For as long as I can remember, the place I called home was known for nothing but crime, homicide, and the famous tourist attraction, the arch. Saint Louis, Missouri, is always considered one of the most dangerous cities in America, and hearing that from a young age made me realize that the city I was born and raised in needed help. I never really knew how I could help as a kid, but I understood that it was a problem that needed to be solved. When I was introduced to the career of law enforcement, I was in elementary school, waiting for my great-grandmother to get off work. During the time, she worked at a motel in the rough part of the city, instead of going back home to her house, the owners let my Granny keep a room there so she could work comfortably. When she got off work, she sat down and told me to turn on one of her TV shows. My granny had a thing for real-life crime documentaries, cold case files, and other shows like Criminal Minds and S.W.A.T., but as a kid, I just wanted to watch cartoons. As time went on, one episode of my granny’s TV shows sparked my interest; I was interested in what was happening on the TV screen. With each passing day, I started turning on the shows before my Granny could ask, and I’m pretty sure I started to become more interested than she was. Watching those shows made me become fascinated with the work of Homicide Detectives, police officers, and forensic scientists. Seeing the work ethic and determination that they displayed inspired me in more ways than I can name. I remember looking at my Granny and telling her, “That’s what I’m going to be. I want to help people.” Many people told me that I would do better as a doctor or a lawyer, but from that day, I knew I wanted to become a homicide and missing persons detective, and if not that, in some career dealing with law enforcement. Going into law enforcement was going to be my way of helping people and changing lives. Living in Saint Louis gave me many reasons to go into law enforcement. I've seen people I care about and people close to home get murdered, with their families receiving no real answers or closure for what happened to their loved ones. Because of the area they were in, those cases typically get pushed to the side or even treated the same because of how repetitive the crimes in that area are. But with each crime, situation, and case, you must treat each of them like they are important. I want to be able to help the communities that feel like there is no help coming for them. To be able to bring hope into places that people tend to forget about because they would be considered a “lost” cause. Graduating from High school, I plan on majoring in criminal justice and attending the police academy, so I can become well-versed in the career. I understand that me being well-versed in the field will not only benefit me, but I will be able to reach more people and connect with more lives, alive and the ones who we have lost. Becoming a first responder will allow me to be the superhero that kids see on TV. I want to be able to become someone who can do more than just talk about change and put effort towards it.

"Ranked one of the most dangerous cities in America, Saint Louis, Missouri." Growing up I genuinely thought certain events that occurred in my neighborhood and city were normal, from people getting locked up to cars getting stolen, but then the older I got, I started to understand that it wasn't and that the city I lived in had a major problem that needed to be solved. But, with the lack of help and resources the community still has yet to improve. Some of that has to do with the unspoken rules in the community and the issues with Black America and Law Enforcement. However, certain communities don't want to promote change and better for themselves, it can be a lot on the adolescents within the community. I was one - well I mean, I am one of those adolescent children of Saint Louis, Missouri. When I graduate high school, I plan to attend North Carolina Central University because it is an HBCU with a good Criminal Justice program. I want to major in Criminal Justice because after college I want to become a homicide and missing person detective to help underfunded and underrepresented communities get the help they deserve and need. I have several stories that helped me with my decision for my career and major, but some stuck more than others. When I was in 3rd grade, I remember a specific Tuesday after the shooting of Mike Brown the entire city was on lockdown due to the protests and the riots all because the city was mourning in a way that the African-American community has been mourning for years. However, that movement became a core memory solely because it was so close to me in a way I would've never thought. Ironically, I started to attend the High School that Mike Brown had graduated from prior to his wrongful murder. Another core experience that helped me with my decision in wanting to be in the field of law enforcement was the passing of one of the kids in the neighborhood. When I was around 12, I was on punishment due to being in trouble at school, but sadly me being on punishment, possibly saved me from being the one with an unnamed bullet going through my body. That wasn't the case for the kid I knew and til this day they never found out who did it because it got swept under the rug. People assume that I want to become a homicide detective, solely because I watch a lot of crime shows, but in all honesty, I want to help the underfunded and underrepresented communities within my city. Due to the fact that the person who shot one of the neighborhood kids never got found nor arrested, the family never received the proper closure they deserved. I want to become a person who can give families closure and hope that I've seen so many families lose. Though I wasn't close to the kid in the neighborhood, the situation still inspires me to do more for the community I grew up in.

