My Favorite Hat by Elizabeth

My Favorite Hat by Elizabeth - August 2024 Scholarship Essay

I've tried on 6 different hats throughout my college career. By the end of my freshman year at Washington State University, I had tried on 5 different hats. Everyone else's hat seemed to be the perfect fit but all the hats I tried were too snug and structured for my neurodivergent brain. My hat wasn't in Washington. It was 16 hours away in the Physical Education department at the University of Wyoming.

Somehow the one subject in school that accepted me for all my energy was my hat. Plenty of space for me to learn hands-on but not too loose for me to get bored and forget my why. To see past the warning labels that come with students who are "too loud" and open my arms to their needs. From pickleball to dance, PE welcomes the energy of all students with activities that never seem to bore. Centered around providing students with quality physical education yet room for education to occur within multiple sports and physical activities.

My teaching labs continue to show me that the best instruction is the one that can adapt to every student's needs. In the area always developing yet centered, research. I know my arms are sure to stay open to serve students. It's a space for routine and openness all at once, a space for my brain. This comes with attaining my master's and PhD. This scholarship will help me finish my undergraduate education and use it so I may go on to serve others with research. My hat allows me to cling to advocating for quality PE practices while reaching out into the unknowns of what that looks like for students with ADHD and autism. Connecting to students with neurodivergent brains like mine and giving them a hat, a classroom, that finally fits.