Mental illness has deeply influenced my beliefs, relationships, and career aspirations. My experience with mental illness has not only taught me the power of resilience, but has also shown me how important it is to be a voice for those who are too afraid to speak up, and to be an advocate for those who struggle with mental illness. Through my struggle, I have learned to be open and honest about my experience, and to be compassionate, understanding, and supportive of those also dealing with mental illness. This has made my relationships stronger, as I approach conversations and connections with a greater understanding and empathy. Specifically, I’ve seen how this knowledge has made me a better friend, colleague, and often a mentor to those around me. Lastly, my experience has taught me that your work need not be restricted to your job description, but can also create a larger social, emotional, and often political impact. This has motivated me to seek out meaningful work that is focused on making a positive difference in the lives of others affected by mental illness. On another personal level, my grandfather having a stroke and exhibiting mental illness impacted me completely. Experiencing my grandfather’s mental decline after a stroke left me feeling helpless and sad. Watching someone you love change and having to adapt to that change was a difficult situation. It taught me how to be compassionate, understanding and patient with those who are going through challenges in life. It also showed me the importance of cherishing every moment I have with my loved ones and not take them for granted. My grandpa had a stroke when I was 18 and it made me realize how little control we sometimes have over our own health. Seeing him go from being a vibrant, independent elderly man to someone depending on full-time care made me realize the importance of practicing self-care, both physically and mentally. It also made me want to be an advocate for mental health by raising awareness of the many forms that mental health issues can take, and by helping people find resources and support to cope with their mental health issues. Seeing my grandpa suffer after his stroke made me want to work to make sure no one ever has to feel alone when dealing with a mental health issue. I currently am pursuing my degree in psychology so that I can better understand stroke victims psychological issues.

I had prepared to begin thanksgiving break studying and relaxing from all of the stressful classes I decided to take this sophomore year. I had just finished my classes and was driving back home when an unanticipated event changed my life. As I rounded a bend on the road, I saw a car had crossed over the dividing line at the last minute and was heading straight towards me. I had no choice but to hit the brakes and swerve to the side to avoid a head-on collision. In the process, however, I ended up hiting the roadside guardrail and sustaining serious injuries. I had already been suffering from depression for a long time when my life took a turn for the worse – I was in a car accident. It was a devastating experience that had a huge impact on my mental health. It wasn’t just the physical injuries I sustained: I felt traumatized and ashamed. My world narrowed to a tiny circle that felt like a prison; I couldn’t seem to find my way out. But I didn’t give up, even though I wanted to. I slowly started working on recovering from both the physical and the psychological aspects of the accident. I had to work through the pain and guilt I was feeling. I had to start believing in myself again and trust that things would get better eventually. Since the accident, I’ve made an effort to take better care of myself. I went to physical therapy to be able to rebuild the strength that I had lost, as well as to heal the physical pain. I learned that things are not always perfect in any part of life. We sometimes find ourselves in uncomfortable or unfulfilling situations. It can be difficult to accept these situations as they are. For some people, feelings of frustration, resentment, fear and anger may arise when something is not ideal. However, acceptance can be a powerful tool to cope with disappointment or adversity in our lives. Learning to accept things as they are doesn’t mean that we have to surrender. We can still strive to change our situations. Acceptance can help us to calmly acknowledge our experiences and work towards better outcomes. It can be part of a process that helps us to focus our energy on what we can do instead of feeling overwhelmed by what is beyond our control. One things that helps us to accept things as they are is to focus on gratitude. I’m grateful that I didn’t lose my life in the accident.

I believe I should be awarded this scholarship because I am passionate about helping those with developmental disabilities and making a difference in their lives and the lives of their caretakers. My experience with Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) and Positive Behavior Support (PBS) has been one that has given me a greater understanding of the opportunities that can be created through these practices. I have seen the direct and transformative benefits experienced by individuals when practices such as reinforcement, modeling, shaping, extinction, and skills training are put into play. Receiving this scholarship will assist me in furthering my knowledge and developing skills in ABA and PBS that will help me to be a more knowledgeable and effective therapist in my field. I would use this scholarship to obtain more advanced training in these areas and to have the opportunity to continue to develop my skills as a practitioner. I believe that by learning more about the application of ABA and PBs principles, I can contribute to their continued development. This scholarship will support my educational endeavors and allow me to further apply the principles of positive behavior support and improve the quality of life for individuals with developmental disabilities. It will support me in gaining a deeper knowledge of the research in the field of Applied Behavior Analysis and apply it to the clinical practice. It will allow me to develop expertise in analyzing behavior in the context of the person, and then to plan, implement, and evaluate individualized, evidence-based interventions. With this knowledge, I will be able to develop skills to collaborate andtrain professionals, family members, and community members in effective and efficient methods of supporting individuals with developmental disabilities. Additionally, I will be able to use this scholarship to sharpen my expertise in the development of programs aimed at improving the quality of life for individuals with developmental disabilities. I will be able to use the research and knowledge I gain to research and develop tools, programs and resources that will be available to service providers, family members and the individuals with disabilities On a personal level, I wish to aid people with developmental and mental disabilities because my grandfather had these issues. When I look back on my life, I can see that my grandfather’s stroke was a major turning point. The sadness of his suffering, combined with our family’s helplessness during this trying time, had a lasting effect on me. Seeing the mental and emotional toll that my grandfather was going through—and witnessing how it affected my own family—was tremendously eye-opening and life-altering. His struggles made me acutely aware of how much emotional trauma can plague people’s lives. It also made me keenly aware of how much of a difference it could make to have professionals on hand with the training, understanding and compassion to help them through it. My strong desire to help others like my grandfather—people struggling to cope with physical or psychological issues—was what made me determine to pursue psychology as a major in college. My grandfather was an incredibly loving and gentle person, and the effects of his stroke were just the beginning of his struggles.

