Ever since I was ten, I have loved nature. The summer of fifth grade my parents decided to send me to a sleepaway camp in Vermont called Songadeewin of Keewaydin (Songa) for four weeks. They had no idea what they were throwing me into, but based on what they had heard they thought it would be a great new experience for me. At Songa we spent our time connecting with nature in various ways. We went on hikes and camping trips, swam in the lake, and wandered in the woods. It sparked my love for adventure and the outdoors, and while I had a great time and learned a lot about myself and the world, I didn’t see many people that looked like me at my camp. This lack of Black representation in the campers and the staff left me feeling alone. While this feeling persisted throughout the full four weeks, I had such a great time that I came back again the next year. After coming back year after year for seven years, I grew to embrace my difference and love camp even more, but I couldn’t help but think about how different my experience in the outdoors would be on a more diverse campus. In response to my upbringing in a very white atmosphere, something that I would love to build is an organization that focuses on getting people of color out and into nature. This organization would not just focus on running trips, but also reaching out to urban and marginalized communities and showing them the beauty of nature in a more rugged way. The majority of my friends of color already hate the outdoors, so in order to combat this the organization would work on providing spaces for people to get in touch with nature without feeling like they are being thrown into the deep end. I believe it is really important for all people to connect with nature and understand the environment they live in. I think this disconnect is very prevalent in Black and brown communities, and I would like to do my best to create and foster an environment that bridges that gap.

“Hi, my name is Fatmata…but you can call me FA.” This was how I introduced myself for the majority of my life. When I started elementary school, I introduced myself as Fatmata, but from the second my name left my mouth, I was met with silent stares and “can you repeat that”s. I quickly learned how uncommon my name is in the United States. In my family, names are passed down from generation to generation. My maternal grandmother’s name is Fatmata, as well as my aunt on my dad’s side. The name Fatmata has many variations and many different spellings, but the spelling of my name is local to Sierra Leone, and it is representative of our Islamic origins. Coming from a culture in which my name is very common and well-respected, I was unprepared for what I would encounter when I started school. Throughout my elementary years I became more and more uncomfortable with my name. When I entered middle school, due to the influx of new sixth grade students, I had to introduce myself all over again. By that time, I was tired of having to repeat myself and correct pronunciation, so this time I said, “My name is Fatmata, but you can call me FA.” FA is the common nickname for Fatmata and is one that I am called in my household and by relatives. I was hesitant to let people call me FA because I felt that, for those who didn’t know my full name, the significance was lost, but I pushed those feelings aside and decided to give people the out. Entering high school, I put my preferred name as FA in the application and that was it. I wasn’t quite comfortable with it because I felt like I was bypassing the close relationships that we associated with the nickname. But in this new school, correcting everyone on the pronunciation of Fatmata and the usage of FA became tiring, and I just let everyone call me FA. Fatmata didn’t exist anymore—I didn’t exist. While this was easy at the beginning it became increasingly frustrating. The nickname that I thought would make my life easier, was actually making it harder. So I decided to make a switch. When I started working, I quickly decided that I wanted people to use my full name. At first it was uncomfortable, and I occasionally slipped up and accidentally said, “But you can call me FA” during first introductions, but I quickly lost the habit. I still had to repeat, correct, and spell, but this time I felt better about it. I felt real. Instead of giving people an excuse to not say my name, I stood my ground, and it worked. At both of my jobs, everyone calls me Fatmata comfortably, and I can wear my name with pride. Over the years, I was able to share my love of my name with people, explain the heritage of my name with people, and represent Sierra Leone with pride. In the past, I was too busy covering up the real me in order to make things easier for everyone else. I have learned to love the evolution of my name journey and determine what my name means to me. To call me FA meant to be a friend, to be someone I could talk to and hang out with. Hi, my name is Fatmata, but you can call me FA.

