My goal in life is to support underserved communities by providing them with the knowledge, opportunities, and resources necessary to become successful.

During the pandemic, my father had an adverse reaction to one of the drugs prescribed for him and this triggered a chain of stressful events which lasted for months. Every now and then I would find him vomiting after eating something or I’d wake up in the middle of the night to find him sneezing uncontrollably. My father hasn’t fully recovered but he’s doing better now. I still take care of him and I manage everything that goes on with him. I’m very positive that if I didn’t make the sacrifices I’ve made to help him, then things could’ve been a lot worse. My challenge taught me about the importance of flexibility, sacrifice, and gratitude. At any given moment, something can drastically change your life and if you’re not willing to be flexible or make sacrifices, then this can lead to even more distressing issues down the line. As far as gratitude, I recently realized how easy it is to take things for granted. The pandemic and my father’s health have caused me to be grateful for everything I currently have. I’m grateful for my own health, attending school, and I’m very grateful that my father is still here.

At a very young age, I was pulled out of class frequently to receive special attention. I was learning at a slower rate than most kids which warranted the attention of learning specialists and counselors. In my senior year of high school, I met a friendly teacher named Mr. Pasek. I had him for an accounting class and I had a feeling that I would struggle with it. I let him know that I didn't feel confident about the subject, and around this time I was actually diagnosed with ADD, which stands for Attention Deficit Disorder. So, once my doctor diagnosed me, he wrote out a prescription for a drug that would help me focus which was called Adderall. When I first took Adderall, I remember seeing the yellow lines on the road on the way to school, and that was the first time I felt like I could focus on one thing and one thing only. Sure enough, as my focus level improved, my grades started to improve as well. However, the side effects of Adderall were very overwhelming, and I didn't like depending on something that was causing me so much pain. When I confided in Mr. Pasek, he responded by challenging me to work harder, adjust my study habits and reconsider my diet. He was very firm about exploring different options before relying on a drug. Mr. Pasek also offered to assist me during his office hours so he could break down the lessons into smaller segments. All of his support led to me giving up Adderall and subsequently passing his class. He was so proud of me that he actually nominated me for the Mustang Pride Award which I received in the middle of my senior year. I’ll never forget the impact he had on me.

My favorite way to help others is to volunteer at 2 after-school programs which cater to at-risk youth. The two organizations I volunteer for are Concerned Christian Men (CCM) and By The Hand Club For Kids (BTH). Unfortunately, some people think that school alone is enough for a child to do well academically. However, there are many intricate processes that a child has to go through in order to master different subjects. If at-risk youth aren’t shown the proper amount of attention, then this can affect their academic trajectory which can affect their future. I started volunteering for CCM and BTH around 2015 and I actually worked at BTH before I started volunteering there. Once I noticed how many volunteer opportunities they had for employees, I decided to take on as much volunteer work as I could because I believed in their mission just as much as CCM. With these two organizations, I felt as if I was preventing potential problems by being there for the kids. I mainly do this by providing certain strategies they can use to handle the different subjects they deal with in school. I also make sure to frame my strategies in a certain way so the child sees it as a helpful trick instead of an academic concept. I believe my actions have impacted the lives of young kids by giving them a more positive outlook. Recently, one of the little boys I was helping told me that before I came along he was doing very bad in school, but now he’s getting his assignments completed. This is the type of statement that motivates me to keep coming back to volunteer. My goal for the future is to help develop a great deal of competent, self-sufficient individuals from underserved communities.

I pursued a degree in business management when I first started college because I thought it would be the best path for me but I was wrong. In my junior year of college, I discovered the field of neuroscience through a tutoring job at Firman Community Services. Neuroscience basically explores the psychology and neurochemistry of the brain in relation to learning. When I first learned about it, I discovered an abundance of useful information that I applied in my own life and the lives of my students. As I noticed the students retaining what I taught, this sparked my interest in education. When I graduated from Chicago State University, I took a few months to do some soul-searching. Even though I graduated with a business degree I knew my heart wasn’t in it so I never used the degree. So, I wrote down all the things that made me feel alive over the years, and the main memory which stuck out the most was my tutoring experience at Firman Community Services. This was the only memory where I felt like I was making the biggest difference. Once I realized that I knew I wanted to go down a different career path. At first, I applied for some tutoring jobs just to confirm that the educational field was the best fit for me. I ended up falling in love with the process of educating young students who initially felt hopeless. As time went on, I continued to secure jobs and volunteer positions where I worked with at-risk youth who had learning disabilities and low academic confidence. I realized that I was able to get through to them because I was incorporating self-efficacy and neuroscience into my tutoring sessions. Over time, I developed an inner sense of purpose and concluded that the insight I derived from my obstacle could be used to help those who struggle with similar issues. An alarming statistic that has really stuck with me is knowing that if a child doesn’t learn how to read by 3rd grade then they are 4 times more likely to drop out of high school. Since some communities are heavily laden with different shortcomings such as the aforementioned statistic, I’d like to assist in keeping kids on the right track. I felt as if I was doing this when I was working at an after-school program known as By The Hand Club For Kids. While I was there, I found out that a child had told their mother that I made a difference in their life and that I changed the way they saw education. When the mother told me this, I realized that I wanted to have that effect on as many children as possible. I’d like to serve students on a wider scale and I feel that teaching is the best path for me to do so.

I'm a firm believer that more money and more resources simply makes someone more of what they already are. At this time, I strive to empower at-risk youth by volunteering at two organizations that cater to them. My dream life would be one where I’m able to empower them mentally, emotionally, spiritually, and financially. The truth is, knowledge, resources, and economic empowerment can make a tremendous impact in one's life and I desire to instill these concepts for marginalized communities. In some of the communities I’ve served in, I felt as if there was a massive wealth and education gap which kept most of the community members trapped in a cycle. In order to stop this vicious cycle, a child needs to be surrounded by the right people at the right time. I know a student’s success isn’t fully dependent on a teacher, however, research has shown that teachers are very instrumental in a child’s life. I would love to be more than just a teacher though. I would like to be an entrepreneur, a community activist, and a philanthropist. I personally feel that I have a lot to offer and I would love to share my knowledge with those who need it. Like most people, I do think about going on fancy trips and owning nice things, however, nothing preoccupies my mind more than helping the less fortunate. I could choose to volunteer once a week, but on average, I volunteer three times a week. I could also choose to volunteer for just one organization, but I volunteer for two of them because they both align with my values in a major way. My dream life is one where I simply spread as much goodwill as I can and live as a true humanitarian.

Something that gives me hope that the future will be better is seeing the positive impact occur from the organizations I volunteer for. I've witnessed quite a few testimonials from different individuals involved in both of the programs and it really touches my heart to see such exceptional outcomes. I currently volunteer at 2 after-school programs which cater to at-risk youth. The two organizations I volunteer for are Concerned Christian Men (CCM) and By The Hand Club For Kids (BTH). Most of the students I encounter have fathers who have been imprisoned or who have passed away from street violence. In some cases, this leaves the mother in a position where she has to work two or three jobs to support her children. Since the mother is so busy working these jobs, this means that she doesn’t have the time to help her kids develop the skills they need to succeed in school. Unfortunately, some people think that school alone is enough for a child to do well academically. However, there are many intricate processes that a child has to go through in order to master different subjects. If at-risk youth aren’t shown the proper amount of attention, this can affect their academic trajectory which can affect their overall future. I started volunteering for CCM and BTH around 2015 and I actually worked at BTH before I started volunteering there. Once I noticed how many volunteer opportunities they had for employees, I decided to take on as much volunteer work as I could because I believed in their mission just as much as CCM. With these two organizations, I’ve always felt as if I was preventing potential problems by being there for the kids. I mainly do this by providing certain strategies they can use to handle the different subjects they deal with in school. I also make sure to frame my strategies in a certain way so the child sees it as a helpful trick instead of an academic concept. This type of framing puts them at ease when it comes to learning additional “tricks”, which can help them learn more material over time. Recently, one of the little boys I was helping told me that before I came along he was doing very bad in school, but now he’s getting his assignments completed. This is the type of statement that motivates me to keep coming back to volunteer. My goal for the future is to help develop a great deal of competent, self-sufficient individuals from underserved communities. If there's one thing that gives me hope, it's hearing young children say that my presence makes a difference.

