My dream future self is happy and confident, all on her own.

Hello, my name is Ada Donnelly, and I have always cared about the environment; I even went to my first climate protest when I was only seven years old! Back when I was in elementary school, I spoke about the importance of protecting our climate at our Earth Day Festival. In middle school, I spread information about how cutting out meat, egg, and dairy products helps the environment. Most recently, I've been attending climate protests throughout New York City; and I boost other climate protests through online sharing. In my climate activism, I must understand how my daily actions impact the environment. I am constantly trying to limit my carbon footprint- by only using public transportation, buying secondhand, bringing tote bags when I go shopping, and shopping from eco-friendly companies whenever possible. There are so many things we do every day that contribute to climate change in ways we are not even conscious of. Living in New York City, it isn't too hard for me to make efforts toward reducing my carbon footprint. We have an extensive and accessible public transportation system- which I use to get around multiple times daily. I make sure to shop in person (and from small businesses) whenever possible to eliminate the pollution produced through the transportation of packages. However, I think the most important thing we can do to reduce our carbon footprint is to avoid consuming meat. I have been a vegetarian for almost seven years, starting in the fifth grade. It's crucial to recognize that animal agriculture is the #1 polluter (source: VegNews), and the impact of this industry is often glossed over when discussing climate justice and environmentalism. For example, did you know that (according to the Guardian) a single kilo of beef produces 70kg of carbon emissions? And a single kilo of wheat? Only two and a half kg. A plethora of additional data, statistics, and reports exist that prove my claim that eliminating meat is the most efficient way for a person to combat climate change. According to Vox.com, the average vegetarian diet produces half the daily amount of carbon dioxide than a meat-heavy diet. Additionally, vegan diets produce 60% less carbon daily than diets including meat. This is not to say that you have to cut out meat entirely, as Vox has also found that reducing the amount of meat you eat per day can cut your carbon emissions significantly. New York City also has a lot of vegetarian (and vegan!) options. Next year I am going to college in Illinois, at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. My school cafeteria has vegetarian options, but Chicago itself is pretty meat-heavy. Being in a place that is less vegetarian-friendly will be a sizable change for me, but I will stay meat-free regardless.

Hello, my name is Ada Donnelly and I am most excited about being able to explore different artistic mediums in college. I am pursuing a Bachelor's Degree of Fine Arts in Studio at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. In the BFA program, I will focus on enhancing my photographic practice but dive deeper into my other interests: film/videographic arts and writing. My goal in pursuing this degree is to strengthen my artistic technique, explore new artistic mediums, and make connections that will help me in my career. I want to work as a freelance photographer and plan to experiment with creating films. Additionally, I have more specific career goals: having my photography in the Museum of Modern Art in New York City, having a solo exhibition, and publishing a book of my photography. It is important to me to remain in good mental health so that I can make the most out of my every day, continue creative practices, hold healthy relationships, and also be there for others. I also find it important to be aware of my mental well-being so that I can properly acknowledge my needs and take care of myself. Luckily, I have found a few different things that I utilize to maintain a healthy mind, body, and soul amidst the challenges I face in school as well as other challenges life throws at me. One way I do this is through mindfulness practices. I also currently am taking a yoga class at my high school, Brooklyn Tech. In this class, I practice different yoga poses and flows as well as meditation- something I am no stranger to after familiarizing myself with it during the lockdown. I will continue these practices in college, which will allow me to remain grounded, calm, and mentally fit during this new and exciting experience so I can succeed as a student. Additionally, I am currently taking AP Psychology, and am finding the course very interesting as I have struggled with my mental health and still see a psychologist. My college offers psychology classes that I plan to take, as well as an art therapy program. In this class, I have learned about the science behind stress and overwhelm alongside ways to decrease stress and what mitigating factors we should be avoiding. Finally, I am very lucky to find creating pieces of art to be a healthy way to cope with mental health challenges. Both of my parents are poets and I have been able to see my mom cope through the practice of poetry and memoir writing, the former of which I do myself. This creative way of coping is a practice I will maintain throughout my college experience and beyond.