Jackie Robinson has inspired me because of his commitment to his family and his community. His talent and passion for sports led him to become one of the most important and influential people of all time; but his impact doesn’t stop on the field. Robinson was an entrepreneur and a civil rights activist. From his work with the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), to his presidency at Chock full o’Nuts, Robinson has always kept community at the front of his mind. His civil rights activism and his founding of the Freedom National Bank exhibit his ideals and his passion for supporting not just the African American community, but all communities. Jackie Robinson was always passionate about equal rights, and his activism impacted more people than he ever could have imagined. His protests didn’t start after his claim to fame, they have been a part of his story from the very beginning. In fact, during his time in the army he refused to move to the back of the bus. Due to his involvement in the NAACP and the help of various black newspapers, Robinson was able to be acquitted and he was honorably discharged from the US Armed Forces. After his rise in popularity, Robinson was able to use his name to create ineffable change. He became a spokesman and fundraiser for the NAACP. He protested with Martin Luther King Jr. in Birmingham, Alabama, and he would advocate for African Americans to politicians who wouldn’t listen to anyone else. Jackie Robinson was an icon in the civil rights movement and his business ventures only further depict his passion for his people and his community. As well documented, African Americans have been digging themselves out of generational poverty since the Thirteenth Amendment was passed in 1865. As someone who grew up in poverty, Robinson was able to see the problem first hand and as someone who was able to make his way out of poverty, he wanted that for all the other African Americans who grew up in a similar situation. One of Jackie Robinson’s most important life achievements, outside of integrating Major League Baseball, was the founding of the Freedom National Bank in 1964. The bank was located in the predominantly Black neighborhood of Harlem, New York, and was one of the largest Black owned banks at the time. The Freedom National Bank was a colorblind bank that was interested in serving all of New York City. The bank is one of Robinson’s most important life achievements because it represents everything that he stands for: community and challenge. The bank was a staple in the community that allowed family’s to put their money in a place that they trusted. The bank also gave out generous loans to local residents and businesses. All of the work that Robinson and co put in boosted the economy in Harlem and made the Freedom National Bank the second biggest largest owned bank in New York. Over the course of its 38 year long life, the bank had many ups and downs and it sadly closed down in 1990 during the recession. Jackie Robinson’s most important life achievements were his involvement in civil rights activism and his founding of the Freedom National Bank. His fierce protests and his vocal campaigning has resulted in leaps and bounds of improvement both socially and financially. Robinson’s life was full of many important achievements, but all of them always led back to his love of his community. Robinson embodies everything I want to be and his legacy and impact inspires me to be better everyday.

Knowingly or not, my parents have instilled a value of open-mindedness in me. It started off by sending me to a private school when no one in my community or family had ever gone before. Then it progressed into sending me to a sleepaway camp that had me camping in the woods and canoeing in the middle of nowhere, the exact opposite of my fast-paced, urban upbringing. At sleep-away camp, I learned the beauty of nature and formed a deep connection with the environment—a connection that has grown deeper ever since. My love for the environment has led me down the path of environmental justice and sustainability. This love of the environment paired with my love of math, science, design, and problem-solving has made me feel as though environmental engineering is where I will follow my passions. After coming to this conclusion, I have made numerous steps to follow this passion. I have attended multiple conferences centered around climate change and sustainability that have allowed me to engage with peers who are similarly dedicated to making change and preserving the environment. This year I decided to take the interdisciplinary, senior elective Environmental Studies course in order to expand my knowledge in a more academic light. The conferences and the class have taught me the huge scope of this issue and have only added fuel to the fire that drives me toward environmental engineering. When my parents sent me to this sleep-away camp, they had no idea how much it would affect me or change the trajectory of my life. My parents have always gone against the grain, and I don't think it has been intentional. Some decisions were made because they thought it would benefit their children. Others were made just for the fun of it, but that mindset is one that I have adopted, and one I try to surround myself with. Being open-minded allows one to see others' perspectives in a way that closed minded people can't. If my friend were to say something uncharacteristically rude to me, I would respond with “Is everything okay?” rather than something rude back. I have learned to always be conscious that I don’t know everything, so I should lead with openness and positivity. Some decisions made can end up being very positive such as that sleep away camp sparking my love of nature, and others leading to a new adventure and a new way to reconnect with myself or others. Being open-minded is the value that I live by and what has given me the greatest gifts in life, just by taking a chance on anything.