If I was a highly influential figure, I'd focus my efforts on supporting those who live in rough neighborhoods. Systemic racism plays a major role in the current circumstances marginalized communities face. Minorities who were deprived of essential resources in earlier times were expected to adapt to substandard conditions. Not only was this an insurmountable obstacle, but these conditions trickled down to future generations which created a cycle of poverty, peddling, and prison. There’s a massive wealth and education gap which keeps the less fortunate in this cycle. A potential way to level the playing field is to provide substantial resources to students from underserved communities. These resources could consist of free wifi, donated Chromebooks, and shuttle buses for students who live in dangerous neighborhoods. There are so many obscure challenges that minority students have to endure which aren’t being properly addressed. The aforementioned solutions are a good starting point for the numerous issues that plague people who endure such hardships.

In regards to traditional education, I had a teacher who would attempt to explain math problems by solving another math problem. This made me struggle immensely because it seemed as if I couldn’t connect the information to anything significant in my life. If the math problem was broken down further or had been taught in a fun, colorful manner, I probably would’ve been able to grasp the concept because, at that time, I gravitated towards fun and colorful subjects. I had worked for a company known as SAGA Innovations which was basically a Math tutoring organization. We went through intensive training and they basically showed us how we should teach the kids using Common Core Standards. At first, I was resistant to it, but I started to realize that it provided a more thorough understanding of the math lesson. It wasn’t easy for me to unlearn the way I was familiar with but I eventually got the hang of it and made sure that the kids I tutored learned the correct way to solve math problems. One of the methods I had to teach which I was unfamiliar with was the Box Method for multiplication. Compared to the traditional way I learned, this was much more comprehensive so I made sure to consistently input this into my tutoring sessions.

You should live below your means to get ahead. I was born in New Orleans, Louisiana and we lived in a run-down apartment that had rats, spiders, and cockroaches constantly running through it. We stayed there until I was about five years old and I wondered if other people lived like that. It was a very unsanitary living situation and I always worried about the large spiders biting me. Fortunately, we moved to a nicer neighborhood but we got robbed a couple of times and I could tell my dad was very eager to move somewhere else. He ended up accepting a job in Chicago a little later on and we found ourselves living in another run-down apartment again. After some time passed, we moved to a better spot which was more ideal. This made me adopt the philosophy of living below your means. At this current time, I’m living below my means by practicing self-denial in various forms. I don’t purchase a lot of clothing, I don’t own a car and I rarely go out with my friends because I’m aware that these things can drain a person’s finances. To compensate, I manage the clothes that I have, I read a lot, and I take the bus everywhere. The most humbling thing has been taking public transportation because I see so much on there and I ride through dangerous neighborhoods. I also have to deal with inclement weather conditions whenever I’m waiting on the bus or trekking through the snow to catch it. However, when I deal with these uncomfortable situations, I think back to when my family was living in a run-down apartment in New Orleans. That memory is what motivates me to make these sacrifices so I can save as much as I can for school.

Live below your means to get ahead. I was born in New Orleans, Louisiana and we lived in a run-down apartment that had rats, spiders, and cockroaches constantly running through it. We stayed there until I was about five years old and I wondered if other people lived like that. It was a very unsanitary living situation and I always worried about the large spiders biting me. Fortunately, we moved to a nicer neighborhood but we got robbed a couple of times and I could tell my dad was very eager to move somewhere else. He ended up accepting a job in Chicago a little later on and we found ourselves living in another run-down apartment again. After some time passed, we moved to a better spot which was more ideal. This made me adopt the philosophy of living below your means. At this current time, I’m living below my means by practicing self-denial in various forms. I don’t purchase a lot of clothing, I don’t own a car and I rarely go out with my friends because I’m aware that these things can drain a person’s finances. To compensate, I manage the clothes that I have, I read a lot, and I take the bus everywhere. The most humbling thing has been taking public transportation because I see so much on there and I ride through dangerous neighborhoods. I also have to deal with inclement weather conditions whenever I’m waiting on the bus or trekking through the snow to catch it. However, when I deal with these uncomfortable situations, I think back to when my family was living in a run-down apartment in New Orleans. That memory is what motivates me to make these sacrifices so I can save as much as I can for school.

I act locally by volunteering at two after-school programs which cater to at-risk youth. The two organizations I volunteer for are Concerned Christian Men (CCM) and By The Hand Club For Kids (BTH). Due to the pandemic, both of these organizations had a serious drop in volunteers because of safety concerns. However, I’ve decided to keep volunteering because I have a heart for the kids these organizations serve. Most of the students I encounter have fathers who have been imprisoned or who have passed away from street violence. In some cases, this leaves the mother in a position where she has to work two or three jobs to support her children. Since the mother is so busy working these jobs, this means that she doesn’t have the time to help her kids develop the skills they need to succeed in school. CCM and BTH are two organizations that aim to remedy this issue. I started volunteering for CCM and BTH around 2015 and I actually worked at BTH before I started volunteering there. With these two organizations, I’ve always felt as if I was preventing potential problems by being there for the kids. I mainly do this by providing certain strategies they can use to handle the different subjects they deal with in school. When you interact with at-risk children, you can’t help but wonder about their future. Moreover, if you factor in their environment and lack of support in their homes, you start to consider their mortality. When people from underserved communities don’t receive substantial support, it's easy to understand why some may resort to illegal activities to support themselves. In order to stop this vicious cycle, a child needs to be surrounded by the right people at the right time.

Generosity means giving what you can without expecting anything back. In the summer of 2015, I was unemployed and I was searching for a job. I wasn’t able to find anything for a couple of months but then I stumbled upon a company that aligned with my values called Concerned Christian Men (CCM). The company focused on working with at-risk boys who lived in dangerous environments. Their mission was to provide another path for these kids so they wouldn’t become a victim of their environment. I reached out to the director of the program to see if they were hiring, however, by the time I reached out to him the program had already reached full capacity for their workers. I didn’t want this to stop me from partaking in their mission, so I asked if I could volunteer. As I volunteered, some of my duties consisted of cleaning up the facility, preparing food, helping the kids with their homework, and supervising field trips. After a few months, I asked the director of CCM if any spots had opened up for me to work at his organization. He didn't have any, but he recommended another program called By The Hand Club for Kids (BTH). I applied for BTH and I ended up getting an interview. During the interview, I found out that the director who was interviewing me actually knew the director at CCM. When he found out that I had been volunteering there for the past couple of months, he was more than elated to hire me. As I was working at BTH, I noticed that they had many volunteer opportunities as well for employees. I decided to take on as much volunteer work as I could because I believed in their mission just as much as CCM.

