I was born with a rare condition called Septo-Optic-Dysplasia. It's a condition in which my optic nerve did not develop causing me to be visually impaired, and it can also cause many other dire symptoms most of which I was lucky to not develop. My disability has caused great turmoil in my life and many setbacks. Even for instance, being bullied at school, put in harm's way, as my peers assumed I had no way of fighting back. They assumed I was weak and that somehow being unable to identify them made it so it was okay to do as they wanted. They assumed it would hurt me, but years of this lit a passion in me. I decided to make a promise to myself that I wouldn’t take this sitting down. Every opportunity that I was given I would educate people on the way myself and other minorities were treated. There would be no sugarcoating when I detailed the way Mexican families are ripped apart from each other and given less than humane conditions at detention camps because those are my people, and when they can’t speak, I’ll speak for us all. I have no issue describing how society chooses to poison young girls' self-images and take advantage of their innocence and how minority women bear the brunt of this abuse, but are silenced. I refused to let myself be a victim, so I became a representative for the marginalized. I walk into each of my classes not to hang back silent, but to educate. I chose a career path and hobbies most would assume I'm too dumb or too weak to do. I chose archery because the thought of handing a blind girl a bow and arrow shocks people, especially when they discover I am the head officer of the archery club. People approach me with a preconceived idea of who I am and I take joy in showing them a stronger side to disabled people that the media often won’t show. What first sparked my interest in computer science was a teacher I had during my freshman year. It was the year we spent on Zoom and I found myself often lonely and depressed, but every morning when I logged onto his class he was positive, passionate about his subject, and by extension made me love code. With this positive role model in mind, I chose computer science as my field. I also chose it because how often do you see a disabled Mexican girl in a male-dominated field whose demographics include only a 9.4 percent Latino population and an 11.9 percent disabled population. I chose cybersecurity as my major choice as I aspire to make the internet a safer place for people. My goal is to join the Department of Homeland Security in their effort to stop the dark realities seen on the news of children being taken advantage of online. My life is not a sob story. I built my purpose from the adversity I have faced, and I choose to not simply sit and cry, but to fight every assumption ever made about me. My goal is not that I am pitied but that I inspire those around me, no matter how small or weak they feel, to fight for themselves. Now, here I am writing this essay to you and I ask for your assistance so that I may have the aid I need to beat the status quo and bring justice to others. Because I am a lot stronger and a lot smarter than I appear on paper.

My goal is to join the Department of Homeland Security in its effort to stop the dark realities seen on the news of children, people with disabilities, and older people being taken advantage of online. I also chose it as my field because how often do you see a disabled Mexican girl in a male-dominated field whose demographics include only a 9.4 percent Latino population and an 11.9 percent disabled population? To complete my mission I ask for your aid so that I may have funding for the education I need to beat the status quo and bring justice to my fellow people with disabilities. If I am awarded this scholarship I will make a promise not only to save and protect but also to shed light on a side of people with disabilities many may not know exists. One that is stronger than most people would expect and one I will exemplify in my mission in hopes of also inspiring others much like myself to take a risk because we are so much more than our disabilities.

I was born with a rare condition called Septo-Optic-Dysplasia. It's a condition in which my optic nerve did not develop causing me to be visually impaired, and it can also cause many other dire symptoms most of which I was lucky to not develop. My disability has caused great turmoil in my life and many setbacks. Even for instance, being bullied at school, put in harm's way, as my peers assumed I had no way of fighting back. They assumed I was weak and that somehow being unable to identify them made it so it was okay to do as they wanted. They assumed it would hurt me, but years of this lit a passion in me. I decided to make a promise to myself that I wouldn’t take this sitting down. Every opportunity that I was given I would educate people on the way myself and other minorities were treated. There would be no sugarcoating when I detailed the way Mexican families are ripped apart from each other and given less than humane conditions at detention camps because those are my people, and when they can’t speak, I’ll speak for us all. I have no issue describing how society chooses to poison young girls' self-images and take advantage of their innocence and how minority women bear the brunt of this abuse, but are silenced. I refused to let myself be a victim, so I became a representative for the marginalized. I walk into each of my classes not to hang back silent, but to educate. I chose a career path and hobbies most would assume I'm too dumb or too weak to do. I chose archery because the thought of handing a blind girl a bow and arrow shocks people, especially when they discover I am the head officer of the archery club. People approach me with a preconceived idea of who I am and I take joy in showing them a stronger side to disabled people that the media often won’t show. What first sparked my interest in computer science was a teacher I had during my freshman year. It was the year we spent on Zoom and I found myself often lonely and depressed, but every morning when I logged onto his class he was positive, passionate about his subject, and by extension made me love code. With this positive role model in mind, I chose computer science as my field. I also chose it because how often do you see a disabled Mexican girl in a male-dominated field whose demographics include only a 9.4 percent Latino population and an 11.9 percent disabled population. I chose cybersecurity as my major choice as I aspire to make the internet a safer place for people. My goal is to join the Department of Homeland Security in their effort to stop the dark realities seen on the news of children being taken advantage of online. My life is not a sob story. I built my purpose from the adversity I have faced, and I choose to not simply sit and cry, but to fight every assumption ever made about me. My goal is not that I am pitied but that I inspire those around me, no matter how small or weak they feel, to fight for themselves. Now, here I am writing an essay to you and I ask for your aid so that I may acquire the funding for the education I need to beat the status quo and bring justice to others. I am a lot stronger and a lot smarter than I appear on paper.

I am a visually impaired woman and throughout my life I was treated as inferior and bullied horrifically, the worst being in high school in which my peers consistently went out of their way to make fun of me along with even putting me in harm's way with their interference. They assumed it would hurt me, but after years of this, it lit a passion in me. I decided to make a promise to myself that I wouldn’t take this sitting down so every opportunity given I would educate people on the way myself and other minorities were treated. There would be no sugarcoating when I detailed the way Mexican families are ripped apart from each other and given less than humane conditions at detention camps because those are my people and when they can’t speak I’ll speak for us all. I have no issue describing how society chooses to poison young girls' self-images and take advantage of their innocence and how minority women bear the brunt of this abuse but are silenced. I refused to let myself be a victim so I became a representative for the overlooked. I picked a career path and hobbies most would assume I'm too dumb or too weak to do. I chose archery because the thought of handing a blind girl a weapon shocks people especially when they discover I am the head officer of the archery club. I chose computer science as my field because how often do you see a disabled Mexican girl in a male-dominated field whose demographics include only a 9.4 percent Latino population and an 11.9 percent disabled population? I have a goal of entering the world of cybersecurity because as each generation progresses we become more surrounded by technology regardless of who we are and I want to protect people like our children, people with disabilities, and the elderly who may be targets for cybercrimes. I chose cybersecurity as my main interest as I am driven by hopes to join the Department of Homeland Security's cybersecurity specialist staff and assist in preventing online crimes. My goal in computer science is to save people and I hope to do that with your assistance. My life is not a sob story. I built my purpose from the adversity I have faced and chose not to simply sit and cry but to fight every assumption ever made about me. My goal is not that I am pitied but that I inspire those around me, no matter how small or weak they feel, to fight for themselves and to find themselves in areas where they are unexpected. Now, here I am writing an essay to you and I ask for aid so that I may beat the status quo and keep proving people wrong because I am a lot stronger and a lot smarter than I look.