My name is Ryleigh Herzberger, and I am currently a junior at the University of Maryland Global Campus. I am majoring in Psychology, and will be graduating in the Spring of 2025. My career goals include working with children in need in order to combine my two biggest passions – childcare and social reform. I have wanted to work in some sort of psychological field ever since my first psychology class. As a very emotionally aware person, this topic piqued my interest and it was something I was good at. That was until I started working in childcare and realized I have another passion – taking care of the most vulnerable members of our community. With my background in psychological sciences, I excelled in my position as a teacher, providing empathy and patience to these children as they learn how to be little humans. I found myself to be especially protective of the kids who struggled. In the younger classrooms, I would instantly bond with the kids who had trouble adjusting to being away from home. In the older classrooms, I was drawn to the kids who struggled with behavioral issues, or the quiet kids who did not spend much time interacting with their peers. With the ability to complete my college courses online, I have done very well academically while still being able to do what I love as a teacher full time. I was even able to make time to become a certified Lead Teacher for the infant/toddler program. My day begins at 7am, opening up my classroom, working until 3pm with my group of nine 18-month-olds, then directly home to complete my college courses. I wouldn’t have it any other way! After graduating from UMGC, I plan to further my education by applying for graduate schools to obtain a degree in the field of social work. While the specifics of career goals are endless, I will end up working with children in need regardless while using that degree. I am applying for this scholarship to help me finish out this last year of schooling. As I am getting older and more independent, the bills are increasing. I need a little boost to keep me on my feet so I can remain in school full time, as opposed to taking on a second job. This is my passion, and I can’t wait to finish and get out into the world to make a difference for the children in need.

My name is Ryleigh Herzberger, and I am currently a junior at the University of Maryland Global Campus. I am majoring in Psychology, and will be graduating in the Spring of 2025. My career goals include working with children in need in order to combine my two biggest passions – childcare and social reform. I have wanted to work in some sort of psychological field ever since my first psychology class. As a very emotionally aware person, this topic piqued my interest and it was something I was good at. That was until I started working in childcare and realized I have another passion – taking care of the most vulnerable members of our community. With my background in psychological sciences, I excelled in my position as a teacher, providing empathy and patience to these children as they learn how to be little humans. I found myself to be especially protective of the kids who struggled. In the younger classrooms, I would instantly bond with the kids who had trouble adjusting to being away from home. In the older classrooms, I was drawn to the kids who struggled with behavioral issues, or the quiet kids who did not spend much time interacting with their peers. With the ability to complete my college courses online, I have done very well academically while still being able to do what I love as a teacher full time. I was even able to make time to become a certified Lead Teacher for the infant/toddler program. My day begins at 7am, opening up my classroom, working until 3pm with my group of nine 18-month-olds, then directly home to complete my college courses. I wouldn’t have it any other way! After graduating from UMGC, I plan to further my education by applying for graduate schools to obtain a degree in the field of social work. While the specifics of career goals are endless, I will end up working with children regardless while using that degree. I am applying for this scholarship to help me finish out this last year of schooling. As I am getting older and more independent, the bills are increasing. I need a little boost to keep me on my feet so I can remain in school full time, as opposed to taking on a second job. This is my passion, and I can’t wait to finish and get out into the world to make a difference for the children in need.

My name is Ryleigh Herzberger, and I am currently a junior at the University of Maryland Global Campus. I am majoring in Psychology, and will be graduating in the Spring of 2025. My career goals include working with children in need in order to combine my two biggest passions – childcare and social reform. I have wanted to work in some sort of psychological field ever since my first psychology class. As a very emotionally aware person, this topic piqued my interest and it was something I was good at. That was until I started working in childcare and realized I have another passion – taking care of the most vulnerable members of our community. With my background in psychological sciences, I excelled in my position as a teacher, providing empathy and patience to these children as they learn how to be little humans. I found myself to be especially protective of the kids who struggled. In the younger classrooms, I would instantly bond with the kids who had trouble adjusting to being away from home. In the older classrooms, I was drawn to the kids who struggled with behavioral issues, or the quiet kids who did not spend much time interacting with their peers. With the ability to complete my college courses online, I have done very well academically while still being able to do what I love as a teacher full time. I was even able to make time to become a certified Lead Teacher for the infant/toddler program. My day begins at 7am, opening up my classroom, working until 3pm with my group of nine 18-month-olds, then directly home to complete my college courses. I wouldn’t have it any other way! After graduating from UMGC, I plan to further my education by applying for graduate schools to obtain a degree in the field of social work. While the specifics of career goals are endless, I will end up working with children regardless while using that degree. I am applying for this scholarship to help me finish out this last year of schooling. As I am getting older and more independent, the bills are increasing. I need a little boost to keep me on my feet so I can remain in school full time, as opposed to taking on a second job. This is my passion, and I can’t wait to finish and get out into the world to make a difference for the children in need.