Personal Statement
I transferred to Holyoke High School, a school that is predominantly Hispanic students, from a regional school that is predominantly white. I chose to transfer because Holyoke High School would challenge me both academically and socially. Holyoke High School was intimating as a freshman. I went from knowing everybody, to not recognizing anyone. After the first few days, I became comfortable. By the end of the week I met many people, many of which remain my friends today.
In the eighth grade I attended a basketball camp at Bryant University, this camp was not all about basketball, but it also included scheduled classes throughout the day. This camp highlighted being a leader, team player, respecting your peers, and being a good listener. The camp also taught me people skills, like respecting adults, working hard, and the difficulties that a college level athlete will face. These skill skills also helped me at Holyoke High School.
Faculty recognized my friendliness and leadership ability nominating me as an Ambassador to the Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association. The MIAA ambassador program involves schools across Massachusetts. We meet to discuss problems that athletes face and find solutions. I also received the Holyoke Rising Star Award. This award is given to a student who displays leadership, scholarship, and citizenship in the classroom and in the community. Additionally my teachers nominated me to attend a National Youth Leadership Conference in Washington D.C. Through this conference; I interacted with my peers all across the world. This gave me the opportunity to gain independence, living away from home, while gaining an up close perspective of the government.
Math has never been one of my strong suits, but I knew I needed math courses for college. Freshman year I took advanced math. Which was challenging at first. Being a transfer student, I never received the summer packet that detailed chapters 1-7. The actual class began as the teacher at chapter 8, leaving me 7 chapters behind. Instead of dropping the course, I worked hard during after school help sessions and finished the year strong. Sophomore year met with more struggles. I worked hard, but achieving a result proved difficult. My teacher is from India, and English was clearly not his first language. I stuck with it, and I stayed after school with him. I even asked the other math teacher for help but still could not persevere. The next year, I retook the same course and ended up with the same teacher. I continued to struggle, but I did branch out to other forms of help. I stayed after school for extra tutoring with another math teacher. I eventually understood the math although my grade does not reflect my understanding and the work I put into the class. Additionally, Junior year I took English III AP and had an A all year. When it came final, we had to interpret, Dante’s Inferno, according to the teacher I misinterpreted the poem, I received a D on the final and my grade dropped to a C.
I am currently a volunteer coach at Our Lady of Guadalupe, for ages 13 through 14 in the flats of Holyoke. One of the main focuses is to instill my experience that I learned at Bryant University to these young athletes. We work on positive attitude, team play, and trusting in your teammates.
I want to use these experiences to forge ahead in the medical field.