"Hold yourself responsible for a higher standard than anybody expects of you. Never excuse yourself." - Henry Ward Beecher. With my current program, there have been many situations where I've found myself taking the lead for a group project. Whenever I'm placed on a team, I immediately identify everyone's strengths and encourage everyone to split up the work according to their strength. At times, taking on a leadership role can be uncomfortable because the spotlight is on you. However, when you choose this role, you have a better chance of determining the outcome you desire since you’re guiding everyone. Due to my leadership skills and academic performance, two faculty members nominated me for the NSLS (National Society of Leadership and Success). In addition, by maintaining a high GPA throughout my academic career, I believe this achievement contributes to the overall expectations I have for myself or any team I'm involved in. With the tutoring jobs I’ve had over the years, I connected well with underachieving students because I dealt with underachievement for most of my life. The key is to set high expectations for young kids. Over time, I’ve developed an inner sense of purpose and concluded that the insight I derived from my obstacle could be used to help those who struggle with similar issues. If you have low expectations for kids during childhood then they may never reach the heights they’re capable of.

I have dedicated myself to community service because of the inequities underserved communities face. I’ve helped my community by volunteering at two after-school programs which cater to at-risk youth. The two organizations I volunteer for are Concerned Christian Men (CCM) and By The Hand Club For Kids (BTH). Due to the pandemic, both of these organizations had a serious drop in volunteers because of safety concerns. However, I’ve decided to keep volunteering because I have a heart for the kids these organizations serve. I started volunteering for CCM and BTH around 2015 and I actually worked at BTH before I started volunteering there. With these two organizations, I’ve always felt as if I was preventing potential problems by being there for the kids. I mainly do this by providing certain strategies they can use to handle the different subjects they deal with in school. I also make sure to frame my strategies in a certain way so the child sees it as a helpful trick instead of an academic concept. This type of framing puts them at ease when it comes to learning additional “tricks”, which can help them learn more material over time. I believe my actions have impacted the lives of these young kids by giving them a more positive outlook. Recently, one of the little boys I was helping told me that before I came along he was doing very bad in school, but now he’s getting his assignments done. I’ve committed myself to serve this population because I’m aware that my interaction with these kids could be the very reason why they pass their classes. My plan is to continue volunteering so I can help develop a great deal of competent, self-sufficient individuals from underserved communities.

Everyone isn’t brought into this world with a fair chance of survival. Some people are brought up in single-parent households or have parents who are drug addicts. With these types of circumstances, it’s very hard for someone to envision a bright future for themselves. I personally feel that these issues can be overcome by receiving a quality education as a young child. This is where I like to come in and provide the guidance young children need to thrive. I have helped my own community by volunteering at 2 after-school programs which cater to at-risk youth. The two organizations I volunteer for are Concerned Christian Men and By The Hand Club For Kids. Most of the students I encounter have fathers who have been imprisoned or who have passed away from street violence. In some cases, this leaves the mother in a position where she has to work two or three jobs to support her children. Since the mother is so busy working these jobs, this means that she doesn’t have the time to help her kids develop the skills they need to succeed in school. I believe my actions have impacted the lives of the kids I serve by giving them a more positive outlook and the tools they need to become self-sufficient.

Around December 2018, I had to adapt to my father’s progressive illness. At first, there were some subtle signs of memory loss and respiratory issues, but then it evolved into a myriad of health problems. In the midst of his surgeries and incapacitation, I chose to bear the burden of handling his affairs because no one else was able to. When he was initially admitted, I discovered a lot of unpaid bills he didn't know about. I had to deal with debt collection agencies and assume full responsibility for all of his accounts. Since he didn't always have sufficient funds in his primary account, I used my own money to help pay off the debt so I could offset late fees and interest. As time went on, I continued to alter my schedule to maintain a proper balance between his life and my own. Although I'm not caring for elderly people in my community, I'm doing my best to take care of my elderly father. For the past 2 years, I’ve been managing his appointments, his accounts, his medication, and many other things. While this wasn’t the easiest challenge to adapt to, I did so by adjusting my life and accepting the circumstances. My challenge taught me about the importance of flexibility, sacrifice, and gratitude. At any given moment, something can drastically change your life and if you’re not willing to be flexible or make sacrifices, then this can lead to even more distressing issues down the line. As far as gratitude, there are so many scenarios that could have occurred in the past few years and I never realized how easy it is to take things for granted. I’m grateful for my own health, attending school, and I’m very grateful that my father is still here.

Something that shaped part of who I am today was witnessing how my mother gave back to those who were less fortunate. When I was about ten years old, I remember her inviting me to volunteer with her at a soup kitchen that catered to the homeless. This was something she did occasionally and I wasn’t really in the mood to go with her. She sensed my hesitation and encouraged me to go because she wanted me to see what life was like for other people. I remember that when I went with her, we had experienced a lot of appreciation from the people we were serving. When we had finished for the day, she told me how important it is to give back because life isn’t fair for everyone. This is a big reason why I’ve chosen to volunteer for the programs I’m currently involved in. I volunteer for By The Hand Club For Kids and Concerned Christian Men. Both of these organizations focus on supporting at-risk youth through educational services and enrichment activities. I’m aware that the educational system is designed to benefit the privileged and I’m also aware that the school-to-prison pipeline process has a considerable effect on the lives of minorities. I actually worked at By The Hand Club For Kids for 2 and a half years, but even after I left, I wanted to stay in the lives of my students just to make sure they stayed on the right path. If my mother didn't teach me the importance of giving back, then I may not have been able to develop an altruistic mindset for those who are less fortunate.

One change that I believe would make education better for future generations is to make scholarships more accessible. When you look at the general scope of how most scholarships are distributed, there are usually one or two winners. I feel as if this is unfair to strong applicants who are trying to bypass student loans and graduate with a minimal amount of debt. There seems to be a bit of a disconnect between scholarship donors and the students applying for the scholarships. While the donor may have the perception of vetting for the best candidate, I don't think they realize that some candidates have different circumstances. One candidate could come from a supportive two-parent household where they were groomed for scholarships whereas another candidate could come from a single-parent household with a lack of resources and support. Moreover, you can have some cases where there are individuals who find out about scholarships later on in life while they’re busy with school, work, and raising children. This means they may have a short window of time to apply for the scholarship since they already have to delegate their attention to so many different areas. So, while one candidate may have the upbringing, mindset, and resources for applying, another one may struggle with limited time and resources. A potential solution that could have a major impact on students’ lives is if scholarship amounts were broken down. For example, instead of providing a $1,000 dollar scholarship to one person, why not provide $250 scholarships to four people? For some applicants, receiving an award, no matter how small, is exactly what they need to incite themselves to keep pushing forward. I've seen quite a few scholarship listings where the donor mentions that they expect to receive many strong applications but intend to pick only one candidate. Working with those kinds of odds as a student is very hard. Those who work full-time jobs, go to school full-time, and attend to other obligations should be given a better chance for an award if they still manage to produce a strong essay or application. What I would also like scholarship donors to realize is that some people rely on their school’s library to get work done because they don't have a computer or printer at home. The pandemic made things a lot harder for individuals who depend on such resources. So, the aim of this essay is to bring awareness to the following: while some strong applicants may be seen as a “runner up” or “honorable mention” in the eyes of the donor, the eyes of the student see their best work as not being good enough. This is what leads to feeling discouraged, which leads to giving up on scholarships, which leads to accumulating student loan debt. This is a problem worth solving because it will give people a fair chance to finish their education and possibly finish their education debt-free.

