I’ve always tried to find a way to make things work, even if, after a hundred times, my solution has still gone wrong. For most of my life, I relied on a stubborn, practical knack for troubleshooting—tinkering with a computer until it booted or guessing at calculus concepts mid-exam. But as I have come to realize, intuition is only a starting point. Knowing math is what separates the "hundred wrong tries" from the one engineered solution. It moves you from being a user who is confused by the world's glitches to being a developer who can access the source code. Growing up, that distinction was vital. As a military kid with Autism Spectrum Disorder, the social world felt broken to me. But math? Math was the anchor. It was the one language that followed clear, systematic rules, regardless of wherever I moved. When everything else was uprooted, math stayed the same for me. It was the framework I used to build self-discipline when the noise of the world was overwhelming. Knowing math helps people because it can be the difference-maker between "I'm struggling to feed these families" and "We need to transport 378 pounds of food across these specific routes." It’s the difference between "I want to make a character move" and writing a C# script in Unity that accounts for everything to make tomato physics feel real. You can't truly help a system—whether it's a game engine, a food drive, or real life—if you only understand how it feels. You have to understand how it behaves. But, on a purer level, knowing math means dealing with the seemingly absurd precision of existence itself. If the gravitational constant were even a trillionth of a percent stronger, the universe would have collapsed back on itself moments after the Big Bang. If it were weaker, stars would never have ignited, and outer space would be a cold nothingness. Sitting back and taking the time to comprehend our conceptual presence like this just leaves me dumbfounded in shock and awe. These perspectives change how you handle failure. When I was standing in the lecture hall at UT Austin after the UIL Science State competition, I was simply upset. We were the first team from our school to ever make it that far, and we missed second-place by a single question—a question we answered correctly, but the judges omitted due to a technicality. I felt out of place, surrounded by kids from wealthier districts with formal coaches. But as the frustration settled, the reality of the score was just a number. We didn't lose because we were less intelligent or less deserving; we lost because our preparation system was underdeveloped. The number on the scoreboard did not solely define my worth; it was data that told me exactly where we needed to refine our approach. It's the difference between "I failed" and "Let’s run it back." That's the power of math, both in its applied and pure form. It doesn't just give you the answer; it gives you the error message so you can reiterate. It allowed me to go from needing extensive accommodations in elementary school to ranking first in my class. It’s the tool I’ll use at Dartmouth College to develop sustainable energy systems, not just out of passion, but out of a need to build a level of society where other families don't have to lose everything to a hurricane like I did. Math is the code of reality, and if you know it, you become the one who can rebuild the game to make it better for everyone else.

I’ve always tried to find a way to make things work, even if, after a hundred times, my solution has still gone wrong. But as I have come to realize, intuition is only a starting point. I love math because it is what separates the "hundred wrong tries" from the one engineered solution. It moves you from being a user who is confused by the world's glitches to being a developer who can access the source code. Growing up, that distinction was vital. As a military kid with Autism Spectrum Disorder, the social world felt broken to me. But math? Math was the anchor. It was the one language that followed clear, systematic rules, regardless of wherever I moved. When everything else was uprooted, math stayed the same for me, helping me build self-discipline. Knowing math helps people because it can be the difference-maker between "I'm struggling to feed these families" and "We need to transport 378 pounds of food across these specific routes." It’s the difference between "I want to make a character move" and writing a C# script in Unity that accounts for everything to make tomato physics feel real. You can only help a system—whether it's a game engine, a food drive, or real life—if you understand how it behaves. But, on a purer level, knowing math means dealing with the seemingly absurd precision of existence itself. If the gravitational constant were even a trillionth of a percent stronger, the universe would have collapsed back on itself moments after the Big Bang. If it were weaker, stars would never have ignited, and outer space would be a cold nothingness. Sitting back and taking the time to comprehend our conceptual presence like this just leaves me dumbfounded in shock and awe. That's the power of math, which I love; it is the foundation for learning pretty much everything about the world around you. Pursuing math has allowed me to go from needing extensive accommodations in elementary school to ranking first in my class. It’s the tool I’ll use at Dartmouth College to develop sustainable energy systems so other families don't have to lose everything to a hurricane like I did. Math is the code of reality, and if you know it, you become the one who can rebuild the game to make it better for everyone else.

