Foundation for a Better Future by Ryley

Foundation for a Better Future by Ryley - October 2022 Scholarship Essay

To me, education is the pathway to making a difference in the lives around us. Education has always been important to me, I’m a believer in lifelong learning. I have always enjoyed learning and gaining new knowledge. In addition to gaining new knowledge, excelling in the classroom has been important to me. That is why I have maintained a 4.0 all throughout junior high and high school, and have strived to do my best in each class. After high school I plan on attending Utah State University studying Law & Constitutional Studies. From there, I will go to law school and obtain my Juris Doctor. After graduating law school, I will use my education to make a better future for children who come from families in crisis and are being mistreated. My goal is to become a Guardian ad Litem. A Guardian ad Litem is an attorney for children in foster care. As a Guardian ad Litem, my duty will be to ensure that the child’s rights are protected, the child’s voice is heard, and the child’s best interests are advanced.
I have seen firsthand how Utah’s foster care and adoption systems work through my aunt. I have two cousins that were adopted through foster care, and my aunt has fostered other children after adopting my two cousins as well. Through my two cousins and the other children my aunt has fostered, I have seen how terrible a family in crisis can affect a child, and how the foster care system in Utah can make it worse for some children. Every child has a right to a home where they are loved, cared for, and protected. Receiving a higher education after high school will lead me to the opportunity to protect the rights of these children.
A frustration with the youth in the world today is not feeling like their voices are heard. I have seen this especially in the politics in the world today. Many kids my age have participated in protests as it is their only way to voice their opinions as they cannot vote. Foster care children often feel the same way. They have no say after they are taken from their birth family as to where they go to live. Part of the reason I want to pursue this career path is that I would get to be a voice for children that do not have a voice. As a Guardian ad Litem I would look out for what is best for every foster care child I work with, not what is best for the state or other people involved. I feel that the world needs more people to look out for what is best for the youth, and through my education I will learn how I can do that through my career.
Although my goal is to voice the opinions of a child, and I will always strive to do that, I recognize that in this career that may not always be possible. When one of my cousins first came into our family, she was too young to understand why she was taken from her birth mom. For a long time she did not know that she was unsafe in her birth home, and was very angry. Her wishes were to go back to her birth mom. As a Guardian ad Litem I may have situations like this. The Guardian ad Litem that worked with my cousin had to go against my cousin’s wishes and fight for her to be away from her birth mom. Later on, my cousin grew to understand why this had to happen, and she is grateful to be in a safe situation now. In addition to understanding why she had to be taken from her birth mom, my cousin is also academically stronger now. When she came to live with my aunt, my cousin was behind on her education. She was reading below grade level and tested low in other areas of her academics as well. With my aunt's help, she was able to get back on track, and now loves reading and excels in the classroom. She even takes college level classes, and many CTE classes. Through gaining education I will learn how to look out for what is best for a child, and help children all over Utah be safe in their homes.
“Education is the foundation upon which we build our future” -Christine Gregoire. Through the education I will receive in gaining my Juris Doctor I will be able to change the future of foster care children’s lives. I want to make a difference in the world, and I feel that if I can even help one child have a brighter future, I am making a difference. My hope is that my education at Utah State University and law school will give me the foundation I need to pave the way for a better future for foster care children, and the foster care system as a whole.