In “The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks,” this woman was not aware that her tissue samples were being tested across the world for projects and vaccines, later dying from cervical cancer. Henrietta Lacks also didn’t know that these radiation treatments could cause her to lose the ability to have children. Yet, she was still one of the strongest people that others would have ever met. Going through these treatments, she still went home, took care of her children, and walked miles every day just to arrive at Johns Hopkins Hospital to receive treatment. Henrietta’s cancer cells, known as HeLa cells, went on to help create vaccines for diseases including polio, treatments for cancer, and other medical breakthroughs. This influenced my own path of nursing through Henrietta Lacks being the type of person I want to help. Her story encouraged me to fight for African Americans' rights to feel seen and heard. Also, fixing the systemic racism happening in healthcare with Black women’s concerns being dismissed by healthcare providers. Lastly, giving people the knowledge about their symptoms and medication will allow them to feel like they matter in the healthcare system. Helping them feel comfortable enough to come into the hospital and believe that they are getting the treatment they deserve. Furthermore, the things I hope to get out of a career as a nurse is a flexible career that allows for the freedom to travel and providing a stable income for myself since every country needs a nurse within their hospital. Also, helping children and adults get healthcare without being a financial burden through raising money and providing free basic health needs to underprivileged people. Lastly, out of a career of nursing, I hope to make a change in this world through providing emotional and physical needs to people as well as to inspire the next generation of nurses with the many positives behind nursing, including the feeling of knowing that you've helped someone continue their life with pride. The specialty of nursing I hope to enter into is pediatric nursing with becoming a nurse practitioner. Now, the impact that I will make on pediatric nursing is having children to not fear hospital visits but to have confidence that when entering the hospital, they will feel better coming out of it. Furthermore, I want to make an impact through allowing for communication between me and the child, making sure they understand what's going on and they feel comfortable enough to tell me what's wrong while feeling both seen and heard. Lastly, the impact I want to make on children is for them to come to the hospital with some cool prizes, drawings and activities. These impacts are important for me because making children feel comfortable is so important in order for them to receive treatment without feeling overly scared but feeling relaxed. In conclusion, my passion for nursing came from reading the book "The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks," as she inspired me to go into the healthcare field to help people like her. Furthermore, pediatric nursing is the area I hope to enter in order to help children feel comfortable and not fear the hospital. So, as I pursue my education at the illustrious North Carolina A&T State University in a major of nursing and a minor in child development, I want to make an impact on this world for the betterment of the healthcare field.

“The Woman King” movie was based on true events of the Agojie tribe, an all-female warrior unit who protects their African kingdom of Dahomey from the Oyo Empire, who sell captives to the international slave trade. Furthermore, the main message shown in this movie is the power of sisterhood within the tribe, resilience in their actions, and the empowerment of Black women. They also pushed the narrative of a non-patriarchal for women because they were not allowed to be married while being a warrior, fighting for their country. Also, in the movie as well, you could see the rich culture of the country Dahomey, now Benin, with their native clothing, hair, rituals, and dances as well. For example, while they were performing their dances, I felt the sense of community and power within their movements that really spoke to the strong community they had as a civilization. I came across this movie from previously watching a movie based on Rosa Parks' life and wanted to watch similar. Finally, as I was scrolling to find another movie to watch, this particular movie, “The Women King,” kept calling to me, so I decided to watch it. While watching this movie, a realization hit me with a philosophical question: “How can I fight for a cause as strongly as they fought for their freedom?” I’ve realized that I have the power to fight back and advocate for myself and others, including against the discrimination happening within the African American community. Also, being grateful for my life through realizing how hard they fought in order to protect their people from bondage, which is something I could truly never understand. Furthermore, this has pushed me to watch more movies about segregation and times during slavery because I want to learn more about the history that is not spoken about in the education system, something that should be spoken out more. I also want to learn more about where my ancestors came from because I believe there is power in knowing and becoming my best self when I don’t know who has come before me. Lastly, this has inspired me to get my master's in nursing to show the strength and resilience of African Americans after all this time. So, in conclusion, this has impacted me to fight for the overall rights of African Americans and give them a voice in this world. Furthermore, earning a bachelor's and master’s in nursing to earn a higher education that future generations can be proud of, especially because I am a first generation student and only 9% of African Americans earn a master's degree.

