Please Dream With Me, Family! by Brandon

Please Dream With Me, Family! by Brandon - December 2014 Scholarship Essay

Educational history in my family does not go beyond a high school diploma. It has been the culture of my family to get through high school and go in to the world with only a high school diploma or a GED. My goal of being the first person in my family to graduate from a four-year university is in my reach. I’m currently in my first-year of college at a university and I am ambitiously on my way to graduating in less than 4 years. Education has become such a large value in my life because I have discovered so many people around me- including family members, that are limited simply because they chose not to further their own education. My educational goals are limitless, who knows how many advanced degrees I will attain in my lifetime. However, even more importantly to me is my passion to inspire and change the educational culture of my family. The value I have discovered in education has shaped this dream in which I’m willing to put forth my greatest effort in making a reality.

Albert Einstein once said, “Setting an example is not the main means of influencing others, it is the only means.” I want to be the influence for my family, and this is why I have worked very hard to become successful in my academics and activities in order to reach my goal of graduating from a university. In my high school career I was involved in many activities as a choir student, leadership student, class cabinet member, DECA member, Young Life president, Varsity athlete, and as an honors student. Along with these activities I have challenged myself with very rigorous courses such as advanced placement English, advanced placement Calculus, and a long list of college courses in which I have earned about 40 college credits for. I’m currently a first-year college student and I’m working towards becoming a schoolteacher, then possibly a high school principal. Along with simply taking college courses, I’m constantly seeking out internships, scholarships, service activities, and other involvements to enhance not only my textbook knowledge but to also enrich my character development. My family is very inspired by my passion to learn and my ambitions to seek out so many great opportunities for my future. It has been an honor to be a great influence for my siblings, cousins and other young members of my family who hope to one-day graduate from a university. All of my hard work has set an example for my family and I believe that my positive influence will start to shift the educational culture for my family.

Recently I have discovered my role as a mentor to my younger brother. I have discovered ways to help him learn and grow as a student and individual. Some of the key ways I contribute to my brother’s success is through accountability, care, and wisdom. “Have you done your homework?” is a daily question I ask him. As an older brother and mentor, I hold my younger brother accountable to getting his work done inside and outside of school so that he can learn and develop successfully in his education. Wisdom and care is a necessity for a young teenage boy like my brother, I make sure I show him that I care about him as an individual and that I teach him valuable life lessons. This includes helping him with homework, helping him study for a test, and having personal conversations with him. My time and effort in playing a mentor role for a family member such as my younger brother is developing a foundation for the educational culture of my family.

I’m willing to do all it will take to make my grandest dream come true. It will be worth it when I’ll know that the future generations of my family will be better educated and capable of doing bigger and greater things in this world. My hard work and fulfilled goals is only the beginning to this revolution in my families’ educational culture. Earning a quality education is worth so much to me because I know it will maximize my own potential as an individual; my personal value of education has urged me to take action in encouraging the future generations of my family to also have this mindset.