Helping others with their mental health has been a central focus of my personal and professional life, shaped by my own journey through anxiety, agoraphobia, and PTSD in my late teens. Overcoming these challenges taught me the transformative power of compassion, creativity, and therapy—lessons I have worked to share with others through my background in theater and education. For years, I have designed and facilitated theater workshops that create safe spaces for participants to explore their emotions, confront fears, and build confidence. These workshops help individuals process their experiences and connect with others. I have seen how these methods can foster resilience and emotional healing, particularly for those who feel isolated or overwhelmed. By integrating mental health awareness into creative expression, I have helped participants discover their inner strength and develop tools to navigate life’s challenges. As I pursue a Bachelor’s degree at Georgetown University and eventually a Master’s in Psychology, my goal is to expand the scope and impact of my work. I plan to combine my studies in psychology with my experience in the arts to develop innovative therapeutic programs that address the mental health needs of underserved communities. These programs will use creative approaches, such as drama therapy and collaborative storytelling, to make mental health care more accessible and engaging. In my future career, I aim to emotionally support others by breaking down the stigma surrounding mental health and promoting open, inclusive conversations. I envision establishing community-based initiatives that integrate psychological principles with artistic practices to empower individuals to heal and thrive. Whether it’s working with schools, nonprofits, or mental health organizations, my mission is to ensure that emotional support and mental health resources are available to all who need them. At the heart of my work is a belief in the potential for growth and resilience within every individual. By fostering a culture of empathy and understanding, I hope to contribute to a world where seeking help is a sign of strength, not weakness. Through my studies and future career, I am committed to helping others find hope, healing, and the courage to move forward.

My journey toward a career in psychology and mental health advocacy is deeply rooted in personal experience and a profound commitment to serving others. As someone who has faced and overcome crippling anxiety, agoraphobia, and untreated PTSD during my late teens, I intimately understand the transformative power of therapy, creativity, and resilience. These experiences ignited my passion for understanding the human mind and inspired my pursuit of a Bachelor’s degree at Georgetown University, with the ultimate goal of obtaining a Master’s in Psychology. The field of psychology fascinates me because it intersects science and humanity. It seeks not only to diagnose and treat mental health conditions but also to empower individuals to lead fulfilling lives. My background in theater education has uniquely prepared me for this journey. For years, I have worked with artists and students of all ages, fostering creativity, empathy, and resilience. Through the theater workshops I’ve developed, I have witnessed the profound impact of storytelling and performance on mental health. These workshops became safe spaces where participants could explore their emotions, confront their fears, and build confidence. This work solidified my belief that art can be a powerful tool for healing and self-discovery, and it continues to inform my approach to mental health advocacy. In my future career, I aim to integrate art and education with the foundational principles of psychology to create innovative therapeutic and educational programs. By blending these disciplines, I hope to address the mental health needs of underserved communities while also fostering personal growth and emotional intelligence through creative expression. These programs would not only support students' mental well-being but also enhance their ability to communicate, collaborate, and problem-solve—skills essential for thriving in today’s world. I also plan to develop community-based initiatives that incorporate techniques like drama therapy, mindfulness practices, and collaborative storytelling. My ultimate goal is to create a framework where art and education serve as vehicles for psychological growth and healing, empowering individuals to overcome adversity and embrace their full potential. My commitment to this path is also driven by a broader desire to contribute to societal change. The stigma surrounding mental health often prevents individuals from seeking help, and I am determined to challenge these barriers through education and advocacy. By raising awareness and promoting open conversations, I hope to foster a culture where mental health is prioritized and normalized. This scholarship would be instrumental in helping me achieve these goals. It would not only alleviate the financial burden of my education but also enable me to dedicate more time and energy to initiatives that align with my vision. Whether it’s conducting research on innovative therapeutic methods, volunteering with mental health organizations, or expanding my theater-based workshops, this support would be a significant step toward making a lasting impact in my field. This scholarship would empower me to turn my passion into meaningful action and contribute to a world where mental health care is not a privilege, but a universal right.