Every high schooler typically has a general broad experience of an obstacle that they faced. Sometimes it's family issues, other times it can be academics or sports. Though I also have my fair share of those experiences, this time I am going to write about something else. I would say, personally, my biggest challenge and obstacle would have to be my high school. I live in Saint Louis, Missouri and as of right now, I am a senior at Normandy Senior High School. I came to Normandy my sophomore year with no preparation or any idea of how the rest of my high school experience would go. Each year that I attended the school, it was like the environment and the administration continued to get worse. People tend to think that when a former student from Normandy Senior High School would be exaggerating the experience of Normandy. But, due to my personal experience with the school I can genuinely agree that the high school was an experience within itself. The school had many complications, not building-wise, but administration-wise. I always gave the school the benefit of the doubt because Normandy was a school that naturally was considered, "one of the bad schools". Since Normandy had already created and accepted their reputation long before I got there, I decided to think about how the environment wouldn't affect me if I did everything I was supposed to do. Before my senior year, I had more than the required credits and excelled in every classroom that I touched. I was given promises that I would get more incentives for the hard work I had put in during my high school career, but when I got to Senior year I was introduced to something else. Within my senior year, the school environment took a turn for the worse and because of the environment I was in, I started to become a product of it. I got what they called "Senioritis". I started not going to class late, feeling drained from the work piled on top of me, and even started hating going to school to the point it made me contemplate attending college the next school year. I would apply for college applications that required the assistance of the school counselors and by the time I was given the help I needed it would be too late, forcing me to earn 36 college acceptances on my own. Though attending Normandy was a chore, I learned and I'm still learning that I shouldn't let an environment, change who I am. Normandy showed me that if you punish students who are doing good along with the 'problem' students, the only people you are genuinely affecting are the students doing good. I want to go to college in North Carolina to major in Criminal Justice to become a homicide and missing person detective so that eventually one day I can come back home and help the communities that need resources. Going to school, and coming out of Normandy, I already expect several people to doubt that I have intelligence when I walk into certain rooms. Coming out of a school that's considered "one of the bad schools" and going to college to earn my bachelor's, would show other kids in that same situation that no matter what school you come from, pursuing education further is very much possible. The education doesn't solely come from just the school, but the will and determination of the student as well. So, I want to help inspire people and continue to do that inside my career field and school setting.

When I was younger, I was always brought to my GG's house after school because of that I became one of those kids that enjoyed being outside. Whenever I was outside, I would play with my friends and stay outside until the street lights came on. But, one day in middle school I had gotten in trouble at school, meaning that I couldn't go outside for the next few days. When I was finally off punishment, the first thing I did was go outside. I walked down to my best friend's house to ask him to come outside with me, but when I knocked on the door he didn't answer. The next day came and I walked down there again, this time he answered, but the energy was different and more so, sadder than usual. "I don't wanna come outside, he's gone.... I saw it happen. He's not coming back." I remember the day like it's a memory that won't go away, it was like the sky went immediately grey. I always knew the neighborhood that my GG stayed in had a lot of gun violence, but at that moment I wouldn't have thought someone that I knew would have been a victim of it. One of the neighborhood kids had been shot and hit with a stray bullet and the person behind the trigger was never found. That day when I was on punishment was a day that affected everyone, including myself. I grew up and started to understand that the city I was born and raised in was a city that needed help. Saint Louis, Missouri is considered one of the most dangerous cities in America. After experiencing and understanding that violence happens more so in communities that are underfunded, I decided that I want to become a homicide and missing person detective. There are several reasons why I want to pursue a career within law enforcement, but this is one of the main reasons. I want to be able to find a way to help reduce the amount of crime that takes place in the city that I call my home. But, while going into my career, I want to go and earn my degree in criminal justice, so I can have the knowledge in the books and in the work field. For every person who wrongfully lost their lives and their families who received no closure.