Hello, my name is Ada Donnelly, and just before high school, I was diagnosed with ADHD and anxiety. I went through a long and tedious process to get the accommodations and care I needed. Attending a big school, I have had to learn to advocate for myself and my needs. I've taken executive functioning training classes, and I meet weekly with a therapist to further strengthen my attention, time management, and organizational skills. ADHD is commonly misdiagnosed and underdiagnosed in women (and other people assigned female at birth), so it took me a while to receive the proper diagnosis. Now that I've received my ADHD diagnosis and come to terms with its' related challenges, I have been better able to understand the many silver linings it comes with and use these to my benefit to excel in academic and creative ventures. I am pursuing a bachelor's degree of fine arts in studio at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, where I will focus on enhancing my photographic practice but dive deeper into my other interests: film/videographic arts and writing. My goal in pursuing this degree is to strengthen my artistic technique, explore new artistic mediums, and make connections that will help me in my career. I want to work as a freelance photographer and plan to experiment with creating films. Additionally, I have more specific career goals; having my photography in the Museum of Modern Art in New York City, having a solo exhibition, and publishing a book of my photography. I am a good candidate for the Dylan's Journey Memorial Scholarship because I am passionate about persevering despite my ADHD. I work on maintaining good mental health practices to allow me to make the most out of my every day, continue my creative work, hold healthy relationships, and also be there for others. I also find it crucial to be aware of my mental well-being to properly acknowledge my needs and care for myself. I am currently taking AP Psychology, which is very interesting to me. SAIC offers psychology classes that I plan to take, such as "Dreams into to Psychoanalysis." I find creating artwork (especially poetry and other forms of creative writing) to be a healthy way to cope with mental health challenges and the struggles and feelings ADHD brings me. The process of coping through art is one I will maintain throughout my college experience and beyond.

My name is Ada Donnelly, and I am a 17-year-old Brooklyn native with a passion for portrait photography. Being the daughter of two poets, I’ve always been encouraged to explore artistic mediums. My introduction to photography came when I was very young and worked as a child model. It was fascinating to me to see all the work and technical considerations that went into making a professional photograph. As I grew older, I came to love being on the other side of the camera and also began appreciating movies in a new way. The movie Se7en by David Fincher was the first movie that truly got me hooked on the possibilities in the world of cinema. Fincher’s ability to juxtapose shots that wouldn’t have the same impact on their own is very impressive to me. Additionally, I have a strong interest in cinematography, because that is where photography and the world of movies intersect, and I’d love to explore this further. I am pursuing a bachelor's degree of fine arts in studio at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, where I will be concentrating in photography but will also study film and video arts as well as writing. My goal in pursuing this degree is to strengthen my artistic technique, explore new artistic mediums, and make connections that will help me in my career. I want to work as a freelance photographer and also want to experiment with creating my own films. Additionally, I have more specific career goals such as having a photograph in the Museum of Modern Art in New York City, having a solo exhibition, and publishing a book of my photography. I intern at DOROT, a nonprofit organization centered on Jewish values that aims to alleviate the isolation and loneliness older adults often face. Through my work at DOROT (the Hebrew word for “generations”), I’ve been able to learn more about Jewish values and beliefs, as well as how to interpret things through Jewish concepts such as havruta. Rooted in the practice of reading the Torah communally, havruta means friendship and companionship and refers to the exchange of knowledge and viewpoints during an open conversation. This method of communication—which emphasizes listening to learn instead of responding, and creative expression rather than persuasion—is something I grew to appreciate and gain from, and I hope to keep this practice integral to my worldview and explore it further. This scholarship will help me afford my education without taking out private loans or having to sacrifice time that I could be used to create art by working multiple jobs. I am applying for a handful of scholarships that I am a good fit for, and am also going to be participating in the federal work-study program.