The Civil Rights Act of 1964 helped the desegregation of schools between African Americans, and White Americans where Blacks received much poorer education than in all-White Institutions. However, it took many court cases and protests for this to happen. For example, during the Reconstruction Era, the Freedmen’s Bureau helped Black students finally receive an education where it was illegal before, which also led to Fisk University and Howard University, HBCUs, being founded and allowing African Americans to seek a higher education. Following this, the fight against "Separate but Equal” was also prominent, where Jim Crow Laws forced Black Schools to have limited funding and terrible quality. Finally, with the Brown v Board of Education case, where the Plessy v Ferguson case paved the way for this case to overrule, this case declared segregated education illegal. Over the course of 100 years, African Americans' education was denied and seen as not an important issue to others. Now, many African Americans earn degrees in places where they weren’t accepted before, showing the resilience of African Americans to fight for equality. Learning about Civil Rights movements has allowed me to want to learn more about my own history and earn a higher education. This is because an education is not only graduating high school and earning a degree in college, but exploring the curious aspects of the world that ignites something within you and wanting you to learn more about it to gain more knowledge. The education that ignited something within me is the activism of sharing about African Americans and creating more opportunities for African Americans. This has shaped my goals through wanting to earn a master's degree to becoming a Nurse Practitioner since only 9% of African Americans have a master's degree. Furthermore, wanting to spread awareness on how African Americans in the past expressed themselves and showing activism from African Americans, both male and female. For example, for Black History Month, I was able to read poems in different classrooms written by black authors in both middle and high school. Specifically, when I went to middle school, I read a collection of poems by Maya Angelou to a sixth-grade class. Then, in the high school that I attend, I read a poem called “America” by Claude McKay while also talking about the significance of the poem in a broader context. This shaped my goals through now wanting to advocate for African American rights after learning more about how many Black authors were resilient during both slavery and the Jim Crow Era. The challenges I’ve overcome are going through FOMO, or the fear of missing out, because I’ve always wanted to be a part of events within my school or the admitted students day for NCAT. However, some events I wasn't able to be part of because of not having a ride, not having the finances to travel or time. Then, seeing everyone post their amazing pictures of the event, earning free merch, and then just having a fun time, upsets me sometimes. Just reminiscing on what would happen if I were there instead. However, I’ve overcome this through congratulating everyone for the amazing opportunities, and learning that my own path is not like others, and I must follow my own path to become my best self. Also, other challenges I’ve overcome are perfectionism within wanting to control my life through allowing surprises to happen and realizing life is mysterious, and I should enjoy that instead. Lastly, losing friends that I thought had similar interests as me is a challenge that I’ve overcome because now I’m more intentional with my friendships and learning that friendships come and go, and sooner or later I will find my people. I will use my education to better others by creating opportunities for children and teens to get involved in healthcare through volunteering and many different simulations as well. This is something that I’m passionate about because I do believe we need to spread more awareness in the healthcare field and allow children to understand the importance of it and how it impacts everyone’s life. Furthermore, with hope of getting my master's to become a Pediatric Nurse Practitioner, I would also give out renewable scholarships for students going to HBCUs within the major of nursing because I personally know the struggle of trying to find niche scholarships, so I want to create this scholarship fund for many students to relieve the stress of finances. Lastly, providing hospital needs without the machines to people who cannot afford it because everyone deserves healthcare without going into thousands of dollars in debt. My curiosity with learning more about African American history has inspired me to pursue an education at an Historically Black University and take a class on African American Literature. This has shaped my goals with wanting to advocate for African American rights and discrimination, as well as researching more about the culture of African Americans and the rich history we present. Challenges I’ve overcome are FOMO, perfectionism, and losing friends, as well as using my education to provide healthcare for people who can’t afford it. So, as I pursue my education at the illustrious North Carolina A&T State University in a major of nursing and a minor in child development, I want to make an impact on this world because we only live once and want to make sure I help as many people in my lifetime as possible.