My name is Kamiyah Delaney and I attend Normandy Senior High School, in Saint Louis, Missouri. Saint Louis is considered one of the most dangerous cities in America, and from me living in the neighborhoods of the city, I completely understand why. Growing up in Saint Louis has taught me that sometimes people become a major part of their environment, whether it's positive or negative. Majority of the time it's negative and you start to see senseless crime happening around you. The month of November is a month I will never really forget because something happened to someone my childhood best friend was friends with, that if I didn't get in trouble, it could have been me that got hurt or died. When I was in middle school, after I got out of school, I would normally go to my Grandmother's house so she could watch me and I would go to my best friend's house. I knocked and didn't receive an answer. Days that felt like years had passed, and I went to go check on my best friend again, this time he answered, and the look on his face was different, he looked sad. "He's gone. I don't wanna come outside to play anymore." Those words came out of my best friend's mouth when we were just 13. My best friend's friend was shot for no reason because of the senseless crime in the city, and all he was doing was playing tag with all the kids in the neighborhood. Sadly, nobody was charged, because nobody could find out who did it. I want to attend college at North Carolina Central University to earn my degree in criminal justice, while also trying to attend the police academy to not just have experience in the academic part of the law, but the field part as well. I believe going to college out of state will benefit me in more ways than lots of people think. I would be gaining more sociable skills to help defuse situations. With my criminal justice degree, I wish to start off as a police officer and then later on become a homicide and missing persons detective. I want to be able to make a difference for the communities that feel like they can't receive or afford the help and justice all people deserve. Due to my adolescent experiences, I learned that the only way you can help people grow is if you give into it, not just run from it. I understand that both the civilian and the cop's job is stressful in both points of view, and there sometimes can be a disconnect and misunderstanding, but if more people come into the field with good intentions and the will to want to help people than maybe the interactions with society and the police will get to a more balanced scale.

Success is shown in many different ways, some ways people may not tend to think about. Growing up in the neighborhood that I was in, I was always considered an anomaly or the person who would make it out. Everyone has seen something in me that I never really saw inside myself. So, people typically put a lot of pressure on me to "succeed". But, what could success really mean? When will I understand the concept of success without the idea being pushed onto me from other people? Some people claim success is moving out of a neighborhood, while others claim it's about making a ton of money. But, I know success is being set in life where you are satisfied with who and where you are. I understand that everyone's journey in life is something different than the person they are sitting next to, and with that, I believe that's what makes me the anomaly out of my peers. Graduating high school and going to college would be my first step of reaching a higher level of success because I am genuinely doing something I want to do, so I can be able to help other people in the future the correct way. Success is deeper than just completing something because everyone around you is watching, success is when I get to achieve everything I thought I wouldn't get to do. The build up for success will be due to the hard work that I put in.