I’ve always tried to find a way to make things work, even if, after a hundred attempts, my solution still fails. I can give thanks to my teachers, who stayed after class to work through problems with me and challenged me to think beyond the curriculum—not by giving me answers, but by pushing me to find them myself. Through that, I learned how to take ownership of my learning, developing both independence and the ability to lead others through the same process. What facilitated my growth was not just the difficulty of the material, but the expectation that I meet it with discipline and persistence. Over time, I came to hold myself to that same standard, and I have come to understand that education means everything to me. Yet, growing up as a military kid, I was perpetually the new one, the one without context, the one who didn't belong. Every day, there is a non-zero chance that you could be forced to pack up everything you own with little time to say goodbye. All of which was made worse as I was constantly going in and out of different clinics throughout elementary school; I struggled with ADHD, ASD, and had other diagnoses found inconsistent between doctors, such as ODD and TS. Still, my family and I held service as a source of excellence, and I learned to be my own anchor. This ever-changing environment forced me to mentally reframe my rootlessness as a unique form of freedom. I learned to listen first, to find the thread of a shared interest with anyone, and to build rapport not on old memories, but on present vigilance and effort. I saw leadership modeled through the unheard integrity of those who served in my family, which taught me that in order to lift yourself up, you have to lift others up first. Entering high school, I realised that for everything that I have been diagnosed with, it was simply whether or not I met a list of required behaviors. While yes, my brain is likely fundamentally different physically than that of a normal person, ultimately, I am in control of myself. With this mindset, I went from needing extensive accommodations and medicine in elementary school to absolutely nothing in high school. Self-discipline was key, and I began to actively pursue my education and partake in extensive extracurricular activities. Today, my senior year, I am ranked first in my graduating class, serve as Historian for my school’s Sociedad Honoraria Hispánica chapter, organize events for our National Honor Society chapter, am Vice President of the Engineering Club, and Co-Captain of the school's academic Math, Number-Sense, and Science teams, where I have led my peers to a state runner-up finish. I also co-founded the Chess Club and Trading Card Game Club here, where I get to meet new people and teach them how to play a variety of games. As I am finishing my Eagle Scout, I regularly volunteer at the San Antonio Food Bank, my local library, and my church. Moreover, on the football field, I am a varsity DE/G and earned a spot on the THSCA Academic All-State Football Elite Team. And so, after much hard work and consideration, I have made the decision to commit to an Ivy League undergraduate education at Dartmouth College this upcoming school year. I plan to earn an AB and BE degree in Engineering Sciences in four years (and after, a Master’s); their engineering program and project-based curriculum will aid my passion for sustainable energy. Here, I find the Thayer School of Engineering's non-departmental structure attractive, hoping it will give me further insight and multiple perspectives on the development and globalization of renewable energy systems. Furthermore, via Dartmouth’s D-Plan, I will actively pursue internships at renewable energy startups during off-terms and take part in undergraduate research. I believe that Dartmouth will best equip me to engineer and service a better world. I value deriving something meaningful from the effort I put in, creating something useful not only for myself but also for others, and long-term, I seek to move back to Texas due to the high density of wind farms up north, which will provide research and work opportunities so that I can support a family. This area provides a lot of startups and well-established companies to work at, and gives me closer access to my relatives, so that I will be able to help them out as needed as well. Speaking of renewable energy, my research into Dartmouth has inspired me with the idea of eventually developing a charity; its mission would be to provide sustainable and accessible clean water solutions to rural, low-income, and disaster-prone communities, both domestically in the American South and internationally in developing nations across Central America. Having been made homeless by Hurricane Michael, I understand the sudden loss of basic infrastructure, and I know that access to clean water is limited and vital. Volunteers in my charity would perform three core services. First, engineering and installation teams would design and implement systems in preparation for disasters such as solar-powered well pumps, rainwater harvesting systems, and storm shelters. Second, trained volunteers would work alongside local residents to teach maintenance, wilderness survival, and search and rescue skills. And third, outreach and fundraising volunteers would handle grants, advertising campaigns, and events. Hopefully, I can apply my future skills as an engineer to pursue projects like this in the future, leaving a long-lasting impact on individual communities, enabling others to prosper.