We got this. We got this. We got this. That is what I chanted to myself while I was walking to the Northeast Canoe Carry two summers ago. It was my turn to portage our canoe, and two minutes in I was already exhausted. I looked over at my boat partner, Bobbi, limping on her hurt ankle, and struggling with our gear, and I knew we couldn’t switch now. I had to keep pushing. We were only halfway through the two miles to the Penobscot River, and all I could think about was getting it done. After 45 long minutes, we finally reached the river bank and turned back around for the rest of our gear. On the way back, we encouraged our fellow trip mates and pumped ourselves up for another challenging trek with our assigned food wannigan. A little way into our final trip we met up with our friend Lena who was struggling with her wannigan and got separated from her boat partner. Bobbi was also struggling due to her injury, so I determined that as the only person not struggling, it was my responsibility to make sure Bobbi and Lena didn’t get hurt and helped them take off and put on their wannigans when they needed breaks. Over the course of the two miles, the breaks became more frequent and our pace slowed. As much as I wanted to rush ahead and get the job done quickly, I knew that staying and supporting my friends was more important. It didn’t matter if I finished knowingly left people behind who needed help. While it was physically and mentally taxing for all of us, in the end, we got the job done in time to eat a delicious lunch with the rest of our tripmates. It was duing this physically and mentally challenging portage in the middle of the woods where I truly learned the power of determination and compassion. Throughout my childhood whenever I wanted to do something below my best, my mother would always say “If it’s worth doing, it’s worth doing right,” and now it has become my way of life. Once I start something, I am going to finish it, whether I have to grit my way through it like on a portage trail, or plan and organize my way through it like a theatrical production. Whether it be physically, academically, or mentally, I try to challenge myself to try new things and go outside of my comfort zone, and when things get tough, I know I can rely on my sheer determination to get it done.

Getting people to vote is very important to me because I come from a background of people who had to fight for their vote. My parents immigrated to the United States after fleeing Sierra Leone in the middle of a civil war. Throughout my parents' lives in Sierra Leone, voting went from something very important to something that wasn’t important because the corrupt government was just going to do what they wanted anyway. When my parents came to the United States, their lack of citizenship left them voiceless. It took them a collective decade to gain their right to vote, and they haven’t missed an election since. They vote in presidential elections, state elections, and town elections. After going so long without a say in their own fate, they decided they were never going to feel that way again. In my sophomore year, I was given the opportunity to run a voter registration campaign at my school. I ran a chapter of the Harvard Vote Challenge in which the main focus was getting students of age registered to vote and younger students pre-registered. This was a difficult project for me because I was still learning the ropes of high school after my freshman year was truncated due to COVID-19. I was able to gather some people in my grade and the grade above to help me with the project, and together, we sent out emails, reached out to popular school social media accounts, made digital flyers, and hustled our way into getting over 50 upperclassmen to register to vote, and few of them to pre-register. This project was very meaningful to me because voting is a very important part of my life and my parents' lives. Every election, my mom brings my brother and me to the booth with her to vote, and we put stickers on our foreheads. In the meantime, my dad picks my grandmother up and brings her to her voting location and makes sure she partakes in the event. My parents and I agree that voting is nonnegotiable in our household, and as I approach the next election as an 18-year-old, I continue to advocate for voting and being an informed citizen. Voting is really important to me, and this opportunity allowed me to share this passion with others. Throughout my time as a chapter head, I was able to make new friends with my fellow chapter members, gain experience in leadership and organization, as well as engage in my community in a new and impactful way.