In June 2018, I was researching different ways to make money online so I could raise funds to pay for school. I didn’t like the idea of solely depending on student loans because I didn’t want to graduate with a lot of debt. I found a lot of online programs which seemed like pyramid schemes, but then I discovered a program that appeared to be legitimate. The program specialized in showing people how to get their websites on the first page of Google through blogging. Once I invested in the program, I followed all of their instructions and ended up building a book blog. After putting in a lot of work, I was ecstatic when I started to make a couple of sales from my website. However, my excitement started to wane because I realized I was in a niche where I could only sell low ticket items, which meant low ticket commissions. So, it dawned on me that it would probably be best to transition to another niche that had more variety in it. Little did I know that I had just gotten lucky with my first site. I decided to create another site related to my degree which appeared to have a more promising outlook, however, it ended up being a massive failure. It was an academic site and I spent a full year working on it so I was quite despondent to see nothing come from it. Fortunately, there was a silver lining in my dark cloud. After doing in-depth research, I discovered some intricate details which revealed a pattern that was responsible for getting my book site on the first page of Google. I started to do a meticulous comparison between my book site and my academic site and that’s when I found out that the pattern for my book site wasn't present in my academic site. After putting in a considerable amount of effort, the pattern I applied had worked and I was able to generate revenue by getting my basketball site on the first page of Google. I know there are a lot of aspiring entrepreneurs who get disheartened when they face all the trials that come along with this field and I’d love to share my discovery with them. My idea can contribute to the betterment of society by providing people with a proven formula to make money from their interests through blogging. If you want to build a business the old-fashioned way, then you would have to either rent a space or pay construction workers to help you create a brick-and-mortar building. Not only would this cost thousands of dollars, but unpredictable situations like the pandemic could affect your return on investment. With my process, you end up saving money while using a tested formula to create an omnipresent asset. What I hope to achieve from my idea is to provide an inexpensive way for individuals to maximize their financial opportunities while minimizing their investment risk.

A problem I see in the world is the inequity of scholarships. When you look at the general scope of how most scholarships are distributed, there are usually only one or two winners. I feel as if this is unfair to strong applicants who are trying to bypass student loans and graduate with a minimal amount of debt. There seems to be a bit of a disconnect between scholarship donors and the students applying for the scholarships. While the donor may have the perception of vetting for the best candidate, I don't think they realize that some candidates have different circumstances. One candidate could come from a supportive two-parent household where they were groomed for scholarships whereas another candidate could come from a single-parent household with a lack of resources and support. A potential solution that could have a major impact on students’ lives is if scholarship amounts were broken down. For example, instead of providing a $1,000 dollar scholarship to one person, why not provide $250 scholarships to four people? For some applicants, receiving an award, no matter how small, is exactly what they need to incite themselves to keep pushing forward. I've seen quite a few scholarship listings where the donor mentions that they expect to receive many strong applications but intend to pick only one candidate. Working with those kinds of odds as a student is very hard. Those who work full-time jobs, go to school full-time, and attend to other obligations should be given a better chance for an award if they still manage to produce a strong essay or application. This is a problem worth solving because it will give people a fair chance to finish their education and possibly finish their education debt-free.

With the Elementary Education program offered at DePaul University, I’ll learn how to create a conducive class environment as I instruct students at varying levels of development. There are a couple of different aspects which interest me in regards to this field and one of them is differentiated instruction. Differentiation deals with tailoring instruction to meet individual needs. When I was growing up, I went to a school which didn’t specialize in differentiated instruction. We followed a monolithic style of teaching which caused me to struggle a lot in school. As I entered into this field, I started to see how different schools operated from the field experience opportunities provided by DePaul University. Some schools had a very engaging atmosphere that catered to different learning styles in the classroom, while others had a more rote style of teaching. I wasn’t surprised to see many students struggling with the rote style approach because it came off very bland. At first, I didn’t have a lot of hope for the teaching field because I thought I would have to instruct kids in the same way I was instructed growing up. Fortunately, with differentiated instruction, you can appeal to the child’s interests and preferences. By utilizing this strategy, I can make learning more accessible for each student. Another reason why I want to pursue this degree is that children in the elementary grades are impressionable. This is a very critical time for them because they are gradually developing beliefs about themselves and their abilities. Since their minds are so fertile, this is the perfect opportunity to plant the right seeds which can lead to their overall academic success. Each lesson I make will serve as a building block to create a firm foundation of understanding. When I create my lessons for certain subjects, I’m going to allow different types of submissions. I’m aware that some students may want to submit their assignment as a paper, video, or drawing. As long as their work is in alignment with state standards and they demonstrate that they understood the core content for the lesson, I’ll give them full credit. To conclude, the interactions I’ve had with students from affluent areas has led me to presumptions that differ tremendously in comparison to students from poor areas. When you interact with children from underserved communities, you anticipate a future that doesn’t look very promising. In addition, if you factor in the dangers within their environment and lack of support in their homes, you start to consider their mortality. It’s very easy to predict the few options someone is faced with when they don’t have a decent education. For that reason, I desire to be one of the contributing factors which positively influence a child’s academic trajectory. Not only do I plan on doing this with my degree, but I plan to continuously volunteer at the crisis intervention programs I’m a part of.

Malcolm X said, “Education is the passport to the future.” In the future, I’d like to educate and empower at-risk youth because I’m aware that the odds are stacked against them. An alarming statistic that really struck me was knowing that if a child doesn’t learn how to read by 3rd grade then they are 4 times more likely to drop out of high school. Since some communities are heavily laden with different shortcomings such as the aforementioned statistic, I’d like to assist in keeping kids on the right track. I felt as if I was doing this when I was working at an after-school program known as By The Hand Club For Kids. While I was there, I found out that a child had told their mother that I made a difference in their life and that I changed the way they saw education. When the mother told me this, I realized that I wanted to have that effect on as many children as possible. The main issue which motivated me to get a degree in education is the disparity of the school-to-prison pipeline. With my volunteer experience and work experience, I’ve been exposed to various academic settings. I remember a specific incident where I was expected to instruct an 8th-grade boy who had the knowledge level of a kindergartener. I wasn’t provided with any manipulatives or substantial resources to educate him and this made me feel helpless. I was wondering why the school system allowed him to reach 8th grade without understanding the material to be in this grade level. Moreover, there were multiple students in the class who were facing a similar circumstance and I couldn’t help but ponder about their future. When you interact with a bright student, you envision great things for them, but when you interact with children in these circumstances, you anticipate a future that doesn’t look very promising. In addition, if you factor in their environment and lack of support in their homes, you start to consider their mortality. When people from underserved communities don’t receive substantial support, it's easy to understand why they would resort to illegal activities to support themselves. In order to stop this vicious cycle, a child needs to be surrounded by the right people at the right time. Malcolm X’s quote has stuck with me because I realized that one’s education level is the very thing that determines a life of poverty or prosperity.

