Overcoming English for a better future by Alanis

Overcoming English for a better future by Alanis - April 2019 Scholarship Essay

When I was 14 I moved from Puerto Rico to Florida. I did not know how to speak English that well. I remember being in my Algebra 2 and Chemistry class and having no clue of what the teacher was saying. I used to be that student to ask a lot of questions and asking for the teacher if they could slow down the pace, so I could catch up. One of my biggest mistakes was that I was so focused on making friends and not being socially awkward, that I didn’t pay too much attention to school. But it was also hard to make friends since I didn’t know how to start a conversation with people and much less in another language, so I wasted a lot of my time trying to make friends. I was scared that people might bully me for my strong accent or just might not understand me at all. My grades dropped in the first two quarters, getting my first C in Chemistry.

In the second semester I started to get very involved in school. My goal was to get A’s and B’s only. I started to go after school to get some tutoring, I asked for my mom and my friends for help, I worked really hard. I used to get my rest in the bus, since I was the last stop, and getting home to do my homework. Sometimes I would go to sleep at like 12 AM and getting up at 4:30 AM to be ready for my bus. Then I started to do sports and they helped me free my mind from school and stress. I didn’t used to go out with my friends because I was too busy doing school work or exercising.

At the end of the year I got all A’s and B’s, and I also got Honor Rolls. The school at the end of the year invited me to a ceremony they were doing to celebrate all of the Honor Roll students. The county also invited me to a Honor Roll for Hispanics where they talked about the struggle of the language, which I could relate. Hard work pays offs. We need to get involved in something and not wait for it to just be given it to you.