I want to pursue higher education to change my life and those around me in my community. My high school is an economically depressed area with about a 70% graduation rate. For as long as I have lived in my community, I knew that I wanted to be a changemaker. I pursue higher education so I can come back to teach students about their opportunities in life beyond a mill or factory job. Coming from a blue-collar family, I know those aren't horrible options, but kids that become college-educated are more likely to make more money, have better health, be happy, and so many more things that most people strive for. I would like to go and become a college professor and come back to my city and become a high school teacher after that. To get started with strengthening my community, I took this idea of wanting to educate large swaths of people utilizing my extracurriculars to do so. I participate in FIRST Tech Challenge Robotics and I served as the state president for Oregon FBLA (Future Business Leaders of America). Through robotics, I was able to take over forty-five students from my high school and travel to three elementary schools in our area and teach over 300 fifth graders about robotics, programming. I had them conduct their very own sumo wrestling competition. So many students in my area have limited access to technology, so by going into the classrooms with materials we already had from grant money, we could really light a fire for any of them and get them involved with projects. That same year, we grew the elementary students involved with after-school robotics programs from ten to two hundred and fifty in one year. While I was also involved with robotics outreach, I was also working on promoting funding for students who wanted to pursue a trade. As involved with Future Business Leaders of America at the state level, I was able to fight and lobby for over two million dollars from the Oregon State Legislature. Working with numerous state representatives and senators from across the state to advocate for the importance of CTE (Career and Technical Education) helped to secure the future for so many people that might not have college as an option for them. I am passionate about making sure that the people closest to me find things that they are passionate about. I come from a community where dreams die quickly, and I want to change that. My community needs someone that will inspire them and tell them that they can. If needs be, I will work to be that person. I am passionate about improvement, and I believe that with enough effort and dedication, Roseburg can change.