I am currently on the path to becoming an environmental engineer. I decided to become an engineer because I have a passion for STEM subjects and the environment, but wanted to be able to engage in those occupations in a more hands-on field. Throughout my time in high school, I have made a point to focus on tech and computer science by taking every single computer science class my school has to offer and engaging in many of my school's STEM clubs. This pursuit of immersing myself in technology and engineering has only solidified my desire to become an engineer and showed me how important design and mechanics are to me. I found my passion for environmentalism through a sleep-away camp my parents sent me to when I was ten called Songadeewin. At sleep-away camp, I learned the beauty of nature and formed a deep connection with the environment—a connection that has grown deeper ever since. My love for the environment has led me down the path of environmental justice and sustainability. This love of the environment paired with my love of math, science, design, and problem-solving has made me feel as though environmental engineering is where I will follow my passions. My love for the earth and the environment has manifested itself in a burning desire to combat climate change through education and changes in corporate practices. While I am very passionate about educating about sustainability, my main goal as an environmental engineer is to enact sustainable and zero-waste practices in the government and private corporations. I think that many large organizations don’t want to become sustainable because they fear that they will lose money in the process. It is important to show them that going green doesn’t always mean sacrificing profits. This is true on a macro level, but also on a micro level, we as individuals have the power to make a change. That is the reason why I am so passionate about this kind of education; the only way to save the earth is if everyone pitches in. A company's shift from plastic packaging to cardboard packaging does a lot, but so does buy bar soap instead of liquid soap in plastic packaging. Through environmental engineering, I hope to make a positive impact by educating corporations as well as the public on sustainability and enacting sustainable manufacturing and treatment methods for the government and corporations to stop the climate change crisis.

We got this. We got this. We got this. That is what I chanted to myself while I was walking to the Northeast Canoe Carry two summers ago. It was my turn to portage our canoe, and two minutes in I was already exhausted. I looked over at my boat partner, Bobbi, limping on her hurt ankle, and struggling with our gear, and I knew we couldn’t switch now. I had to keep pushing. We were only halfway through the two miles to the Penobscot river, and all I could think about was getting it done. After forty-five long minutes, we finally reached the river bank and turned back around for the rest of our gear. On the way back, we encouraged our fellow trip mates and pumped ourselves up for another challenging trek with our assigned food wanigan. A little way into our final trip we met up with our friend Lena who was struggling with her wanigan and got separated from her boat partner. Bobbi was also struggling due to her injury, so I determined that as the only person not struggling, it was my responsibility to make sure Bobbi and Lena didn’t get hurt and helped them take off and put on their wanigans when they needed breaks. Over the course of the two miles, the breaks became more frequent and our pace slowed. As much as I wanted to rush ahead and get the job done quickly, I knew that staying and supporting my friends was more important. It didn’t matter if I finished or if I knowingly left people behind who needed help. While it was physically and mentally taxing for all of us, in the end, we got the job done in time to eat a delicious lunch with the rest of our tripmates. Whether it be through physical challenges like two-mile portages in the middle of the woods or through mentally challenging study sessions in the middle of exam week, I have always been determined to finish what I have started. Throughout my childhood whenever I wanted to do something desultory, my mother would always say “if it’s worth doing, it’s worth doing right,” and now it has become my way of life. Once I start something, I am going to finish it, whether I have to grit my way through it like on a portage trail, or plan and organize my way through it like a theatrical production. Whether it be physically, academically, or mentally, I like to challenge myself to try new things and go outside of my comfort box, and when things get tough, I know I can rely on my sheer determination to get it done. But, as much as my determination helps me get things done, there are times when I rely too much on my determination and don’t manage my time effectively enough to avoid having to scrape the bottom of the barrel. I need to work more on prioritizing and managing time because paired with my willpower, I will be an unstoppable force. I have been slowly working on my time management and prioritization for about six months now, and I have improved significantly, but I still have more to do. What I have been working on in the past six months has been rooted in organizational skills. I can’t manage and prioritize things that I don’t know I have going on. I have a bullet journal that I use religiously. Every day I write what I need to do that day, and as the day goes on I write what I have coming up. This running list of to-dos and events allows me to keep track of exactly what I have to do and what I have going on. At the end of the day, I transfer my events into my Google Calendar and finish out the rest of my to-do list. While this system has been working for me so far, I think there is a lot of room for improvement. I plan to build on this current foundation by digitizing it at the end of the day. While I love writing on paper because it helps me remember my tasks and events better, it is difficult to change the order of things on paper. I have recently started rewriting the list in priority order and with time estimates but this can be a bit time-consuming. Also, having two systems (my physical notebook and my Google Calendar) can be tricky when I have dates far in the future, and I forget to copy them into my notebook on the day off. Creating a digital version would allow me to rearrange better and see my upcoming events automatically rather than having to scroll through my calendar unprompted.