“Kindness in Action” For my Eagle Scout project, I spent hours organizing and leading a food collection drive in support of the San Antonio Food Bank. I coordinated with my local church to secure a location, set a clear schedule, recruited volunteers, and assigned roles so that each part of the process was covered. Over two days, we managed collection stations, tracked donations, and adjusted our setup as conditions changed. By the end, we collected over 378 pounds of food. What made this experience meaningful was not the final amount itself, but how it was reached. Early on, I realized that individual effort has limits. The project only worked because multiple people contributed in small but consistent ways. Managing the project as a whole, I had to delegate tasks, communicate with beneficiaries, run advertisements, transport supplies, keep volunteers engaged, and respond to problems as they came up, testing whether or not I could stay focused and keep others focused as well. This experience showed me how much progress could be made when a collective whole took kindness seriously. This project changed how I think about helping others. I began to understand service as something practical. It is not defined by scale, but by consistency; the impact came from building a system that allowed others to participate easily and consistently. Leadership, in this context, meant creating that system and being accountable for it from start to finish. The result addressed a real need, but more importantly, it showed me that meaningful support is not just about effort. It is about coordination, persistence, and making it possible for a group to act with a common purpose in mind. “Creating Connection” I am the peer who notices when a system—be it a state-level academic team’s study schedule or a football practice—isn’t functioning and offers a structured solution. I contribute patience, a focus on practical fairness, and a deep understanding that everyone operates from their own manual—like when for school clubs, teaching people the rules at the start of each year on how to play chess and trading card games like Yu-Gi-Oh!, Magic: The Gathering, and Pokémon. Moreover, as Vice President of our engineering club, I also help lead projects and work with other students on design and planning (which has inspired me to commit to an education at Dartmouth College so that I can develop renewable energy systems to benefit society). I like to re-interpret challenges as constraints that shape better systems rather than barriers that stop progress. When people struggle to connect, it is often because the structure does not support them yet, so adjusting that structure around individuals can make a difference. All sorts of people learn and communicate in their own unique ways, and it's important to understand that so that you can truly include them. This perspective comes from my own experiences as a military child diagnosed with ADHD and ASD who had to move around a lot. However, belonging will not happen automatically; rather, it has to be built. For me, creating connection means recognizing that each person brings a different perspective and new ideas, then designing an environment where those differences can coexist productively. Whether in academics, athletics, clubs, or everyday interactions, I aim to contribute belonging, patience, and integrity. A strong community is not defined by uniformity, but by how well it supports individuals working toward a shared goal.

I am the peer who notices when a system—be it a state-level academic team’s study schedule or a football practice—isn’t functioning and offers a structured solution. I contribute patience, a focus on practical fairness, and a deep understanding that everyone operates from their own manual. I have always believed that true success is not just about personal achievement, but about the elevation of those around you. Furthermore, when Hurricane Michael destroyed my family’s home, I learned resilience isn’t just personal grit; it’s the collective strength of a people acting as one. We relied on each other, not on pity, to achieve a common goal. This instilled in me a leadership style of proactive service, seen in Scouting, tutoring, and leading student teams. I believe in leading from beside, not above. Through my experiences, I understand service as something practical. It is not defined by scale, but by consistency. I have spent hundreds of hours volunteering through my church, the San Antonio Food Bank, and my local library. I have organized food drives to work towards an Eagle Scout rank and have led teams to distribute resources to families in need. These experiences were not just about checking a box; they reinforced the idea that community is built through deliberate effort and a willingness to contribute without expecting anything in return. My Baptist faith defines how I approach that responsibility. It calls me to act with discipline, humility, and consideration for others. I try to apply that in leadership roles, whether that is guiding younger scouts, tutoring teammates, or helping coordinate academic teams for state-level competitions. I have found that the most effective way to lead is to identify what others need and work to provide it. And so, after much hard work and consideration, I have made the decision to commit to an Ivy League undergraduate education at Dartmouth College this upcoming school year, where I will major in Engineering Sciences; I plan to earn an AB and BE in 4 years. After this, I plan to pursue further education, either a Master’s or a Doctoral degree; I'm still deciding. Dartmouth’s engineering program and project-based curriculum will aid my passion for sustainable energy. Here, I find the Thayer School of Engineering's non-departmental structure attractive, hoping it will give me further insight and multiple perspectives on the development and globalization of renewable energy systems. Furthermore, via their D-Plan, I will also be able to pursue internships at renewable energy startups during off-terms and engage in undergraduate research. Long term, I want to apply both my technical skills and my values to serve others. That includes continuing community outreach, mentoring students from similar backgrounds, and staying involved in service through both professional and local efforts. Gearing towards sustainable impact, I see my career as an extension of my responsibility to others. Ultimately, my life has shaped an outlook that sees each community, each unique person, not as a statistic, but as a harbor of value and potential. I am not shaped by a single place, but by building belonging from the ground up with those around me. I have been blessed to experience unity in diversity, and I have been inspired to commit myself to the collective success of any team I am a part of. I hold a desire to give back to my community through efforts both big and small.