When I was very young, I was pulled out of class frequently to receive special attention. I was learning at a slower rate than most kids which warranted the attention of learning specialists and counselors. The one-on-one attention was helpful at times, however, I still struggled throughout my adolescence. When I witnessed my peers excel in different subjects, it was a very demoralizing situation for me because I felt like I couldn't keep up. I continued to receive support from tutors as I got older, but any academic success I had was short-lived. In my senior year of high school, I met a teacher named Mr. Pasek. Mr. Pasek was a very friendly, personable teacher who connected well with all of his students. I had him for an accounting class and I had a feeling that I would struggle with it. I let him know that I didn't feel confident about the subject, and around this time I was actually diagnosed with ADD, which stands for Attention Deficit Disorder. Basically, it felt as if my mind was a beehive where I couldn't really focus on one thing for a long period of time. So, once my doctor diagnosed me, he wrote out a prescription for a drug that would help me focus which was called Adderall. When I first took Adderall, I remember seeing the yellow lines on the road on the way to school, and that was the first time I felt like I could focus on one thing and one thing only. Sure enough, as my focus level improved, my grades started to improve as well. However, the side effects of Adderall were very overwhelming, and I didn't like depending on something that was causing me so much pain. When I confided in Mr. Pasek, he responded by challenging me to work harder, adjust my study habits and reconsider my diet. He was very firm about exploring different options before relying on a drug. Mr. Pasek also offered to assist me during his office hours so he could break down the lessons into smaller segments. All of his support led to me giving up Adderall and subsequently passing his class. He was so proud of me that he actually nominated me for the Mustang Pride Award which I received in the middle of my senior year. I was so elated that he chose me out of all the other students he taught. Another noteworthy attribute about him is that he didn’t really act like an adult even though he was in his late twenties. He had a great sense of humor and he’d always crack jokes. Sometimes we would talk outside of class about other things going on in his life and my own. This is what made me feel comfortable disclosing my insecurities to him. I currently apply this type of approach when I work with low-performing students. It’s a very effective way to get their guard down so they can be transparent about their comprehension level. The experience I had with Mr. Pasek inspired me to support students who struggle with issues similar to my own. He set a perfect example of how you should address students with low academic confidence. Not only was he a great teacher, I also considered him a genuine friend.

I’ve been working with at-risk children for the past seven years and during that time I felt as if I had a calling to educate those who do not have optimal academic opportunities. I have come across many children who are functioning below grade level and I like knowing that my intervention made a difference in their lives. My goal is to serve in a marginalized community where the children may not be receiving the proper resources or support to become successful as they grow older. When I was working at By The Hand Club For Kids, there was a child who told their mother that I made a difference in their life and that I changed the way they saw education. When I found out that’s what the child said about me, I realized that I wanted to have that effect on as many children as possible. It’s my personal goal to have children say that I made learning fun for them and that I made a difference in their lives. I want them to look forward to coming to school because I show them the attention and compassion they need to succeed. While this is my goal, I’m currently going through a major setback. My father got very ill around 2019 and he's been in out and out of the hospital ever since. When he was initially admitted, I discovered a lot of unpaid bills he didn't know about. Since he didn't always have sufficient funds in his account, I used my own money to help pay off the debt in order to offset late fees and interest. Caring for him has taken a toll on me because I’ve had to sacrifice a lot to make sure that he stays healthy. At this current time, I manage his appointments, his accounts, his medication, and many other things. While I've been able to maintain good grades during this whole ordeal, I’ve struggled with handling the amount of debt that accrued over the past few years. I’m very close to completing all of the requisite courses for my degree and I don’t want this obstacle to preclude me from advancing in my graduate studies. Moreover, I feel as if my passion and work ethic are reflected in the straight-A average I’ve maintained since I first began my graduate studies. If I were to receive this scholarship, it would assist me in getting a few steps closer to obtaining my teacher’s license so I can serve in marginalized communities.

This is an image of my friend Joe and I serving food to community members at Chicago State University during a 9/11 memorial service. ROTC taught me about the importance of discipline, hard work, and giving back.

I’ve helped my own community by volunteering at two after-school programs which cater to at-risk youth. The two organizations I volunteer for are Concerned Christian Men (CCM) and By The Hand Club For Kids (BTH). Due to the pandemic, both of these organizations had a serious drop in volunteers because of safety concerns. However, I’ve decided to keep volunteering because I have a heart for the kids these organizations serve. Most of the students I encounter have fathers who have been imprisoned or who have passed away from street violence. In some cases, this leaves the mother in a position where she has to work two or three jobs to support her children. Since the mother is so busy working these jobs, this means that she doesn’t have the time to help her kids develop the skills they need to succeed in school. Unfortunately, some people think that school alone is enough for a child to do well academically. However, there are many intricate processes that a child has to go through in order to master different subjects. If at-risk youth aren’t shown the right amount of attention, this can affect their academic trajectory which can affect their overall future. I started volunteering for CCM and BTH around 2015 and I actually worked at BTH before I started volunteering there. With these two organizations, I’ve always felt as if I was preventing potential problems by being there for the kids. I mainly do this by providing certain strategies they can use to handle the different subjects they deal with in school. I also make sure to frame my strategies in a certain way so the child sees it as a helpful trick instead of an academic concept. This type of framing puts them at ease when it comes to learning additional “tricks”, which can help them learn more material over time. After I spent 5 years working and volunteering in the educational field, I realized that teaching would be the best path for my future career. With the Elementary Education program offered at DePaul University, I’ll learn how to create a conducive class environment as I instruct students at varying levels of development. With this degree, I feel as if I can positively affect the community by ensuring each child receives the proper type of instruction. When you interact with at-risk children, you can’t help but wonder about their future. In addition, if you factor in their environment and lack of support in their homes, you start to consider their mortality. When people from underserved communities don’t receive substantial support, it's easy to understand why they would resort to illegal activities to support themselves. In order to stop this vicious cycle, a child needs to be surrounded by the right people at the right time and I can tell that my presence makes a difference. I believe my actions have impacted the lives of these young kids by giving them a more positive outlook. Recently, one of the little boys I was helping told me that before I came along he was doing very bad in school, but now he’s getting his assignments done. This is a major reason why I take off work every now and then to volunteer. My interaction with these kids could be the very reason why they pass their classes and I’ve deemed that to be more important than the money I could’ve made for the day. So, my future goal is to help develop a great deal of competent, self-sufficient individuals from underserved communities.

If people don’t take the time to invest in their community, then those who are less fortunate can find themselves in circumstances that lead to poverty, peddling, or prison. Everyone isn’t brought into this world with a fair chance of survival. Some people are brought up in single-parent households or have parents who are drug addicts. With these types of circumstances, it’s very hard for someone to envision a bright future for themselves. I personally feel that these issues can be overcome by receiving a quality education as a young child. This is where I like to come in and provide the guidance young children need to thrive. I have helped my own community by volunteering at 2 after-school programs which cater to at-risk youth. The two organizations I volunteer for are Concerned Christian Men (CCM) and By The Hand Club For Kids (BTH). Most of the students I encounter have fathers who have been imprisoned or who have passed away from street violence. In some cases, this leaves the mother in a position where she has to work two or three jobs to support her children. Since the mother is so busy working these jobs, this means that she doesn’t have the time to help her kids develop the skills they need to succeed in school. Unfortunately, some people think that school alone is enough for a child to do well academically. However, there are many intricate processes that a child has to go through in order to master different subjects. If at-risk youth aren’t shown the proper amount of attention, this can affect their academic trajectory which can affect their overall future. I started volunteering for CCM and BTH around 2015 and I actually worked at BTH before I started volunteering there. Once I noticed how many volunteer opportunities they had for employees, I decided to take on as much volunteer work as I could because I believed in their mission just as much as CCM. With these two organizations, I’ve always felt as if I was preventing potential problems by being there for the kids. I mainly do this by providing certain strategies they can use to handle the different subjects they deal with in school. I also make sure to frame my strategies in a certain way so the child sees it as a helpful trick instead of an academic concept. This type of framing puts them at ease when it comes to learning additional “tricks”, which can help them learn more material over time. After I spent 5 years working and volunteering in the educational field, I realized that teaching would be the best path for my future career. With the Elementary Education program offered at DePaul University, I’ll learn how to create a conducive class environment as I instruct students at varied levels of development. There are a couple of different aspects which interest me in regards to this field and one of them is differentiated instruction. Differentiation deals with tailoring instruction to meet individual needs. When I witnessed differentiation for the first time, this gave me hope for the teaching field because I could tell the majority of the students were understanding the material being taught. With this degree, I feel as if I can positively affect the community by ensuring each child receives the proper type of instruction. The main issue which motivated me to get a degree in education is the disparity of the school-to-prison pipeline. With my volunteer experience and work experience, I’ve been exposed to various academic settings. I remember a specific incident where I was expected to instruct an 8th-grade boy who had the knowledge level of a kindergartener. I wasn’t provided with any manipulatives or substantial resources to educate him and this made me feel helpless. I was wondering why the school system allowed him to reach 8th grade without understanding the material to be in this grade level. Moreover, there were multiple students in the class who were facing a similar circumstance and I couldn’t help but ponder about their future. When you interact with a bright student, you envision great things for them, but when you interact with children in these circumstances, you anticipate a future that doesn’t look very promising. In addition, if you factor in their environment and lack of support in their homes, you start to consider their mortality. When people from underserved communities don’t receive substantial support, it's easy to understand why they would resort to illegal activities to support themselves. In order to stop this vicious cycle, a child needs to be surrounded by the right people at the right time. I believe my actions have impacted the lives of young kids by giving them a more positive outlook. Recently, one of the little boys I was helping told me that before I came along he was doing very bad in school, but now he’s getting his assignments completed. This is the type of statement that motivates me to keep coming back to volunteer. My future goal is to help develop a great deal of competent, self-sufficient individuals from underserved communities.