“Ninafurahi Kukufahamu” (meaning "nice to meet you" in Swahili). My name is Nyaria Windham, and my passion that drives me to my goals in life is providing care and better opportunities for African Americans within the healthcare industry. Currently, I’m learning Swahili in order to travel to East Africa in the future; I'm a member of my Zeta Phi Beta Sorority youth group chapter, where I show appreciation for Black-owned businesses and community service for lower-class citizens; and I'm a part of my school’s African American literature class, learning more about how African Americans express themselves in writings. I'm specifically passionate about my sorority youth group because it has allowed me to connect with my African American culture by learning about the history and being able to feel comfortable with who we are. This has also allowed me to create a sisterhood with people in my community and people who I connect deeply with. Furthermore, this organization has inspired me to join a sorority in college in order to feel a deep connection to my past. These experiences helped me realize my talent and passion over the years to help people, especially children, have a voice where they aren't heard or even considered in some cases. Furthermore, after reading "The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks," Henrietta Lacks story encouraged me to become a nurse to further fight for African Americans' rights to make sure they feel seen and heard. Fixing the systemic racism happening in healthcare with Black women’s concerns being ignored or dismissed by healthcare providers is something I also want to make an impact and difference on. Lastly, giving people the knowledge about their symptoms and medication they will be using in order for them to feel like they matter in the healthcare system, and they are not just a number to everyone else. So, I want to become a pediatric nurse practitioner to make children feel safe around me and continue to fight for African Americans' rights. An adversity that I’ve faced is time management when it comes to school and extracurricular activities. Dealing with four extracurriculars, having time-consuming classes with three AP classes, and trying to find time for myself have been a struggle. This time management hasn’t been a devastating struggle until I came into my senior year of high school, where everything I’ve previously stated has happened at once. At times, I’ve found myself forgetting about important tasks, leaving me more stressed as the days go by. Also, there have been times now of me staying up all night and only getting done a small portion of the workload at times. I’ve found myself believing that I am letting everybody down since lots of people, including my family and friends, think so highly of me as a person, which doesn’t make things any easier. Even though this is a challenge I’ve faced, I’ve overcome it through being self-aware with myself in what I need to maintain my spark in life. I’ve learned that I am entitled to taking breaks at this time, even when the stress gets to me. Lastly, I’ve learned that I need to be more organized with the tasks and making planners and making lists to keep track of everything, which is something that is working amazingly right now.

My name is Nyaria Windham, and I've participated in many extracurricular activities and have set many goals for myself. I'm on the Exec Board of the Student Government Association, a part of the Zeta Phi Beta youth group sorority chapter as previous Chaplin, National Honors Society and SMCHD Public Health Fellowship member. I am passionate about learning Swahili and ASL, coloring, and hanging out with friends. My future plans is to go to North Carolina A&T State University to earn a bachelor's degree in nursing with a minor in child development and later earn a master's to become a pediatric nurse practitioner. These experiences that I've made will not be possible without my upbringing in a single-parent household and a realization that shaped my understanding. My experience with living with a single divorced parent helped shape the person I am and want to become today. With divorced parents, it was hard for me to love both parents equally when you barely saw one often, feeling the neglect sometimes. However, if you had witnessed what I experienced during their marriage, you would have a stronger affection for the parent who chose to stay rather than the one who left, which was difficult for me to accept initially. For my mom, she had to drop out of college once she realized she was pregnant with my older brother, sacrificing her education to take care of her family. Of course, I don’t wish single parenting on any person I know with the challenges that do come about, but growing up with a single parent teaches you many things in life. It teaches the value of hard work, sacrifices, and love for others. Now, I’ve realized that my talent and passion over the years have been wanting to help people, including children, have a voice. So, I want to become a pediatric nurse practitioner, to give children a voice where sometimes they aren’t heard or considered in some cases. Now, the movie “The Woman King” was based on true events of the Agojie tribe, an all-female warrior unit who protects their African kingdom of Dahomey from the Oyo Empire, which sells captives to the international slave trade. Furthermore, the main message shown in this movie is the power of sisterhood with the tribe, resilience in their actions, and the empowerment of Black women. In this movie, you could see the rich culture of the country Dahomey, now Benin, with their African clothing, hair, rituals, and dances as well. For example, while they were performing their dances, I felt the sense of community and power within their movements that really spoke out to the strong community they have as a civilization. While watching this, a realization hit me with a philosophical question of “How can I fight for a cause as strongly as they fought for their freedom?” I’ve realized that I have the power to fight back and advocate for my beliefs. This has pushed my personal growth with watching more movies about segregation and times during slavery because of wanting to learn more about my history that is not always spoken about in the education system. I want to lean about my ancestors because I believe knowing them will help me become my best self. So, the personal growth that led to a new understanding is a switch of mindset when it comes to procrastination when it comes to finding ways to better myself for my future to make my ancestors proud.

