I have been homeschooled my entire life. Pre-k, kindergarten- the whole shebang- all the way up until my senior year, when I became a 'full-time' dual credit student at Lamar State College-Orange. And I loved it. So much that someday, if I have kids, it is my dream to be able to homeschool them as well. But homeschooling is hard. While, yes, there are many benefits to homeschooling and overall, homeschoolers tend to perform better academically in contrast to private or public schooling (this is why many college programs seek out homeschooled students), homeschooled students in many areas lack options when it comes to extracurricular activities. My family is blessed to be in an area where we have many options within a reasonable distance, so I have been able to attend theatre classes, take music lessons, and play volleyball on a varsity level. These activities, along with the education provided to me by my parents, have shaped me into the person I am today and will continue to mold my life for years to come. This is why I want to be able to give back to the homeschool community. I want to have a hand in shaping the next generation through extracurriculars. First, It is my plan after graduation to coach one of the homeschool volleyball teams that I had the privilege of playing on and to mentor the girls on said team. Volleyball teaches teamwork, endurance (emotional, mental, and physical), and if coached properly, respect for yourself and those around you. It is one of my greatest desires to be able to teach the next generation these values. I do not want these girls to miss out on one of the things that taught me the very most, and I want to do everything in my power to make sure that it continues to be available to them for many more years. Second, I hope to invest back in the homeschool community by making more musical opportunities available to homeschool students. I have played piano for many years, being taught first by an elder sister and then by a friend of my parents, and am registered to continue my piano and musical studies at McNeese State University in the fall with the intention to graduate with my Bachelor in Music. This will equip me with the skills I need to teach music, and I plan to teach music within the homeschool community. After completing my studies I want to make more music education available to homeschoolers, and while I do not know what exactly it will look like, more musical applications for students to showcase and improve their music skills. I do not know where my education and life journey will take me, but regardless of all other outcomes, I will undoubtedly be returning to invest in the next generation of homeschooled students through music, art, and athletics.

The coach that has thus far made the most significant impact on my life is Holly Jones. I played volleyball on a team for homeschoolers from my first year of Junior High until my Senior year. Over the years, I had about 6 coaches, but none of the others influenced me in the way Holly did. When Coach Holly first joined our program, she was generally looked down upon by the administrators and many of the parents. She was the youngest of all my coaches, just a few years older than me, and because of this many thought she would not do a good job coaching. Despite the lack of enthusiasm, she received at the beginning of the season, she built a strong team and taught us to work together. She was a different kind of coach than any I had previously had. She was patient, always gave criticism constructively, and was able to separate the individual from the athlete. If a player had an off day, she would coach them as usual during practice, occasionally going a bit easier than usual if they were having a particularly bad day, and would always pull them aside afterward to check on them as people. Before my last season, I had never had a coach treat players with such respect and also care so much, and want to invest in the players not just as athletes but also as people. Her actions made me realize that I want to be just like her. I want to be known for investing time and energy into the people that are around me, and genuinely caring about them. During my senior season, I was the assistant coach for our middle school team, and watching my coach be a leader who was so good at what she did pushed me to be a stronger leader and mentor for the girls in my care. With time, several of them opened up to me about things they were dealing with, and I got to support them through those struggles. At the end of the season, she wrote me a short letter full of kind words encouraging me to love life and to I graduate this May and have decided not to seriously pursue playing volleyball beyond high school. However, I plan to continue mentoring while in college and hope to eventually return to the home school program that has been so good to me and coach.