Going to college has always been a goal of mine since I was in middle school. By the time I made it to 8th grade, I already had my mind set on what I wanted to do and what career I was going into. I wanted to attend an HBCU in North Carolina, earn my degree in criminal justice, and become a homicide and missing persons detective. Now that I'm in my second semester of senior year, I realize that time is one thing that goes by fast if you don't hold it and use it wisely. I've decided that I am going to attend North Carolina Central University because it has a wonderful criminal justice program, along with it being an HBCU. Since I live in Saint Louis, Missouri, I have to take into consideration the time, distance, and money with me going out of state. The out-of-state tuition for North Carolina Central University is $39,000 for just my freshman year. From the beginning of my freshman year of high school I was given tools like the higher my GPA is the more money and scholarships I can receive. With NCCU being an HBCU they tend to be underfunded and I plan to apply to at least 50 scholarships before the start of my fall semester. I also plan to start my summer internship in May after I graduate and save my money to help deduct my college tuition. So, during my 2nd semester of junior year I decided to take dual enrollment courses to start my college journey early. I believed that the earlier that I started, the transition from senior year to freshman year of college wouldn't be so difficult. Attending my dual enrollment classes have also exposed me to college readiness programs like TRIO and with those programs I have been able to get resources for college that I never thought would be a necessity for my college journey. My plan in life is to make sure I am comfortable and set with where I want to be in life, even if that means I have to miss out on parties just to get to the long-term goal. When doing research on my career path I learned that I can do the police academy and attend college at the same time. While, doing this in North Carolina I will be paying $500 for the academy. However, depending on what department I decide to go to they will help pay for part of my college tuition and give me college credits with the program. Though I have the blueprint to get to my goals, I still have to tweak somethings and eventually slightly perfect the plan that I have originally. Every plan must have a dream, goals, and building blocks to at least help get me started to where I want to go.

"I wanted to quit so many times, but because of you I never quit." - A freshman named Khloe from my senior year of Basketball. Many people have a personal story saying how they experienced resilience outside of a school setting, however, my story stemmed from high school sports. You might be wondering how sports can help show resilience and instill it in others? When I first attended Normandy Senior High School in Saint Louis, Missouri, my sophomore year, I never thought I was going to have so many troubles with sports. Within my sophomore year, I had played basketball, but due to getting acclimated to the sport, the only thing I was confident in was defense. That year alone made me realize that I actually loved the sport and wanted to continue it into the next year. However, my junior year is when my love for the sport started to be in question. The question started when the team had to start over with all new management from the coaches to a new athletic director. Throughout the season, we had 2 coaches quit on us and the coach that was left didn't want to fight for the team or against the adversity that we had faced. With the lack of adult support, certain teammates started to feel like they had more power and authority than they were given. During the games, practices, and locker room discussions, those players would tell me to not shoot the ball and just pass it. Eventually I started to not pass the ball and I was just taking up space on the court because my confidence and love for the sport were dying. The season ended horribly, and I started to say that I wasn't going to play basketball my senior year, really because my experience was ruined from my entire junior year. After Softball season though, I had a conversation with one of my basketball teammates and we eventually agreed to playing basketball solely to have a senior night. When the season started once again, we had new coaches, but this time it was different. We had a more structured team than we did before. I started to get better with my handles, communication skills, and even my confidence on the court. The spark that I once had for basketball started to come back, but when something good eventually comes, something bad comes along with it. When I got to my second game of the season I had severe tissue damage and wasn't able to play for 2 weeks. As a captain on the team, it was only right for me to still suit up and support my team even on the bench. It was one teammate I had specifically, one that I saw so much potential in, that thought about quitting because of the fact I was injured. That moment of seeing her motivation drop because I couldn't be on the court with her made me dedicate my time into the team regardless of how severe my injury was. I came to practices, I even walked through and showed the team new plays they could run on the court. Even though some games could have gone better than they did, I believe every outcome happened for a reason. With each game I saw as the team progressed, and by my senior night I never really realized the type of impact I had on my teammates. Even with my injury and pushing through the season I still was able to inspire and motivate my team in ways I never paid attention to.