Rejection became hard for me, especially when at a point in my life when many acceptances came easy to me. Resilience means “the ability to mentally or emotionally cope with a crisis", which is something I’ve dealt with during my senior year. Being able to bounce back from rejection, especially when you put passion into something you care about, is a necessity in life. Now, after demonstrating resilience in rejections, I've realized that rejections are just redirections towards my future. This happened because of the rejection from my dream school honors college. Even though this wasn’t what I wanted, I’m happy that it happened. Going to North Carolina A&T State University’s Scholar’s Days was one of the best decisions of my life. When I arrived there, I felt like family to them with other educated African Americans like myself, as seeing representation empowers someone to achieve better for themselves. Being able to talk with one of the admissions women while being there was amazing as well, learning tips on how to make my application stand out. After talking her, I’ve learned that making my application stand out means simply being myself, talking about what I’m passionate about so the admissions committee can know me for me. This was where I landed on my essay topic, my incomplete journey of figuring out where my family comes from. Now, back to Scholar's Day, I learned about the Honors College and their multiple opportunities. I fell in love when I realized the amount of networking opportunities that they offered because it’s very important for me to have a job lined up after college. I realized that this provided opportunities to get me more involved within the community as well. After that day, I knew I was going to apply and hopefully get in. As people were talking about their acceptances into the Honors College, I decided to look at my email. Once I read the email, I realized that I wasn’t accepted for the scholarships and the honors College, my heart sank. After all of the hours of preparation, that moment in time felt like it was all for nothing, as if I turned down all of these scholarships just not to get the one I wanted. However, after days of feeling down, I know I needed a shift in mindset and realized that this school was too special to let go. So, I still enrolled, paid my deposit, and even after all this happened, the friendships I made from people going to NCAT makes me feel so much better about my decision. Now, my resilience in this case is shifting my mindset even after this rejection. After this, one of my friends also didn’t get the honors college or scholarship consideration from another school, so I told her about my experience with this. She asked me how I was able to move on from this even after the disappointment. I told her that even with this rejection, I found a way to think positively about this, as rejection can always be a sign that it wasn’t meant for me now, but there are better plans for me in the future. After this, she began to have a positive outlook on life and thanked me for my advice, committing to another college even despite the rejection. So, I’ve demonstrated resilience through staying proud and still enrolling even after not getting accepted into the honors program and inspired others to have a positive outlook on life even when it seems impossible.

The “Make Your Own Bill Assignment” in AP Government helped me gain a better understanding of the relationship between law enforcement and African Americans. When doing this very long assignment, I created a semi-realistic bill relating to racial profiling and finding solutions to combat this. Racial profiling is the discriminatory practice by law enforcement officials of targeting individuals for suspicion of crime based on the individual's race, ethnicity, religion, or national origin. Problems regarding racial profiling that stifle the relationship between law enforcement and African American populations are rooted in slavery and the enforcement of segregationist “Jim Crow” laws. Also, Black individuals are 10 to 100 times more likely to be falsely identified. African Americans also account for 40% of the approximately 2.3 million incarcerated people in the U.S despite making up just 13% of the U.S population. Even though racial profiling violates the U.S Constitution’s core promises of equal protection under the law for all and freedom from unreasonable searches and seizures, it still occurs and discriminates against African Americans, which ruins the relationship with law enforcement. Also, the Department of Justice's investigation into the Ferguson Police Department found that African American drivers are more likely to be stopped, searched, arrested, and receive multiple citations. Police officers should make their decisions based on physical evidence and other information obtained during an investigation. While also doing this assignment, I found alternative solutions for law enforcement agencies to improve relationships with the African American population in the United States. One solution is providing diversity and sensitivity training to law enforcement, which can help prevent racial discrimination against African Americans. Additionally, reviewing records for signs of bias or improper selective enforcement and analyzing the data collected to ensure proper gathering and classification of information is necessary. This solution will address the issues of racial profiling which is used to direct law enforcement actions such as stops, identity checks, questioning, or searches. Another solution is providing standardized agency profile prevention training and establishing a citizen feedback system. Also, this solution will help African Americans feel safer in their communities, leading to a better relationship. Lastly, it is important to require data collection to monitor the government’s progress toward eliminating profiling. In conclusion, law enforcement agencies could improve their relationships with African Americans by providing proper training, implementing policies that prohibit racial profiling, promoting diversity, and establishing a private right of action for victims of profiling. This would help law enforcement serve citizens with fairness and make African Americans feel comfortable.