Ever since I was little I have had a passion for learning and STEM. I have always had dreams of being an environmental engineer, and my passion for education, sustainability, and engineering paired with my dedication to my education have led me to be admitted to Dartmouth College. Getting a college degree is really important for two reasons: it educates you in a deeper way than can be found in the workplace and it opens a lot of career options. The education that results in a college degree is much deeper than anything learned on the job because learning on the job can only teach you how to deal with issues, not why that solution is correct. Anyone can learn to screw a screw into a wall, but going to college can teach you why that screw is crucial to the structural integrity of the building. A college degree can open a lot of career options because some careers can only be done by college graduates, such as engineering. As an aspiring engineer, I am aware of my limitations as a high schooler, and I know that in order to fight climate change through science and technology, I need to understand how water systems work and how to build and design sturdy structures in a way that I can’t find on youtube. The passions that I have and the goals I want to achieve can only be met through a college degree, and I plan to succeed at Dartmouth by implementing the habits that I have been building over the past four years and perfecting them. Throughout my time in high school, I have made a conscious effort to refine my note-taking and studying habits, as well as practice time management. I carry around a notebook where I keep track of all of my assignments and events that I need to attend, and then every night I complete the urgent assignments and continue to chip away at long-term assignments. Every week I go to my public library and create physical study cards for upcoming tests, and work on upcoming essays. I have made a ritual out of my academics in a way that I know will carry on and grow in college.

It is important to me to manage my finances because I want to be able to give back to my family and community. My parents have sacrificed a lot for me to be where I am as an admitted student at Dartmouth College. They took a chance and got me enrolled in a private school, where I have been for almost my whole life on close to full scholarships, due to my parents' immense desire for me to succeed in life. The little amount that my family did have to pay left us with not much wiggle room. My family’s financial situation has taught me some things about managing finances, but the majority of what I have learned about financial literacy is through youtube and free personal finance courses, where I have learned about debt, investing, and budgeting. I got jobs at LL Bean and Marshalls to help me save up for college, and through my LL Bean job, I have been able to get a 401k through the company and continue my journey in personal finance. I saved up enough money to open up a custodial brokerage account at Fidelity to start investing in stock. I have turned my 500 dollars into almost 650 in a year by investing in index funds and high-yield stocks. I use the money that I have been earning at my jobs mainly to save up, but I also love donating to various foundations, as well as giving cash to unhoused people in Boston. It is a common fact that one will die in the same class that they were born into, so I am doing my best to combat that as young as possible, but even through my jobs, I am unable to afford the college of my dreams. My admission to Dartmouth was a dream come true, but the excitement of that initial letter was only countered by the estimated family contribution of 61,000 dollars a year. This figure is well above my family’s means and without significant financial assistance, I will graduate with close to half a million dollars in debt. While I currently manage my finances well and plan to only increase my income through degrees in finance and environmental engineering, it will be almost impossible to give back to my parents and donate to my community in a timely manner. My parents have ingrained a sense of service in me both through acts of service and donation, and in order to donate I will need a significant amount of expendable income, money that I won’t have with hundreds of thousands of dollars in debt. Financial literacy is really important to me because my top priority in life is improving my community through service and financial support. I have done as best as I can as a high schooler to donate, and build up a foundation for college, but at this rate I won’t be able to achieve my goals within my lifetime. Hopefully, through the Financial Literacy Importance Scholarship, I will be able to chip away at my future debt and further follow my passion for financial literacy.

