“Justice for all”, one of the main values of American society. Does our criminal justice system actually represent justice for all? Unfortunately, no. The United States justice system is often discriminatory and biased against low-income people and people of color. So what can I do? As a future black professional, I believe that it is my duty to support those who look like me, yet who have not had the same opportunities as me. Therefore, I want to work to help those who have been negatively affected by this system. I am a second year Social Work major and a Criminology and Criminal Justice Studies major. Growing up I was never sure on exactly what I wanted to do as a career. However, there was one thing that I have always been sure of: I wanted to help people. Luckily I found social work. My goal is to use my combined criminal justice and social work education to become a forensic social worker. As a forensic social worker I will work in the criminal justice system with minority clients who are low-income and need support. Since our justice system often takes advantage of these communities, I will work to ensure that my clients are treated fairly, and that they have the opportunities that they deserve. I will also work to provide support and help completely eliminate the problem of recidivism. There are a lot of people who would have never been re-arrested if they were given the tools they needed to have a successful life after being incarcerated. Working with these communities will allow the improvement and success of these communities. Low-income and minority communities need this support, especially when the system is often against them. I want to use my education to become this support. Additionally, as a black professional working in the system, I can help fight back against the other professionals who might make biased decisions on behalf of my clients. Working in the criminal justice system means understanding its intricacies and understanding the harm it can do to members of our community. Therefore, I can be a part of a change to eliminate these discriminatory practices. So, while I am working in the criminal justice system, I hope to actively work and fight towards policies that make change. My education is my most valuable asset and I plan to make the most of what I can while I am here. To reach my full potential and align with my goals, I am focusing on a career that can help others and can eventually impact our world for the better.

I am involved in my school’s and my city’s community because community involvement is very important to me. In school, I have participated in two sports. Cross Country and Track and Field. The main thing I love about these sports is the feeling of being a part of a team. I am also involved in various clubs. Cultural clubs: Spanish Club and Culture Club, which I am the president of. Academic clubs: Quiz Team and Book Club. And service club: National Honor Society and ASTRA. I am fully committed to each of these sports and clubs. My community involvement is shown through my volunteer work. I volunteered at my city’s Earth Day Conversation, where we picked up trash from around the community and talked about how important community health is and how we could improve it. I have also volunteered at Shared Harvest’s Food Distribution. Shared Harvest is a food bank that distributes boxes of food to families in need. As volunteers, we organized and sorted food for families. Then we passed out the boxes of food into people’s cars. I have also volunteered at the Lincoln Community Center After School Program. This is an after-school program where we help elementary children with schoolwork and we do various crafts and activities with them. And my most recent volunteer experience is the Seeds of Hope Foster Care Parent Meeting. While foster parents are having a support meeting. Our volunteers do crafts, games, and activities with their foster children.

I have always considered myself an introverted person. So throughout high school, one of my main goals was to become more involved in my community. Through community service, my goal was to put myself out there and prepare myself for my future career. One of my first experiences was volunteering at my city’s Earth Day Conversation. We picked up trash from around the community and then we talked about how important community health is and how we could improve it. Our conversation also led to how our local high school handles diversity and inclusion. We talked about the racism shown by fellow students, the microaggressions sometimes received by teachers, and how we can change these things. This conversation made me feel included and I learned that others were looking out for me. This was an eye-opener for me because I had no idea that organizations came together to do events like this and had important conversations like this. I appreciated being able to partake in this experience. It resulted in a cleaner environment and a better understanding of how we could improve the lives of minorities in my community. I have also volunteered at Shared Harvest Food Distribution. Shared Harvest is a food bank that distributes boxes of food to families in need. Shared Harvest provides the food and many volunteers help organize the event. As volunteers, we organized and sorted food for families. Then we passed out the boxes of food into people’s cars. This volunteer experience resulted in fewer families in our community facing food insecurity. Volunteering at places like this opened my eyes because I had no idea how many families in my community needed free food. This type of organization is very important to society. Without selfless organizations like this one, more families in our communities would face hunger. It would be nearly impossible to run this food bank without volunteers. I love being involved in community activities like this because I know it will benefit my community’s members. I have also volunteered at the Lincoln Community Center After School Program. Children come to the Lincoln Community Center because, for most of them, no one can be home for them after school. Some of them also need help with schoolwork. Without volunteers, these young kids would have to go to an empty home or their parents would have to spend money finding different alternatives. At this after-school program, volunteers help elementary children with different types of schoolwork and we do various crafts and activities with them. Being a part of an organization like this is so important because of how beneficial it is to my community and its citizens. One of my most recent volunteer experiences was the Seeds of Hope Foster Care Parent Meeting. While foster parents are having a support meeting. Our volunteers do crafts, games, and activities with their foster children. Being a part of this experience in my community is very important to me because I want to be a Social Worker in the future. Being involved in this aspect of my community is preparing me for my career. These different volunteer experiences opened me up. Now, it is easier for me to get involved in my community. I am able to be a part of different events and activities without hesitation. Now, I plan to participate in clubs and organizations that focus on community service and volunteerism in college. Not only has community service benefitted those receiving the support, but it has also benefited me as a person.