Entering my Junior year of high school, our team of four was finally able to plan out meetings for the upcoming UIL Science competitions. We went over books, videos, and articles. We tested each other, looked over solutions, current issues, and drank lots of Red Bull. We were doing everything ourselves to the best of our ability, with no real guidance from someone who actually knew what they were doing. Together, we worked vigorously not just for a plaque at the end of the road, but for a shared passion to learn and understand the world around us. Hundreds of pages of notes and study guides were created, but when it came time for the first competition, it did not reflect concepts similar to those of years past. This year, the tests were different; there wasn’t a lot of meat to make predictions on what would be asked next. We had to adapt to a much broader scope of material that we had to study than we originally anticipated. Nonetheless, we kept climbing. Eventually, we entered the lecture hall at the UT Austin campus as the first in our school to compete for Science at State. I felt very out of place being surrounded by students from wealthier areas and college-prep focused schools who had been studying this material for years with experienced coaches. Meanwhile, we were just a bunch of military kids who happened to be together this year. At last, the test started, but it felt suspiciously easy. When the timer rang and tests were scored, an announcement came: one of the questions had been omitted—a question we answered correctly. After having our scores combined, we missed second place by not even the score of a single question. That still somewhat angers me today, and even though half of our team has moved out, I plan and am working to hopefully do better this final year. I have been blessed with this opportunity to come so far, and another opportunity to go even farther. This experience has shaped me to work tirelessly and collaborate with others to achieve a common goal. Furthermore, after much hard work and dedication, I will be committing to an Ivy League undergraduate education at Dartmouth College this upcoming school year, where I will major in Engineering Sciences; I plan to earn an AB and BE in 4 years. After this, I plan to pursue further education, either a Master’s or a Doctoral degree; I'm still deciding. Dartmouth’s engineering program and project-based curriculum will aid my passion for sustainable energy. I find the Thayer School of Engineering's non-departmental structure attractive, hoping it will give me further insight and multiple perspectives on the development and globalization of renewable energy systems. Furthermore, via their D-Plan, I will also be able to pursue internships at renewable energy startups during off-terms and engage in undergraduate research. I value deriving something meaningful from the effort I put in, creating something useful not only for myself but also for others, and long-term, I seek to move back to Texas due to the high density of wind farms up north, which will provide research and work opportunities so that I can support a family. This area provides a lot of startups and well-established companies to work at, and also gives me closer access to my relatives, so that I will be able to help them out as needed. Ultimately, this scholarship will allow me to grow as a future engineer committed to sustainability, alleviate debt, and help me get to Texas faster. Higher education means everything to me.