"Pinch me, so I can know this is real." These two phrases seem to be so typically said within dreams, that I would've never thought that those two dreamy phrases would become a part of my life. Growing up some things seemed simpler to me than they did for the people around me. I believe what made it so simple was my ability to understand and grasp things quickly in an efficient way. However, for some things, I understood what happened, but I never could understand why. Why did some things happen the way they did? When I was younger my Grandmother would always watch real-life crime shows and eventually, I would watch them with her with the same amount of attention I gave everything else, a deep and detailed observation. But, one day when I went to school one of the students I shared a classroom with never turned up. It went on for days and the days turned into a week. I had asked where was the student and has anyone heard from them. The teachers and students all said the same thing and the answer was, "We don't know." Eventually, news got out that the student was missing. Me being the elementary student that I was I never really understood the concept of how a person could go missing. But, then I connected it to the stories my grandmother used to watch. That those shows weren't some false nightmare, it could be anyone's reality. By the time I made it to middle school, I understood that Saint Louis, Missouri was a city full of crime and was considered a lost cause to so many people. One day, when I got out of school, I went to my GG's house, on a regular day I would go down the street to see my best friend, but this time was different. When I knocked on his door he never answered. Days passed and the neighborhood that GG's house was in went silent, I didn't know why until my best friend finally came outside. "My friend is gone, he got shot the other day when we were playing." That same day I was supposed to be outside playing with them, ironically I got in trouble the night before, meaning I couldn't go outside to play that specific day. I would've never thought that crime was so close to me that it made me worry about my every move, because nobody knew who did it and it wasn't intended for him to catch that bullet. With the close proximity of crime and the engagement that I had with crime shows, I've decided that I want to become a homicide and missing persons detective. Now that I'm in my senior year of high school I believe that I must take certain steps to be ahead of my goals and get the career I want, a career that I believe I can use to help make change in communities that are underfunded and underrepresented. My dream is to not just talk about the change I want to create but also put it into action by helping people who can't receive it. Going to North Carolina Central University to earn my criminal justice degree will advance my knowledge of the system while teaching me how to move around people from different environments. However, I still do the best I can to stay engaged within my community by volunteering and staying active with school activities. Some of the things I have accomplished may seem small now, but they are helping me push forward my dream.

For as long as I can remember, I was always fascinated by the work, determination, and skill of detectives and forensic scientists. Since I was a kid I remember always getting out of school, walking into my Granny’s motel room at her job and she would always tell me to turn on her TV shows like First 48, Criminal Minds, and shows that solved cold case files and real life crimes. At first, I would always ask her if we could turn on Nickelodeon or Disney Channel, but she would always say maybe later. Eventually, I stopped asking for the channel to be changed and started to engage in the shows she was watching, ironically to my surprise I started to become interested in them, probably more than she was. I was so engaged in the shows that I started to remember the cases' names, what they were known for, and/or how they impacted communities and America. I continued watching those shows on my own until this day, without realizing it my grandmother had given me a new interest unlocking something inside of me and making me want to do the same thing I saw on the TV. From those small moments of engaging in the stories on the TV, I knew what I wanted to be in life: A homicide and missing person detective. However, growing up Black in America and also in Saint Louis, Missouri I saw that the relationship between minorities and law enforcement isn't the best. But, I also noticed that the law enforcement field lacked minorities in general which is one of the big reasons why the relationship between law enforcement and minorities is so estranged. They have no way of understanding another person's point of view because they don’t have anyone to relate to them on that level: ethnic and background-wise. Growing up in Saint Louis, I understood that my neighborhood needed more help, however, we never had the support and resources to build and uplift the community. People were too scared to reach out to law enforcement and those same communities were underfunded. I always saw this as a big problem as to why the world couldn’t have humanity evolve. Seeing and witnessing these issues first hand in that environment genuinely helped influence me into wanting to go into my career choice even more. I plan to attend an HBCU, specifically North Carolina Central University, and receive my degree in criminal justice and minor in psychology. While in college I also plan on going into the Police Academy. With being in the Police Academy and receiving my degree I will be able to be well rounded in not just the field, but in the books of the system as well. When I get into my career I wish to help shed light on other people who look like me that it is possible to achieve your goals and stick to what you want to do. I want to become the help that my city wasn’t able to receive when I was younger for the newer generations that come along.