Extracurricular activities and community service both work together in order to create bonds and support each other in times of need. In my personal experience, participating in many extracurriculars has taught me more about life than schooling ever will, allowing me to grow into the person I am today. Having four extracurricular activities under my belt, with two of them earning me a leadership position, has allowed me to network and connect with people in so many different ways. Holding a leadership position as Commissioner of Standards and leader of the community’s Nest Fest committee in the Student Government Association, has become a passion because it has opened my shell from being quiet to now being able to command a room. Furthermore, it has allowed me to input different ideas into projects that are appreciated and not overlooked, which makes me feel confident. Lastly, I really like planning and setting up events like homecoming because seeing people compliment the work I helped create inspires me to continue creating more things to bring the community together. Within the Zeta Phi Beta Incorporated Auxiliary Youth Group chapter, where I was Chaplain my first year, I’ve felt passion for this because it has allowed me to connect with my African American culture by learning about the history and being able to feel comfortable with who we are. This has also allowed me to create a sisterhood with people in my community and people who I connect deeply with. Lastly, this organization has also inspired me to join a sorority in college, in order to feel a deep connection to my past. National Honor Society has also been a passion of mine because I’ve been able to tutor students, helping them better themselves as well as becoming an example for students by being able to balance everything with a smile on our face. Last but definitely not least, my SMCHD Public Health Fellowship is a passion of mine because it has allowed me to advocate for people’s mental health issues, especially going through the same mental health issues my sophomore year of high school. With all these passionate activities I’m a part of, I do believe all of these activities benefit the community. For example, by volunteering at elementary schools at different festivals for SGA, this has allowed me to connect with children and play with them in games within a community event. Zeta Phi Beta has allowed me to appreciate local black owned businesses and help homeless people by assembling over 30 cake kits and giving them to a nearby shelter. The National Honor Society allowed me to participate in supervising Special Needs Kids during the Special Olympics, allowing for bonding in a diverse group of people. Also, the SMCHD Public Health Fellowship allowed me to test different solutions regarding mental health, helping to improve the community with resources. So, these different extracurricular activities have helped me enjoy and bond with a diverse group of people unlike me as well as help express more kindness to others and humility for myself.

Leaving your life behind and giving up furthering your education is sometimes what it means to become a single parent. Especially when parents separate, the transition for children is not talked about often, the impact it could have for them for years to come. My experience living with a single divorced parent helped shape the person I am and wanted to become today. With divorced parents, it was hard for me to love both parents equally when you barely saw one often, feeling of neglect sometimes as well. But, if you’ve seen what I’ve seen during the marriage, you would love the parent who stayed rather than left, which was hard for me to process in the beginning. While living with a single parent, you have a special connection with them, something that most people don't experience. The special connection is knowing when financial hardships have arisen within your family, while also becoming their best friend because that's the only person you’ve known. With the financial hardships in mind as well, you appreciate the amount of work your single parent goes through to provide a roof over you and siblings. Working the extra overtime and finding a second job just to make sure you and your siblings are fed. This constitutes that sacrifice is something all single parents have to do at some point of their lives. For my mom, she had to drop out of college once she realized she was pregnant with my older brother, sacrificing furthering her education to take care of her future child. But isn’t that the price that single parents, especially mothers, take? Or is it decided depending on the person? This experience has impacted my future goals in many ways. I want to get my bachelors and masters degree to make my mother proud, to start a legacy and become an inspiration for other African Americans. Also, this family household dynamic encourages me to have a job where I can provide for my family in the future, working hard just as my mother did. Of course, I don’t wish single parenting on any person I know with the challenges that do come about, but growing up with a single parent teaches you many things in life. It teaches the value of hard work, sacrifices, and love for others. Now, I’ve realized that my talent and passion over the years is wanting to help people, including children, have a voice. So, that's why I want to become a Pediatric Nurse Practitioner, to give children a voice where sometimes they aren’t heard, or aren't even considered in some cases. My future, specifically, looks like completing my bachelors of nursing in one of the top HBCUs, North Carolina A&T State University, to see educated African Americans like myself. This is because I see purpose in being around people just like me, which adds confidence and accountability for myself. Then, pass the NCLEX-RN in order to gain residency as a registered nurse, hopefully working as a bedside pediatric nurse, after of course getting a certification as a Pediatric Nurse. Lastly, I will get my masters degree for two years to earn certification as a Nurse practitioner, hoping to make more money and be able to live comfortably in my lifetime. Because I want to become more than my mother was, not better than her due to the fact that she's amazing, but to live a life she couldn’t have, make her proud.