The pandemic has affected my life in a few ways. Since March 2020, everything from my job, church, school, and general activities, switched to online. This caused my eyes to suffer immensely which has led me to rely on a new remedy; Similasan Computer Eye Relief Drops. I use this ointment daily to manage my pain and I’m doing everything I can to ensure the pain doesn’t prevent me from completing my degree. I also bought a new pair of prescription glasses as well as Prospek glasses to deflect the blue-ray light emitted from the computer screen. Moreover, during the first 6 months of the pandemic, I was actively searching for employment but I wasn’t able to secure a position because all the employers I reached out to were making adjustments to their organizations. I was furloughed during this time and I thought I’d eventually find another position, but I didn’t find one until late September. Since I wasn’t able to find a job earlier, this led to a loss of income which has impacted my ability to pay for school. I have a couple more classes I need to take, however, I don’t have sufficient funds to pay for them. My current view of the world is that it’s very unpredictable. The pandemic has taught me that it may not be wise to put all your eggs in one basket. Diversifying your skillset is key if you want to survive. Even though attending college can open up many doors, I still feel it’s best to learn another trade just so you’re not dependent on one source of income. I witnessed restaurants close down due to specific mandates which affected their ability to properly serve their customers. This made me think about all the workers that were out of a job because of the risk associated with their organization. All of this was very hard to process and it has currently put me in a perennial state of gratitude for every positive thing that occurs in my life now. What I have learned about myself is that I should continue to be resilient, even when times are as tough as they are now. I’ve also learned that I should be more grateful for my family, health, and frontline workers. My plans for the future are to just keep applying to as many scholarships as I can in hopes of securing enough to pay off my debt and pay for school. Although all of this has been happening, I’ve still managed to maintain a straight-A average at DePaul. I’m very close to completing all of the requisite courses for my degree and I don’t want any obstacle to preclude me from advancing in my graduate studies. If I were to receive this scholarship, it would assist me in getting closer to obtaining my teacher’s license so I can serve in marginalized communities.

I’ve been working with at-risk children for seven years and during that time I felt as if I had a calling to educate those who don’t have optimal academic opportunities. I’ve come across many children who are functioning below grade level and I like knowing that my intervention made a difference in their lives. One of my goals is to serve in a marginalized community where the children may not be receiving the proper support to become successful as they grow older. I’d like to serve in such communities because my background gives me an advantage when it comes to reaching low-performing students. Once I became aware that it gave me an advantage, this gave me a heart for the educational field. When I was very young, I was pulled out of class frequently to receive special attention. I was learning at a slower rate than most kids which warranted the attention of learning specialists and counselors. I didn’t know it at the time, but I had A.D.D. (Attention Deficit Disorder). I was officially diagnosed with the condition when I was 17 years old. Throughout my adolescence, I was very humbled by my academic experiences, but things started to change as I got older. In my junior year of college, I discovered the field of Neuroscience through a tutoring job at Firman Community Services. Neuroscience basically explores the psychology and neurochemistry of the brain in relation to learning. When I first learned about it, I discovered an abundance of useful information that I applied in my own life and the lives of my students. As I noticed the students retaining what I taught, this sparked my interest in education. Neuroscience altered my lifestyle considerably and as I changed, so did my circumstances. I began to lead study groups, lend out my notes and assist with lecturing for some college courses. As all this was happening, I started to think that maybe there was a reason I started off with such humble beginnings. With the tutoring jobs I’ve had over the years, I connected well with underachieving students because I dealt with this issue for most of my life. Over time, I developed an inner sense of purpose and concluded that the insight I derived from my obstacle could be used to help those who struggle with similar issues. An alarming statistic that has really stuck with me is knowing that if a child doesn’t learn how to read by 3rd grade then they are 4 times more likely to drop out of high school. Since some communities are heavily laden with different shortcomings such as the aforementioned statistic, I’d like to assist in keeping kids on the right track. For the past couple of years, I’ve been volunteering at By The Hand Club For Kids (BTH) and Concerned Christian Men (CCM). Both of these organizations focus on supporting at-risk youth through educational services and enrichment activities. I would’ve liked to continue to volunteer at CCM in person, however, they changed the structure of their program because of the pandemic. Since this is the case, I’ve only shown support to them virtually. As soon as they transition back to their original structure, I’ll be more than happy to show support in person. Fortunately, BTH is allowing people to volunteer now, so I’ve taken the liberty of supporting their program by helping students in person. I actually worked at BTH for 2 and a half years, but once I left, I didn’t want to lose contact with the organization. When I was working there, a child had told their mother that I had made a difference in their life and that I changed the way they saw education. When I found out that’s what the child said about me, I knew that I wanted to have that effect on as many children as possible. So, another goal of mine is to have children say that I made learning fun for them and that I made a difference in their lives. I want them to look forward to coming to school because I show them the attention and compassion they need to succeed. Moreover, I’m volunteering there because I plan to stay in the lives of my former students just to make sure they remain on the right path. I also want to use my skill set and influence to support other children who attend the program. At first, I wasn’t sure if I wanted to be a teacher because of the possibility of not being able to help every student. I discovered through my own research that there can be different sets of learners within a classroom. There can be a set of visual, auditory, and kinesthetic learners all in one classroom. The idea of going into a profession where I may have to teach curriculum a specific way bothered me because I didn’t want certain types of learners to feel left out. Fortunately, once I became aware of differential instruction, this gave me hope for the teaching profession. After talking with a few advisors about my interests, they made it clear to me that the teaching profession wouldn’t be as narrow as I assumed. These advisors let me know that some of my instructional liberty would be dependent on the school. Moreover, if I found the right school, then I could teach the class how I’d like and set up different sections within the classroom so I could tend to the different learning styles. I desire to reach every type of learner because I don’t want anyone to feel left out like myself growing up. With the Elementary Education master’s program offered at DePaul University, I’ll learn how to create a conducive class environment as I instruct students at varying levels of development.