"I am not back, I am better" These great words were spoken by Sha'Carri Richardson, one of the top female track athletes in our time as of right now. I remember when in 2020 the world not only had to go through several changes because of COVID-19, but I also remember the major controversy that sparked among the athletes during the Olympics in Tokyo. Sha'Carri Richardson had failed her drug test and tested positive for THC due to her smoking marijuana. Her failing her test resulted in her not being able to participate in the rest of the Olympics. However, it sparked conversations on social media that they insisted that they had let other athletes like Michael Phelps get by with much worse. After not being able to participate in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, Sha'Carri Richardson came back into the season with a rocky start. She started not placing as high as she normally would and then again people and the media started to have an impact on her in a negative way. She took a break from social media like as if she went off the face of the Earth and during this time she trained hard. But, then when the season before the 2024 Paris Olympics started she was winning race after race and even then breaking records as time went on. When she got to the Olympics in 2024 it felt like a new person. She came back ten times better than what she was before. Seeing her improvement and the steps she took to become not only a better athlete but also a person made me proud to cheer for Team USA when each event began. Sha'Carri was the main reason I was inspired to watch the Olympics with such attention and passion because of the impact she made on several track athletes, including myself. Participating in track myself made me understand that the pressures that she went through were a lot to bare, but she was not only to overcome them but make a bigger name for herself. When people hear about Sha'Carri Richardson now they rarely hear about the negative because of the amount of positive impact she has brought to track itself. Watching the track events during the Olympics was one of the most exciting times during the Olympics.

"The next Sherlock Holmes." My goal is to become a Homicide and missing person detective. For as long as I can remember, I have been fascinated by the work and skills of detectives and forensic scientists. I believe I developed this fascination because my Great-Grandmother had me watch her crime shows with her. While these shows were broadcast for entertainment, I knew from a young age that these stories happened in real life. Growing up I always knew that I wanted to become a detective because that was a job no one else seemed to want to do. I watched as everyone around me complained about people calling them, “monsters”, however, no one wanted to put in the work to try and catch them. A part of me just understood that someone had to be willing to take the job and I was willing to be that someone. I am willing to make that change. I also understood that people who looked like me: young, teenage girls, and African-Americans, were always less likely to be found or their cases always seemed to be pushed to the side because of the way the system is set up. This always inspired me that if more people got into the positions and actually cared and came up with more solutions then the world around us would possibly become a better place, one job at a time. Sadly, growing up in Saint Louis, Missouri, and knowing that it is always considered one of the most dangerous cities in America means that as an African-American female wanting to go into law enforcement, I automatically get a bad “rep” before I even start. People would call me names or say that I am being fed just to prove the point of me being one of few anomalies within the city or better yet the country. As I grew older I understood that the majority of the people I call my family and friends soon started to look at me differently solely, because I wanted to go into a job that has a bad name against people in the community. I started to get treated differently all because I want to make a difference in a way no one else is willing to do. Trying to get to my goal of receiving my criminal justice degree to become a homicide and missing person detective has been everything but easy. I started doing dual enrollment junior year of high school and continued it along with doing sports and participating in other college readiness programs. I started to miss out on events with friends, family, and people I cared about all because I felt the need to get ahead to get more done in a good amount of time. In my high school experience, I made it to my senior year, and though I have made it ahead and pushed myself forward to my goals, I felt like I was very socially out of touch with people. I didn’t go out and I always rejected invitations because I felt the need to do work and get things done. However, me feeling socially out of touch makes me want to go to college to possibly get a chance to start off where I am more comfortable to do so because of the fact I am more ahead and set than I was my freshman year. I don’t have to worry about being academically behind. I understand that me going to college is not to just benefit myself, but also the people around me.