Ovid’s Metamorphoses Book 1 Lines 1 - 88 (Translated by A.D. Melville): “Before the seas and lands had been created, before the sky that covers all, Nature displayed a single aspect only throughout the cosmos: Chaos was its name, a shapeless, unwrought mass of inert bulk, and nothing more, with the discordant seeds of disconnected elements all heaped together in anarchic disarray. No Sun as yet shone forth upon the world, nor did the waxing Moon renew her horns; nor was the Earth suspended in the air, balanced by her own weight; nor Ocean stretched to far horizons, as a world of sea. Land there was none, nor air, nor sky. The mass lay without form and shone without a light; no aspect of its essence could be seen; and each was hostile to the others’ kind, for in one body cold contended hot, and wet was dry, and soft was hard, and weightless substance strove with matter having weight.” Ovid’s depiction of the universe’s creation in Metamorphoses can be read as a metapoetic meditation—a self-reflective exploration of the poet’s role as a creator. The transformation of chaotic, disconnected elements into an ordered, harmonious cosmos mirrors Ovid’s poetic process of constructing his epic from a vast collection of myths. By juxtaposing natural creation with artistic creation, Ovid positions the poet as a divine architect, shaping chaos into meaningful form. At the core of this passage lies the image of Chaos, “a shapeless, unwrought mass of inert bulk.” This description of primordial disorder directly parallels the raw material of storytelling: myths, characters, themes, and ideas in their unrefined state. Like the discordant elements of Chaos—“cold contended hot, and wet was dry”—the poet’s source material is filled with tension, contradiction and contrasting narratives that must be resolved into a coherent structure. The poetic act, much like the cosmic act of creation, involves imposing order, balance, and clarity onto this formless mass. A.D. Melville’s translation highlights the tension between disordered elements: “discordant seeds of disconnected elements all heaped together in anarchic disarray.” This conjures the diversity of myths Ovid inherited, which in their unrefined state resemble seeds—raw potential waiting to be cultivated by the poet’s hand. The emergence of structure from Chaos functions not only as a cosmic process but also as a reflection of the Metamorphoses itself. Ovid’s epic spans vast narrative landscapes, from creation to the reign of Caesar Augustus, weaving hundreds of myths into a singular, unified tapestry. The eventual order that emerges in the passage—“each was hostile to the others’ kind” but is eventually balanced—mirrors the poet’s task: not to erase conflict, but to reconcile and organize it. Myths—gods and mortals, transformation and permanence, love and violence—are preserved in the Metamorphoses, framed in a way that reveals their interconnections and significance. Through this metapoetic reading, we also recognize Ovid as an innovator. By opening the Metamorphoses with the transformation of Chaos, Ovid aligns himself with divine creation, setting the stage for a work that will continue to explore transformation. This theme of transformation, mirrored in the description of Earth becoming “suspended in the air, balanced by her own weight,” reflects the precarious balance of Ovid’s project—uniting diverse myths into a cohesive narrative without collapsing under its ambition. In a performed reading of Metamorphoses, I found the interplay between voice and movement mirrored the text’s own process of transformation. As performers we began with the words on the page and constructed the work through physicality, we embodied Ovid’s creative act. Each transformation on stage—whether through gesture, expression, or vocal modulation—was a reenactment of the cosmic transformation described in the text. As Ovid transforms chaos into cosmos his language lends directly to performance, human’s ability to be transformative creatively across multiple mediums. The passage’s reference to the Sun’s absence—“no Sun as yet shone forth upon the world”—can function as a metaphor for poetic and artistic inspiration, emerging from darkness. As the world is illuminated through creation, the poet brings clarity to chaos, shaping it into a coherent whole. Ovid’s creation passage is not just a cosmological account but a metapoetic exploration of artistic creation. The transformation of Chaos into order mirrors the poet’s role in shaping raw material into a structured, meaningful whole. Through this process, Metamorphoses itself becomes a reflection of cosmic and human creation. Ovid’s work celebrates the power of art to impose meaning on a chaotic world, embodying the very act of transformation that it describes.