I’ve been working with at-risk children for seven years and during that time I felt as if I had a calling to educate those who don’t have optimal academic opportunities. I’ve come across many children who are functioning below grade level and I like knowing that my intervention made a difference in their lives. One of my goals is to serve in a marginalized community where the children may not be receiving the proper support to become successful as they grow older. I’d like to serve in such communities because my background gives me an advantage when it comes to reaching low-performing students. Once I became aware that it gave me an advantage, this gave me a heart for the educational field. When I was very young, I was pulled out of class frequently to receive special attention. I was learning at a slower rate than most kids which warranted the attention of learning specialists and counselors. I didn’t know it at the time, but I had A.D.D. (Attention Deficit Disorder). I was officially diagnosed with the condition when I was 17 years old. Throughout my adolescence, I was very humbled by my academic experiences, but things started to change as I got older. In my junior year of college, I discovered the field of Neuroscience through a tutoring job at Firman Community Services. Neuroscience basically explores the psychology and neurochemistry of the brain in relation to learning. When I first learned about it, I discovered an abundance of useful information that I applied in my own life and the lives of my students. As I noticed the students retaining what I taught, this sparked my interest in education. Neuroscience altered my lifestyle considerably and as I changed, so did my circumstances. I began to lead study groups, lend out my notes and assist with lecturing for some college courses. As all this was happening, I started to think that maybe there was a reason I started off with such humble beginnings. With the tutoring jobs I’ve had over the years, I connected well with underachieving students because I dealt with this issue for most of my life. Over time, I developed an inner sense of purpose and concluded that the insight I derived from my obstacle could be used to help those who struggle with similar issues. An alarming statistic that has really stuck with me is knowing that if a child doesn’t learn how to read by 3rd grade then they are 4 times more likely to drop out of high school. Since some communities are heavily laden with different shortcomings such as the aforementioned statistic, I’d like to assist in keeping kids on the right track. For the past couple of years, I’ve been volunteering at By The Hand Club For Kids (BTH) and Concerned Christian Men (CCM). Both of these organizations focus on supporting at-risk youth through educational services and enrichment activities. I would’ve liked to continue to volunteer at CCM in person, however, they changed the structure of their program because of the pandemic. Since this is the case, I’ve only shown support to them virtually. As soon as they transition back to their original structure, I’ll be more than happy to show support in person. Fortunately, BTH is allowing people to volunteer now, so I’ve taken the liberty of supporting their program by helping students in person. I actually worked at BTH for 2 and a half years, but once I left, I didn’t want to lose contact with the organization. When I was working there, a child had told their mother that I had made a difference in their life and that I changed the way they saw education. When I found out that’s what the child said about me, I knew that I wanted to have that effect on as many children as possible. So, another goal of mine is to have children say that I made learning fun for them and that I made a difference in their lives. I want them to look forward to coming to school because I show them the attention and compassion they need to succeed. Moreover, I’m volunteering there because I plan to stay in the lives of my former students just to make sure they remain on the right path. I also want to use my skill set and influence to support other children who attend the program. At first, I wasn’t sure if I wanted to be a teacher because of the possibility of not being able to help every student. I discovered through my own research that there can be different sets of learners within a classroom. There can be a set of visual, auditory, and kinesthetic learners all in one classroom. The idea of going into a profession where I may have to teach curriculum a specific way bothered me because I didn’t want certain types of learners to feel left out. Fortunately, once I became aware of differential instruction, this gave me hope for the teaching profession. After talking with a few advisors about my interests, they made it clear to me that the teaching profession wouldn’t be as narrow as I assumed. These advisors let me know that some of my instructional liberty would be dependent on the school. Moreover, if I found the right school, then I could teach the class how I’d like and set up different sections within the classroom so I could tend to the different learning styles. I desire to reach every type of learner because I don’t want anyone to feel left out like myself growing up. With the Elementary Education master’s program offered at DePaul University, I’ll learn how to create a conducive class environment as I instruct students at varying levels of development.

The reason why I’m interested in entrepreneurship is because of the opportunities it provides. You essentially get to live life on your own terms, and there are no limits to what you can do. Even at a young age, I showed an interest in it by recycling soda cans, selling sticks of gum, and selling used textbooks. I’ve always liked the idea of being able to create your own money without anyone controlling what you do to earn it. In June 2018, I was researching different ways to make money online so I could raise funds to pay for school. I didn’t like the idea of solely depending on student loans because I didn’t want to graduate with a lot of debt. I found a lot of online programs which seemed like pyramid schemes, but then I discovered a program that appeared to be legitimate. The program specialized in showing people how to get their websites on the first page of Google through blogging. Once I invested in the program, I followed all of their instructions and ended up building a book blog. After putting in a lot of work, I was ecstatic when I started to make a couple of sales from my website. However, my excitement started to wane because I realized I was in a niche where I could only sell low ticket items, which meant low ticket commissions. So, it dawned on me that it would probably be best to transition to another niche that had more variety in it. Little did I know that I had just gotten lucky with my first site. I decided to create another site related to my degree which appeared to have a more promising outlook, however, it ended up being a massive failure. It was an academic site and I spent a full year working on it so I was quite despondent to see nothing come from it. Fortunately, there was a silver-lining in my dark cloud. After doing in-depth research, I discovered some intricate details which revealed a pattern that was responsible for getting my book site on the first page of Google. I started to do a meticulous comparison between my book site and my academic site and that’s when I found out that the pattern for my book site wasn't present in my academic site. I discovered that I had made a very obscure mistake which anyone else could easily make. In the midst of my weary state, I realized that I was faced with 2 choices: I could either give up on internet marketing and forego my entrepreneurial desires or I could double down on the pattern I discovered and test my theory. It wasn’t easy, but I decided to test my theory in the basketball niche. After putting in a considerable amount of effort, my formula worked and I generated revenue by getting my basketball site on the first page of Google. In the future, my goal is to create a business that specializes in search engine optimization. I wouldn’t limit myself to a specific scope and I’d be open to different expansion opportunities. My staff would be comprised of multiple writers and those who are familiar with the optimization aspects of WordPress, which is a blogging platform. I would also have staff available for tedious tasks such as inputting pictures, inserting payment links, and managing social media profiles. My company would cater to individuals who want this whole process done for them as well as individuals who would like to learn how to do everything themselves. I know there are a lot of aspiring entrepreneurs who get disheartened when they face all the trials that come along with this field and I’d love to share my discovery with them. My idea can contribute to the betterment of society by providing people with a proven formula to make money from their interests through blogging. If you want to build a business the old-fashioned way, then you would have to either rent a space or pay construction workers to help you create a brick-and-mortar building. Not only would this cost thousands of dollars, but unpredictable situations like the pandemic could affect your return on investment. With my process, you end up saving money while using a tested formula to create an omnipresent asset. What I hope to achieve from my idea is to provide an inexpensive way for individuals to maximize their financial opportunities while minimizing their investment risk.