Have you ever been just judged by people before they even knew who you were or even what your name was? The feeling of just knowing the people in the room do not want to see you for who you are because in their mind they already made their mind up on who you were to them. It makes it hard to want to be around people like that because of how judgemental they are of you before you even step into the room. I have many stories, but one that bothers me is one about me and how one teacher tried to belittle and disregard my intelligence and my academic knowledge. My name is Kamiyah Delaney-Enuare and I attend Normandy Senior High School in Saint Louis, Missouri as a senior. I spent 3 years at Normandy and before Normandy another school that was in a rough neighborhood. When I got to Normandy it was already a talked about school, and not in a positive way. But, I never let my environment dictate who I am as a person. While attending I stayed on top of my grades, did dual enrollment courses, and even became involved with the school. But, no matter how much of a wonderful student I was on paper, while in person some people thought otherwise. There were times I would walk into a new school year and hear teachers say to me, "I didn't know you were Kamiyah, you don't seem like your Kamiyah." or "You sure you didn't cheat to get the GPA you have." Even though to some people those comments wouldn't have bothered them as much, for me it always lingered and angered me in the slightest way. What could they possibly mean that I don't seem to fit my own accolades? What could they possibly mean I didn't fit my own hard work? Throughout each school year, I encountered a teacher like that, where there were classes that required a specific GPA, and the teacher would tell me to walk out before even asking, who I was or what was my academic record. My academics were always judged before I even got the chance to speak. I understood why though I never looked like the typical smart kid and I didn't do the stereotypical smart kid things, like go to class on time or interact during the class participation questions because I learned the class was reliant on me answering for them. I started to understand the reasoning behind the judgment, but it never meant that it didn't make me feel some type of way. My only solution to this problem was to show them who I was and why I worked 10x harder to be in the room they were in. No matter how many comments and faces teachers threw at me, I always decided to give them A+ type of reports and assignments. I stayed true to myself as well. I wasn't going to change who I was just to fit the normal standard of what they were used to just so they could see me for me. The judgment made me understand that not everyone is open-minded and accepting of the abnormal. This made me want to continue being myself and achieving so then people who don't fit the normal stereotype know that it is ok. Knowing that it's hard to walk in rooms and be judged without someone taking the time to know you can feel like a lot, but all you can do is prove them wrong by staying yourself and still achieving your goals.

To be a first-generation college student is a lot of pressure and weight for one person to carry. But, pressure can either make diamonds or break pipes, and I chose to become a diamond. My name is Kamiyah Delaney and I am a first generation student. I attend one of the lowest-ranking schools in my state, a school called Normandy Senior High School, in Saint Louis, Missouri. Attending this high school has changed my perspective on a lot of things, both good and bad. But, going to my high school inspires me to want to go to college even more for not just myself, but the people around me as well. Growing up I saw a lot of people waste their potential by not going to college because of several reasons. Some people chose to hold themselves back, while some had no choice, but to pursue life without going to college. I heard a majority of my life that college is a ‘scam’ or ‘it’s not the end all be all’. Instead of believing them without knowing how it would go, I have decided to go to college and experience it myself. I understand that everybody’s experience is different, but I should not go based on their experience until I have experienced it myself. I want to attend a college that is out of my hometown and state, preferably an HBCU for the cultural aspect of it. I understand that being a first-generation student in my family is not easy. One major encounter that I will face will be finances. With me trying to go to college out of my hometown, the out-of-state tuition is higher than it would be in-state. A lot of people ask me why would I go out of state when I could stay in Missouri. I believe that going out of state would help expose me to more things than have seen before in my city. I plan to go into the law enforcement field and I would like to experience different cultures, people, and environments so I can be well-rounded when it comes to de-escalation and human interactions. I wish to major in criminal justice and want to pursue further education because it would not be only beneficial for me, but also for the people around me. If people from my community see the outcome of me going to college they might get inspired to go to college as well or even get people who never thought college was a possibility to want to go. Furthering my education in criminal justice would make me very well-rounded in my career. With my degree, I will become a homicide and missing person detective and later on in my career, hopefully, be a part of the behavioral analysis unit. When I join my field I hope to bring more diversity to the career and inspire more people that look like me and come from the same background as me that anything is possible. Before I go off on my college journey, I am taking steps that a lot of other people around me aren’t willing to take. During my junior and senior years of high school, I attended Harris-Stowe State University for dual enrollment courses to obtain college credits early. I also took AP classes and Dual Credit classes to help me receive more college credits so my freshman year of college could be smoother than most. Even in my spare time, I use it to learn more about how college can be used as a benefit and resource for me in the future.