Cross Country running is a physically challenging sport, but more so a mentally challenging sport. A runner has to tell themself to keep running even when their body wants to stop. I started Cross Country running in eighth grade and I really enjoyed it. I participated in this sport all throughout high school. Even though it was challenging. We had to learn how to keep running for long periods of time in order to prepare for races, which were usually around 3.2 miles. Which seemed impossible to me at first. My cousin, who is the same age as me, moved in with my family and I during the summer before ninth grade. That summer was my first summer of high school Cross Country. Since my cousin just moved in, she did not participate in that season. Throughout that season I attended early morning practices before school, I ran on my days off, and I attended weight lifting to better my skills. While I wasn’t necessarily eager to do these things, it was important to succeed at this sport. Although I tried, I did struggle to improve myself, and I sometimes struggled to keep going. However, even though I did not do my best, I still enjoyed this sport and kept trying. When my Sophomore year season of Cross Country came around, I wanted to encourage my cousin to join our team. Running as a sport can seem very intimidating at first. However, I enjoyed it and wanted her to be a part of it too. At first, when asked if she was interested in joining Cross Country, her response was no. It seemed too difficult, and she did not believe she could run. However, I explained that running can seem very intimidating at first, but anyone can do it if they try. I told her that every single runner out there has to start somewhere. Many start thinking that they cannot run, so it was normal for her to feel this way. However, having me as her example encouraged her to at least try it out. And if she hated it she could leave. She has seen me struggle through races when I was in pain, and still continue to the finish line. She has seen me get up early to attend 6:00 am practices, even though I did not necessarily want to go. Even though I have struggled in this sport she has seen me try. And that was the most important part. So she decided to try out Cross Country our Sophomore year. We ran together and I encouraged her to keep going when she wanted to stop. Eventually, through practice, she got a lot better and grew to love the sport as well. In the end, she had three successful seasons of Cross Country. My encouragement to her and her seeing me struggle and keep going is what helped her join and become successful in Cross Country.

One of my goals ever since I was young is to help people in the community. The way I can do that is through Social Work. I believe that everyone deserves equal chances to succeed and Social Workers are meant to help those who need it. I want to help those who are disadvantaged, especially youth. If I can help our youth, I can set them up for a better future. I want to make sure children are safe, they have basic necessities, and they have access to healthcare. I think it is so important to help our youth because they are the most vulnerable and impressionable people in our society. Social Work is a career that I can excel in and reach my goal of helping my community. I have always felt very passionate about children who are homeless, who are in the foster care system, or who are struggling overall. My goal in life is to help these children and set them up for success. I fully believe that a person’s future should not have to depend on their past. I want to be a Social Worker because they are very important to the lives of the citizens in our communities. My education has always been important to me. From early elementary school, I have always aimed to do my best in school. It would have been easier to do the bare minimum and just pass my classes, however, I wanted to succeed in my classes. In order to do this I have had to make sacrifices. I have to balance school work, my job, my extracurricular activities, and volunteering. My schedule can be very hectic; however, each of these things are very important to me in reaching my goals. I have had to sacrifice my free time and balance my schedule in order to succeed in my goals. Another sacrifice I have made is shown through my choice of courses. When choosing between academic-level courses and college credit or honors courses, I have always chosen the latter. I always challenge myself to work to the best of my ability, so choosing these harder courses was important to me. I knew that these courses would bring about a much larger workload, more stress, and less free time. However, those are the sacrifices that needed to be made. A personal goal I have made for myself was to do better in Cross Country races. In order to do this I have had to work harder during practice. It takes a lot of mental sacrifice to be able to keep running when I want to stop. I have attended early morning practices before school, I have run on my days off, and I have attended weight lifting to better my skills. While I wasn’t necessarily eager to do these things, it was necessary for my goals. I’ve especially had to push myself while racing. Racing has never been easy for me. It takes a lot of effort, however, I really try to put out my best effort each race. These sacrifices are important for me to be able to reach my goals while racing. And when I succeed in a race, all of my sacrifices are worth it. Throughout my life, I have faced struggles while attempting to reach my personal and educational goals. However, I have made many sacrifices in order to reach these goals. My educational and personal goals are all very important to me and the sacrifices I have made are always worth it.