The reason why I’m interested in entrepreneurship is because of the opportunities it provides. You essentially get to live life on your own terms, and there are no limits to what you can do. I’ve always liked the idea of being able to create your own money without anyone controlling what you do to earn it. In 2018, I was researching different ways to make money online so I could raise funds to pay for school. I found a lot of online programs which seemed like pyramid schemes, but then I discovered a program which appeared to be legitimate. The program specialized in showing people how to get their websites on the first page of Google through blogging. Once I invested in the program, I followed all of their instructions and ended up building a book blog. After putting in a lot of work, I was ecstatic when I started to make a couple of sales from my website. However, my excitement started to wane because I realized I was in a niche where I could only sell low ticket items, which meant low ticket commissions. So, it dawned on me that it would probably be best to transition to another niche that had more variety in it. Little did I know that I had just gotten lucky with my first site. I decided to create another site related to my degree which appeared to have a more promising outlook, however, it ended up being a massive failure. I spent a full year working on my academic site and it left me quite despondent to see nothing come from it. Fortunately, there was a silver-lining in my dark cloud. After doing in-depth research, I discovered some intricate details which revealed a pattern that was responsible for getting my book site on the first page of Google. I started to do a meticulous comparison between my book site and my academic site and that’s when I found out that the pattern for my book site wasn't present in my academic site. I discovered that I had made a very obscure mistake which anyone else could easily make. In the midst of my weary state, I realized that I was faced with 2 choices: I could either give up on internet marketing and forego my entrepreneurial desires or I could double down on the pattern I discovered and test my theory. It wasn’t easy, but I decided to test my theory in the basketball niche. After putting in a considerable amount of effort, my formula worked and I earned money by getting my basketball site on the first page of Google. I know there are a lot of aspiring entrepreneurs who get disheartened when they face all the trials that come along with this field and I’d love to share my discovery with them. My idea can contribute to the betterment of society by providing people with a proven formula to make money from their interests through blogging. If you want to build a business the old-fashioned way, then you would have to either rent a space or pay construction workers to help you create a brick-and-mortar building. Not only would this cost thousands of dollars, but unpredictable situations like the pandemic could affect your return on investment. With my process, you end up saving money while using a tested formula to create an omnipresent asset. What I hope to achieve from my idea is to provide an inexpensive way for individuals to maximize their financial opportunities while minimizing their investment risk.

The pandemic has affected my life in a few ways. Since March 2020, everything from my job, church, school, and general activities, switched to online. This caused my eyes immense pain which has led me to rely on a new remedy; Similasan Computer Eye Relief Drops. I use this ointment daily to manage my pain and I’m doing everything I can to ensure the pain doesn’t prevent me from completing my degree. I also bought a new pair of prescription glasses as well as Prospek glasses to deflect the blue-ray light emitted from the computer screen. Moreover, during the first 6 months of the pandemic, I was actively searching for employment but I wasn’t able to secure a position because all the employers I reached out to were making adjustments to their organizations. I was furloughed during this time and I thought I’d eventually find another position, but I didn’t find one until late September. Since I wasn’t able to find a job earlier, this led to a loss of income which has impacted my ability to pay for school. I have a couple more classes I need to take, however, I don’t have sufficient funds to pay for them. My current view of the world is that it’s very unpredictable. The pandemic has taught me that it may not be wise to put all your eggs in one basket. Diversifying your skillset is key if you want to survive. Even though attending college can open up many doors, I still feel it’s best to learn another trade just so you’re not dependent on one source of income. I witnessed restaurants close down due to specific mandates which affected their ability to properly serve their customers. This made me think about all the workers that were out of a job because of the risk associated with their organization. All of this was very hard to process and it has currently put me in a perennial state of gratitude for every positive thing that occurs in my life now. What I have learned about myself is that I should continue to be resilient, even when times are as tough as they are now. I’ve also learned that I should be more grateful for my family, health, and frontline workers. Although all of this has been happening, I’ve still managed to maintain a straight-A average at DePaul. I’m very close to completing all of the requisite courses for my degree and I don’t want any obstacle to preclude me from advancing in my graduate studies. If I were to receive this scholarship, it would assist me in getting closer to obtaining my teacher’s license so I can serve in marginalized communities.

Did you know that 90% of online businesses fail within the first 4 months of operation? I never planned on dealing with the numerous trials of running an online business but that’s what happened around June 2018. At this time, I was very happy to be in my graduate program for elementary education but I didn’t like the idea of student loans. When I first started my program, I applied for multiple scholarships to avoid going into debt but I wasn’t able to secure anything. This really discouraged me because I didn’t want to amass too much debt pursuing my degree, however, that’s what ended up happening. So, in an effort to raise funds for my studies, I thought about what I could do to make money online. My journey began with learning about websites that generate traffic from the search engines. There’s a program called Wealthy Affiliate which teaches how to do this and I joined so I could learn how to create a Christian book blog. I ended up making some money from this endeavor and I was thrilled to see so many of my articles on the first page of Google. Unfortunately, the traffic for this niche is quite low and I wasn’t aware of the fact that by selling low-ticket items it would be a lot harder to reach my income goals. Since there was low traffic for this niche and I was selling low-ticket items, I felt it would be best to create another website with more traffic and high-ticket items. Little did I know that I had just gotten lucky with my Christian book site. I decided to create another site related to my degree which appeared to have a more promising outlook, however, it ended up being a massive failure. I spent a full year working on my academic site and it left me quite despondent to see nothing come from it. Fortunately, there was a silver-lining in my dark cloud. After doing in-depth research, I discovered some intricate details which revealed a pattern that was responsible for getting my Christian book site on the first page of Google. I started to do a meticulous comparison between my book site and my academic site and that’s when I found out that the pattern for my book site wasn't present in my academic site. I had made a very obscure mistake and I realized that others could easily make the same mistake if they weren’t aware of the pattern. So, I resolved to create a product called “Article Answer Key” which revealed the pattern so that others could have the best chance of getting on the first page of Google as well. Since I promote Wealthy Affiliate, I also created a few more helpful products to give me a competitive advantage against other marketers. I currently promote Wealthy Affiliate on YouTube and if you type Wealthy Affiliate Review 2021 into the YouTube search bar then you would most likely see one of my videos ranking in one of the top 5 positions. With the first video I made, I provided a 6 minute explanation discussing how the program works and I revealed my results for my Christian book site. In another video, I discussed the pros and cons of Wealthy Affiliate in about 13 minutes. I also showcased the products I created to help people make money from their own interests. Since my academic website didn’t take off the way I thought it would, I didn’t make an optimal video for it because I didn’t have any solid results. As a matter of fact, once I had failed with it, I realized that I was faced with 2 choices: I could either give up on internet marketing and forego my entrepreneurial desires or I could double down on the pattern I discovered and test my theory. It wasn’t easy, but I decided to test my theory in the basketball niche. After putting in the same amount of effort I put into all of my sites, I was able to get my basketball site on the first page of Google. I showed my results in a 9 minute video on YouTube and I’m very confident my theory can work in almost any niche as long as the formula is followed. I know there are a lot of aspiring entrepreneurs who get disheartened when they face all the trials that come along with this field and I’d love to share my discovery with them. My theory is solely based on probability and I feel as if it would give bloggers and those interested in blogging, the best chance of reaching the first page of Google. While I have made money from my pursuits, I’m currently in a major deficit since things didn’t pan out how I originally planned. Also, I've had to go to school part-time because my father’s health declined significantly around 2019 and I’ve had to sacrifice a lot to take care of him ever since. Although I’ve dealt with a couple of setbacks, I try to live by a quote from Napoleon Hill which says, “Every adversity, every failure, every heartbreak, carries with it the seed of an equal or greater benefit.” Had I not failed with my academic website, I may have never discovered the formula for getting content on the first page of Google. At this time, I’m very close to completing all of the requisite courses for my degree and I feel as if my passion and work ethic are reflected in the straight-A average I’ve maintained since I first began my graduate studies. If I were to receive this scholarship, it would assist me in getting a few steps closer to obtaining my teacher’s license. Moreover, if I had my teacher’s license, I’d be in a better position financially to pursue my entrepreneurial endeavors. What I hope my idea will achieve is to drastically reduce the online business failure rate.