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Michelle Mariscal-Lona

625

Bold Points

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Finalist

Bio

Hiii there! My name is Michelle Mariscal-Lona and I am a Senior at Pinole Valley High School located in Pinole, CA. I am compassionate, ambitious, fearless, and determined. I am very engaged within my school community. I am part of the Latino Unidos club at my school. I have academic honors including being a member of the National Honor Society and Honor Roll. Outside of school, I enjoy spending my time either outdoors engaging with nature, volunteering in my local library, working with my family, or indoors listening to music and spending time with my loved ones.

Education

Pinole Valley High School

High School
2020 - 2024

Miscellaneous

  • Desired degree level:

    Doctoral degree program (PhD, MD, JD, etc.)

  • Majors of interest:

    • Public Health
    • Human Biology
    • Biological and Biomedical Sciences, Other
    • Research and Experimental Psychology
    • Psychology, General
  • Planning to go to medical school
  • Career

    • Dream career field:

      Hospital & Health Care

    • Dream career goals:

      Become a pediatrician

      Sports

      Track & Field

      Junior Varsity
      2013 – 20229 years

      Swimming

      Intramural
      2015 – Present9 years

      Soccer

      Junior Varsity
      2015 – 20227 years

      Research

      • Public Health

        Kaiser Permanente — intern
        2023 – 2023

      Future Interests

      Advocacy

      Volunteering

      Autumn Davis Memorial Scholarship
      Throughout my freshman year summer, there were many differences and issues in my parent's relationship that affected our entire family. I felt frustrated and sad that this was happening, especially because I would have to accept that our family wasn't the way it used to be; things would change. It was harder to spend time together as a family without having to constantly argue. It affected my relationship with my dad because I don't spend as much time with him as I wish I did and even when we do, I don’t always feel like he understands me. After experiencing my parent's separation I began my sophomore year in a new school. All these rapid changes took a toll on my mental health since I had to adjust to many new changes such as going back to reality after being in quarantine for almost 2 years, starting in a new school, adjusting to a new environment, and having to deal with my issues at home. During all of these changes, I felt upset with my dad as he would always find someone to blame for his actions rather than taking accountability. I felt very confused by his motivations and actions which broke our family apart. I decided I would learn more about Psychology to make more sense of what was going on. It wasn't until the summer of my junior year, that I had the opportunity to intern at Kaiser Permanente, out of more than 600 applicants, focusing on the mental health department and following Culturally Informed Transdiagnostic Treatments. For seven weeks I worked with therapists and mental health specialists, as well as patients who allowed me to listen to their personal and mental problems. Usually, when we interact with others, we venture to criticize or judge them without knowing what they are going through or what they are feeling. After all, no one ever chooses to have a mental illness. In this internship, I understood the importance of therapy and being able to express your feelings as well as being listened to and not judged by cultural or social prejudices. For example, in Hispanic culture, people fear being labeled as "crazy" when they express their feelings or mental concerns because they do not want to be seen as weak or mentally disabled. So they prefer to hide their feelings with self-denial, even if the consequences of this are destructive for themselves or their loved ones. This helped me further understand the problems my parents were experiencing, especially my dad's actions that led to their separation. I also finally came to terms with accepting their separation while not resenting my dad for what he did nor criticizing his decision not not seek professional help I came to an understanding of how diverse the process of accepting was. Through this discovery, I found there is a field for the research and evolution of understanding human behavior and the brain. I feel comforted that there is a field dedicated to human behavior in which I could grow to help others emotionally heal make better choices and offer myself insight. This experience is one of the reasons I aspire to become a children's psychologist. The process of coming to terms with understanding and accepting certain situations is the most important part of any injury whether it be physical or mental. I want to dedicate my life to guiding others through differentiating healing alternatives, as well as offering support to individuals who need a broader understanding of the psychosocial effects of human growth, development, and the environment as it pertains to their journey.