America’s Wanigan This box is red white and blue and made of copper This one serves the same purpose but holds very different things: It holds America’s greatness From its melting pot of diversity To its freedom of speech and expression From its bustling economy To its pacemakers and peacemakers America has a lot of good going for it But with all that good America’s wanigan holds a lot of pain From one giant mushroom cloud of death To its tall white face masks From Sallie Mae and Uncles Sam’s dread To the red elephant and blue donkey From its strange fruit from the poplar tree To disease-ridden blankets With that horrible past, we also have the tools to do what we have to do to improve and grow From the MLKs speech that wrecked the country To the suffragette’s power and grace from Stan Lee’s creative genius to Sitting Bull’s ferocity From Elon Musk's forward-thinking To Obama’s way with words This wanigan is banged up and getting rusty But with a lot of elbow grease We can keep our past from becoming our future.

In 1998, my parents fled the war-torn country of Sierra Leone. They left the only place they ever knew, to go to the United States, a country of great opportunities. When they arrived they struggled to gain citizenship, balance finances, get degrees, and maintain a roof over their heads. Against all odds they got naturalized and finished their degrees while simultaneously taking care of baby me. They were able to provide a stable home for me, and eventually my brother and me, all. If they can start from scratch in a brand new country, learn new country, and create a whole new life, who am I to do anything but use it for motivation, at the least. Everyday, I see they effects of their depart on them and their family back home. I see my mother sending money to her family in Freetown, so they can put their kids through school and keep their houses. I see my father keeping up to date on politics affecting his aunts and uncles, during a time of political turmoil. I see both my parents struggling to teach us the culture they left behind while also trying to assimilate to American culture. My parents and my biggest inspiration and my greatest motivation, if it weren't for their hard work and determination demonstrating how to be persistent, I wouldn't have accomplished any of the things I have done in my life. My parents are my main motivation for everything I do, and my goal is to be able to repay them for all they have done; starting with minimizing the debt I will be in after college.

This past summer I went on a 17 day, 150 mile, canoe-camping trip in Maine. This wasn't my first camping trip, but it was the most impactful. I've been doing canoe camping trips for the past seven years and the longest was ten days on the Kipawa river. Over the years, I learned the importances of teamwork, personal responsibility, and our impact on nature, but this year it all came to a head. This summer was my last year as a camper at the camp that runs these canoeing trips, and this 17 day long trip was the senior trip for me and my friends. This trip was something I had been looking forward to for almost a decade of my life, and I wasn't at all expecting what was to come. This trip was the longest trip I had ever been on, both distance and timewise, and I was terrified. On the first night it rained all day and night. The next day we woke up cold, wet, and hungry, and this only intensified my fear of what was to come. Over the next two weeks and a half weeks, we dried out out gear, complete over three miles worth of portages, and grew closer together. Some days were physically challenging, others were mentally grueling, but everyday I learned to lean on my trip mates more and more and created a bond that I don't ever see being broken. The trip that I spent over half of my life waiting for, turned out to be the best experience of my life.This trip taught be how to be a contributing member of a team and resilience. Now months later I still reminisce over spending my days out in nature, floating down the Allagash river.

Mechanical Engineer

BLACK LIVES MATTER! That is what I screamed for hours and hours with my best friend marching through the streets of Boston protesting for our lives. For my parents' lives, for my siblings' lives, for your life. Police brutality and all the power that the police have has been an issue in the United States since it was first created. In this photo, I was bold and voiced my opinion and marched for the sake of us all while risking my life against COVID-19. I did it not just for people of color, but for all of us.