Receiving the Anthony B. Davis Scholarship will help support me in my freshman year of college. My name is Kamiyah Delaney and I attend Normandy Senior High in Saint Louis, Missouri. One goal that I have is to go to college out of the state, and out-of-state tuition is normally more expensive than in-state. I believe that going out of state will make me more courageous, open-minded, and self–sufficient. With the help of the Anthony B. Davis Scholarship, will assist me in achieving my goal of getting my criminal justice degree by reducing the financial stress that college can bring. While growing up, I was always fascinated with the work of detectives and trying to solve problems that other people could not solve on their own. I believe I enjoy it so much because my great-grandmother introduced shows like Cold Case Files, Criminal Minds, and The First 48, to me when I was young. It would be days I would get out of school and head to her bedroom and the shows were already on waiting for me to watch. Watching those crime shows became a daily routine for me, and I still participate in it to this day. But, it was one specific case that stuck with me to the point it never really made sense as to why. Though I don’t remember the case’s name, it struck my interest in growing up and becoming a homicide and missing person detective, it inspired me to want to help more people and families that couldn’t always receive help. With this interest, I decided I would like to go to college to get my degree in criminal justice. With my degree, I would then pursue my career in becoming a homicide and missing person detective. Having my degree in Criminal Justice will be able to push me further in the career that I chose to do. Even though my career choice does not require me to have a degree, I still wish to receive one because I want to enhance my knowledge of the justice system. A lot of people tend to not know much about the justice system except what’s shown on the surface. I know that if I know more than just what’s on the surface I would be able to do more and help more people. I want to become the change that people want and need, not someone that they fear would just turn their back on them. With the help of the Anthony B Davis Scholarship, would help me become more financially stable during my college journey my freshman year. College would be able to help me expand my horizons and teach me the lessons I need to learn to become more diverse in not only my community but worldwide as well.

Do you know what benefits and resources you can gain from going to college? The experiences, the memories, the knowledge, and even the networking. For me, going to college would benefit not just me, but the people around me as well. Growing up in the Urban area of Saint Louis, Missouri, I realized that a lot of people around me didn’t go to college; Some because of several reasons like money, lack of motivation, and even the lack of support. Witnessing so many people with so much talent and intelligence miss out on expanding or enhancing their careers, solely because they didn’t have the tools, resources, or knowledge on things like financial aid or scholarships, inspired me to not go down the same path. Going to college would help me show that it is possible to go to college no matter where you come from. I attend Normandy Senior High School, in Saint Louis, Missouri, one of the lowest-ranked high schools in not only the city but the state of Missouri. With that being said when I walk into a room, people tend to undermine my intelligence and my abilities solely because of the school I attend. But, what they don’t know is I take dual enrollment classes at Harris-Stowe, I have a 3.72 GPA, and I’m class president, all while partaking in extracurricular activities. While some people might expect less, they tend to act surprised when I bring out my portfolio and resume. The amount of times I have heard “be realistic” with myself or why would you want to go to college bothers me. So, with the amount of doubt surrounding me, I made it one of my missions to go to college no matter what gets in the way. Receiving my degree in criminal justice will not just be a milestone for me, but for the little kids who look up to me as a role model. Since I lacked role models who didn’t go to college and became wasted potential, I refuse to be like them for the people who look up to me. With that being said hopefully the people who lost hope can also be inspired by my accomplishments and try their best to do the same because you can only be a product of your environment if you let yourself become that. It's never really too late to start achieving your dreams. The amount of education, knowledge, and resources I can pass down to future generations will eventually hold more weight than me deciding to not go to college, especially if I can go because I have the GPA to do so. So, do I believe going to college is important? Yes, because of the amount of things I can pass down, learn, and even inspire the people around me. College is more than just going to class and thinking about myself in the future. It's also a matter of showing people that you too can go to college no matter what environment or circumstances you come from.