your match for the day. A lot of times people are rejected due to their skin complexion. I hear a lot of "He's just not my type", or "I'm not into light skin men". Many don't recognize that it is colorism, and when they do, they deny it and say that's their preference. I understand it is their opinion, but I feel that it shouldn't be to the point where others feel bad about themselves. Another unpopular opinion is that black people tend to racially gaslight other black people. A stereotype that I often see is that all black people support each other. This is definitely not true. A lot of the time, we are actually degrading each other. This is shown through tv and social media. We are either bullying or assaulting each other, and never coming together as a community. Gaslighting happens everywhere, an example can work. Black women are more ignored and looked upon. One would tell one of their black male coworkers, and their response can be " well you need to do better". Another can be that one will make sexual humor and make the other person feel uncomfortable. Their response would be " It was a joke", or " stop being serious, take a joke for once". The last unpopular opinion that resonates with me are that abuse has seemed the black community when it comes to having kids. I find this to be not true at all. Black parents have a different way of disciplining their kids. It might look like a bad thing, but it's how they were raised. They don't like things to slide. It's funny because death in children is more targeted toward Caucasians. the black community just try to teach their kids better than they were treated. It might seem harsh, but they grow up successful human beings in this crazy world. They are ready for anything

Being a person of color in the world today is very challenging. Especially being a young woman at that. It's not getting any easier and I'm not getting any older. I am a current Sophomore at the Illustrious Clark Atlanta University. I am majoring in Psychology, on my way to obtaining my Bachelor of Arts, in Social Science. My dream profession is to become a certified Psychologist with young adults that are incarcerated. I want to be able to uplift those who went down the wrong path and be able to change them for the better. This also entails future African-American adults. Today's society has brought down and given up on people like me. They also have been born and grew up in environments that gave them no choice but to go down the wrong path. One class that I am currently taking, is Politics and Global Issues. This class is very informative because it mainly focuses on black people and their place in the government. Right now, they don't have many places at all. I feel that our generation of next leaders is going to take control and fight back for our people. That is where I come in. My dad is in the military, so I have volunteered for some things. The main event was the Special Olympics. I volunteered for their Track&Field and basketball events. I have also volunteered for the Corman Ball pre-game. I also volunteered in high school at concession stands at many games. I haven't done community service yet in college, but I am looking forward to it. What inspired me to make a difference, specifically in education? It took some time to fully grasp this question because there is more than one answer. First, it's my family. Every single member of my crazy unperfect family has been by my side. From when I started to give up, now to me trying my hardest to succeed. They have shown me that it's okay to make mistakes because, at the end of the day, I can learn from them. AP Psychology had also inspired me to be who I want to be in the future. I took the class in my senior, and it changed my life. At first, I didn't know what path I wanted to until I started to learn about the human mind and behavior. It changed my perspective on people and even on myself when it comes to everyday activities. I am happy with my choice, and I can't wait for what my future takes me.