End of an Era by Janalicia

End of an Era by Janalicia - August 2023 Scholarship Essay

To be honest I did not think I was going to walk the stage in May for my high school graduation. My last two years of high school were some of the hardest years I faced. I lost my grandfather to cancer and earlier this year I lost my great-grandmother. While in high school my depression became unbearable and I began to self-harm and attempted to commit suicide. I was hospitalized on two separate occasions and partially hospitalized twice throughout high school. I was struggling but I didn't stop pushing myself in school. I continued to make good grades and joined some sports teams and a club. Which I became president of. I applied to a local university and got in. I am still learning to live with my depression and it doesn't get easier but I try to look for the future. I want to be a doctor or research scientist. I want to create new inventions that can be used in the medical field to better help society. I want to be the change in the world and hopefully when I am successful. I would like to create my own scholarship for girls and boys like me. So they have something to hold on to.

I would say my greatest accomplishment would have to be completing high school and graduating in the top 1% of my class. I managed to do so by taking AICE, honors and, dual enrollment classes throughout high school career. I would say that during high school despite my struggle I was an active member of the community by receiving over 100 volunteer hours and maintaining a weighted GPA of 5.2. My greatest accomplishment was not giving up in high school. Although I may have struggled and had major set backs I still Managed to push through and walk that stage in May. I completed an era in my life and I am on to the next. Which I plan to make a difference in the world once I am educated in the field I would like to pursue.