¨Shoot for the moon, so that even if you don´t make it, you´ll be among the stars ¨ My Uncle who is a chemist told me this my junior year of high school concerning me aiming to be the best at everything I do. I was anxious and felt like my goals were too far out of reach. Discouraged and unsure of myself, I stopped trying so hard and began to have a insecure attitude. He reassured me that I had potential beyond my own understanding and that I should still maintain my high goals and pursue them fervently. I realize that even if I don´t make it to the moon, I am still as good as a star.

If there is anything that I have learned in these 18 years that I have been on this earth, it is that depression is real. I struggled with depression for 4 years on and off, hitting a peak in this last year of high school. My mental health is very important to me and I stress the idea of a healthy mind, body, and soul. Though, this year took a toll on me. COVID-19 transformed my happy, social and carefree personality into one centered around sadness, isolation, and stress. I wallowed in self pity and allowed the mental illness to consume me. I never left my room and declined offers from my friends to hang out. After 3 months of this I realized that it did not have to be this way. In order to help myself, I had to fight my demons head on and decide I was going to be better. I let go of that weak persona that I embraced. My understanding of what it meant to be strong changed completely. In order to survive, you must be able to fight. I learned that depression makes you isolate yourself so that you can be miserable in peace when we humans crave interaction. The importance of companionship and relationships was not as clear to me as it was once I started focusing on getting better.

During my freshman and sophomore year of high school, my home life had began to become very stressful. My older brother was getting ready to go to college and money was very tight. The college he wished to go to was very expensive, and our financial state was not capable of paying for 4 years. My grandparents stressed themselves into sickness. My grandma ended up becoming very depressed. My grandpa ended up having a massive stroke, leaving him with brain damage. School was already stressing me, and the ongoing bad events that occurred at home made my mental health decline. I faced a hard time keeping up with my school work as well as trying to help my grandpa. I fell into a state of depression and hopelessness. My family has always been religious, so my grandmother suggested that we should trust God and not let this time of trouble destroy us. I began to pray more and seek God for help. We trusted that God would heal my grandfather´s mind and fix our financial instability. Soon enough, we started seeing improvements in his behavior and health, and we were able to send my big brother to college for 2 years. Those two years seemed like the most heartbreaking time of my life. I know now that some things you have to put in the hands of God and trust that He will take care of you. I can wholeheartedly say that my family and I became stronger from that experience. As I grow older and face new situations I will take what i have learned from my past hardships and apply them to my future endeavors.

From the very beginning of high school I set numerous goals that I wished to achieve by my senior year. I knew from a young age that I must prepare myself academically if I wish to become discolored that my parents knew I could be. I can wholeheartedly say that I have reached every one of my goals and achieved how many things in these past four years. I have been inducted into 3 different honor societies at my school: Mu Alpha Theta, National Honor Society, and Spanish Honor Society. I also earned a place amongst a few other students in our school's Honor Art class for 2+ years. Early last year, my class elected me Senior class Vice President. These memberships and achievements are currently present in my career as a senior. I served as an Ambassador for John Carroll my sophomore year, aiding our administrator with the welcoming celebration of middle schoolers to our school. My sophomore year of high school I applied and was accepted into the Heritage Panel in which we discussed social issues and sought to bring change and racial balance to the students as well as the faculty. I briefly played basketball on Junior Varsity and ran track before COVID-19 terminated the season. My achievements and involvement in school have paved a way for me to move further towards my long-term goals.

Mid 2013, my mother passed away from many illnesses. I was ten at the time and my brother as 13. I knew I would have to move in with my grandparents in a city thirty minutes away from home. It may not seem as a long distance, but it felt like I was moving to another state. I had to leave my friends, school, church and most importantly, my way of living. The transition was life changing, but extremely difficult as well. My mother had raised us in a very distinct style compared to my grandparents. They were very “old-school” to say the least. It took many years to get used to , but over time my relationship with my grandparents became very relaxed. I allowed my old life to lay to rest as my mother did, and from then I have grown into the person I am today.