Life, for me, was measured in the miles between "see you later" and "farewell." As a military kid, every day there’s a non-zero chance that you could be forced to pack up everything you own with little time to say goodbye; I was perpetually the new one, the one without context, the one who didn't belong. My family and I held service as a source of excellence, although it does trap you into a state of permanent disconnection with the world around you. While my father was out for deployments, this solitude deepened, and I learned to be my own anchor. This ever-changing environment forced me to mentally reframe my rootlessness as a unique form of freedom. I learned to listen first, to find the thread of a shared interest with anyone, and to build rapport not on old memories, but on present vigilance and effort. I saw leadership modeled through the unheard integrity of those who served in my family, which taught me that in order to lift yourself up you have to lift others up first. Wanting to make the most out of high school, I decided to open up and engage myself, earning a state award for football, helping out the band, taking leadership positions in school clubs and organizations like Boy Scouts, NHS, and even more. Academically, I uncovered an exceptional aptitude within me for both math and science, co-captaining multiple teams. By my junior year, I had flushed out all of my school’s advanced math courses and advanced to state-level competition for science. Furthermore, I entered my senior year at the top of my class, where I made the THSCA Academic All-State Football Elite Team—after unfortunately tearing my ACL and both menisci in my left knee. This injury put a lot of pressure on me academically, but I wouldn’t let that take control of me. I wanted to be something, to be someone more. And so, after much hard work and consideration, I have made the decision to commit to an Ivy League undergraduate education at Dartmouth College this upcoming school year, where I will major in Engineering Sciences; I plan to earn an AB and BE in 4 years. After this, I plan to pursue further education, either a Master’s or a Doctoral degree; I'm still deciding. Dartmouth’s engineering program and project-based curriculum will aid my passion for sustainable energy. I find the Thayer School of Engineering's non-departmental structure attractive, hoping it will give me further insight and multiple perspectives on the development and globalization of renewable energy systems. Furthermore, via their D-Plan, I will also be able to pursue internships at renewable energy startups during off-terms and engage in undergraduate research. I value deriving something meaningful from the effort I put in, creating something useful not only for myself but also for others, and long-term, I seek to move back to Texas due to the high density of wind farms up north, which will provide research and work opportunities so that I can support a family. This area provides a lot of startups and well-established companies to work at, and also gives me closer access to my relatives, so that I will be able to help them out as needed. Ultimately, this scholarship will allow me to grow as a future engineer committed to sustainability, alleviate debt, and help me get to Texas faster. Higher education means everything to me.

I was raised in a military family where stability was never guaranteed, and responsibility came early. As the oldest of four siblings, I learned to take initiative not because I was told to, but because it was necessary. My family faced financial hardship, medical challenges, and the loss of our home during Hurricane Michael. In those moments, faith was not abstract. It was something we relied on daily. It showed up through prayer, through my church, and through people who chose to help when they did not have to. Because of that, I began to understand service as something practical. It is not defined by scale, but by consistency. I have spent hundreds of hours volunteering through my church, the San Antonio Food Bank, and my local library. I have organized food drives to work towards an Eagle Scout rank and have led teams to distribute resources to families in need. These experiences were not just about checking a box; they reinforced the idea that community is built through deliberate effort and a willingness to contribute without expecting anything in return. My Baptist faith defines how I approach that responsibility. It calls me to act with discipline, humility, and consideration for others. I try to apply that in leadership roles, whether that is guiding younger scouts, tutoring teammates, or helping coordinate academic teams for state-level competitions. I have found that the most effective way to lead is to identify what others need and work to provide it. And so, after much hard work and consideration, I have made the decision to commit to an Ivy League undergraduate education at Dartmouth College this upcoming school year, where I will major in Engineering Sciences; I plan to earn an AB and BE in 4 years. After this, I plan to pursue further education, either a Master’s or a Doctoral degree; I'm still deciding. Dartmouth’s engineering program and project-based curriculum will aid my passion for sustainable energy. Here, I find the Thayer School of Engineering's non-departmental structure attractive, hoping it will give me further insight and multiple perspectives on the development and globalization of renewable energy systems. Furthermore, via their D-Plan, I will also be able to pursue internships at renewable energy startups during off-terms and engage in undergraduate research. Long term, I want to apply both my technical skills and my values to serve others. That includes continuing community outreach, mentoring students from similar backgrounds, and staying involved in service through both professional and local efforts. Gearing towards sustainable impact, I see my career as an extension of my responsibility to others. Ultimately, my life has shaped an outlook that sees each community, each unique person, not as a statistic, but as a harbor of value and potential. I am not shaped by a single place, but by building belonging from the ground up with those around me. I have been blessed to experience unity in diversity, and I strive to commit myself to the collective success of any team I am a part of.