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Jessica Brunetti

4,850

Bold Points

198x

Nominee

1x

Finalist

Bio

Hi, my name is Jessica, and I was recently accepted to Stockton University. If you would have asked me a year ago what I wanted to do with my life I would not have had an answer. However, so much has changed in the span of a year and I want nothing more but to attend Stockton University. As a child, I was born to two teenage addicts who were lost. When Social Services found me, I had been in the basement unfed, uncleaned, and unloved for weeks. Social services rescued me at age 3 and I went to live with my aunt. Although my circumstances improved, life was still a struggle. My aunt had to struggle to take care of me and make sure that we survived. College sounded like a foreign language or faraway place completely out of my grasp. Ironically, unfortunate circumstances led to a way out. My aunt's only daughter passed away in April 2020. After her death, I left Newark and moved in with my cousins who are both graduates of another university. Living with them and being exposed to a different environment has led to a strong desire for success. Now I have an idea of what my life could be like. Now I see what success can look like. I have never wanted anything more in my life. I have been accepted to Stockton, but I do not have enough to pay for my tuition. I have some financial aid but I am in need of about $10,000 more. All I need is a chance.

Education

Stockton University

Master's degree program
2022 - 2025
  • Majors:
    • Social Work
  • GPA:
    3.5

Westside High School

High School
2018 - 2020
  • GPA:
    2.8

Miscellaneous

  • Desired degree level:

    Master's degree program

  • Graduate schools of interest:

  • Transfer schools of interest:

  • Majors of interest:

    • Psychology, General
    • Sociology
    • Social Work
  • Planning to go to medical school
  • Career

    • Dream career field:

      social work

    • Dream career goals:

      Psychiatrist

    • Cashier/Stock

      Sally Beauty
      2021 – Present3 years
    • Cashier

      White castle
      2019 – 20201 year

    Finances

    Loans

    • Other

      Borrowed: March 14, 2022
      • 10,000

        Principal borrowed
      • 10,000

        Principal remaining
      • Debt collection agency:

        Aidvantage

    Sports

    Dodgeball

    Intramural
    2017

    Karate

    Club
    2016

    Kickball

    Intramural
    2018

    Dancing

    Intramural
    2019

    Flag Football

    Intramural
    2019

    Cheerleading

    Intramural
    2019

    Volleyball

    Intramural
    2018

    Research

    • Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions, General

      Present
    • Clinical, Counseling and Applied Psychology

      Present
    • Design

      Clothing designer
      Present
    • Music

      Sing
      Present

    Arts

    • Videography
      2020 – Present
    • Music
      2015 – Present
    • Design
      2018 – 2021
    • Photography
      2020

    Public services

    • Volunteering

      Community service
      2019

    Future Interests

    Advocacy

    Volunteering

    Entrepreneurship

    Susy Ruiz Superhero Scholarship
    I kind of froze up with this question because how can I narrow down the possibility of there being just one hero? In my story, there is a lot of heroes. There's my hero from social services that saved me, there's my aunt who got custody of me, and there's my cousin who is a social worker, she helps me with my anxiety, depression. My cousin, Adiba, has been a social worker for 8 years now. I believe inspiration creates motivation and everyone lives on motivation, and this motivation can be bad or good depending on whom you look up to for guidance in life. My motivation to acquire higher education to become a social worker comes from Adiba. She has given me the motivation I've been needing, to flourish. Without her, I don't think I would be where I am now. In reality, a true hero doesn't receive recognition for their acts; they just live their lives while unknowingly inspiring others. My cousin is one of those hero's, I came to that realization once I arrived at her doorstep. Since I was 3, I had lived with my aunt and her daughter, I called her daughter my sister. My sister had three young children, ages 1, 2, and 15. A year ago sister suddenly passed away and my cousin Adiba came to get the children the same week my sister passed away to live with her because she saw that our aunt was too unstable to take care of them, she invited me to stay with her as well, so I went with them. Even though I was 18, I couldn’t do it alone. A year ago, I didn't understand the importance of minorities, so If the topic of discussion was college, It sounded like a foreign language. Most people in my family refused to get a degree, and that was the environment I grew up in, so being that those were the adults I looked up to, growing up, I always thought college was something smart people in urban areas don't do. After I moved to Adiba's house, she changed that mindset I had, now I want nothing but a successful life. The story of my past still makes the hairs on my arms stand up. The story starts with my mom's mother who had Bipolar Disorder. She abused my mom continuously her whole life. After my mom got pregnant with me at 17 she left her mom's house and was homeless with my dad, then at 18, I was born. My mom started to show symptoms of schizophrenia after my birth. While I was with them, my biological mom had a babysitter for me for 2 years and during that time, the babysitter was abusing me. My mom knew, but she was pleased with it because that's what her mom did with her. It was only a miracle I survived all of that. In conclusion, my cousin Adiba is my hero. She showed me a different way of life and to aspire to be my greatest self. My life has been a rollercoaster ride full of ups, downs, twists, and turns. I survived my trauma and have learned and grown from it. I am more than thankful for my cousin. Her inspiration has motivated me to be more, I'm am now 19, and I want to go to Stockton University to become a Therapist to help people in need. Lastly, for anyone reading this, it is important to look for connections in your everyday life, they bring clarification, and a greater understanding of reality.
    A Sani Life Scholarship
    January 2020, covid-19 struck the United States. All in panic, every business, school, and some hospitals shut down. Children were out of school for months and left without education, and working citizens were out of a job for months. When the world closed and locked its doors, It felt like I was in the middle of a street, and I was alone, and I had to drop everything and run. That was a moment of realization that I took a lot of aspects of life for granted. Mental illness played a big part in my pandemic experience. Let's say I am not known to be the most optimistic person. I couldn't leave my house without constant fear of catching the virus and giving it to others. I couldn't live with the idea of catching the virus and family members passing away because of me. When my mind wondered, any time I went outside my home, that's what I would think. I thrive on joy and happiness, and during the pandemic, I didn't get that because I was struggling to cope, as were they, so I was constantly depressed. The pandemic led me to struggle with anxiety and depression. I struggled with this mostly the whole pandemic. Additionally, I reminisced about all the times when I had the opportunity to live. During the pandemic, I had no life; I was and still am just in the house. It hindered my natural way of life, but I can say the pandemic has made me more active with the family, It also made me open up to doing more things like making music and family activities. I had to waste a year + of my life because of covid. I look at older people and dream about how exciting their life must have been before the pandemic because I'm only 19, my life hasn't even started yet. Furthermore, during the pandemic, April 16th of 2020, my sister passed away. We weren't able to bury her till a month later. We couldn't bury her due to high deaths from covid. The funeral home told us numerous lies, and this is something I will never forget. I had to look at my sister in a casket, and she didn't look not one inch herself. She had three children, a 1, 2, and a 15-year-old, and they didn't and still don't have any father figures in their life. They had to move away to someone in the family who is more suitable for taking care of them, and when they left, I left with them. This shaped my plans for the future by encouraging me to go to college. My sister didn't get the chance to go to college, and it was rare that any family members went to college. So I want to do what she couldn't. I want to pursue her dreams by doing what others in the family didn't do. I want to make her and everybody else proud to see their cousin, daughter, and niece walk across that graduation stage. In conclusion, I learned that I have a pessimistic personality when things scare me. I learned that growing up is all about self-discovery, and most of the time, it's through unexpected ways. Covid-19 was definitely unexpected; while it was in motion, I broke myself down way too many times, and I came out a better person. During this time, without me knowing, I found things in my everyday life that made my lonely life worth living. I did things like sewing, designing things, family activities, painting, making music, and even took months off social media and focused on the essential things during this time of instability, and that's self-reflection and grief.
    Bold Moments No-Essay Scholarship
    On April 16th of 2020, I got the call that my sister passed away. The boldest thing I’ve ever done was having to say goodbye to her in a casket and she didn’t look herself. She had to be kept above ground for a month before she could be buried because the deaths were high due to Covid. She left behind me, her 1, 2, and 15 year old son. She didn’t get the chance to go to college, so I’m trying to make her proud by doing what she couldn’t.