Nearly three years ago, a failed run on a college campus led me to discover a lifelong hobby. I was training for a half marathon and had committed myself to a run around the Louisiana State University campus, but the cold, humid air proved too much for my lungs to handle. I remember the feeling of disappointment I felt as I brought my hands to my knees in exhaustion. However, as I slowed to a stop, I became aware of my surroundings. The quiet lakefront trail I had run through just minutes ago had transformed into something much more exciting. Young students were running around, dancing, debating, and yelling at each other. In this chaotic and wonderful environment, something caught my eye—two students playing chess. I joined the small crowd that had formed around the game and watched attentively. The two players were completely focused on the position of their chess men. Their hands moved incredibly fast and beautifully. The reason for their haste became evident when I noticed the chess clock they hit between each move. Every time one of the players hit the clock, the timer paused, and his opponent started moving. Both players had under a minute left. Pieces flew across the board, and the competitors traded knights, rooks, pawns, and insults. The piece shuffling ended with one word: “Checkmate!” A spectator took the place of the losing player, and a chess match resumed. I watched people play chess for probably an hour. When most of the crowd had cleared, I gathered the courage to sit down and challenge the undefeated player. I lost the game in a humbling ten moves, but I gained a new hobby. On the car ride home, I downloaded a chess app on my phone and battled the computer. I set a goal of playing a few games and watching a chess video on YouTube each day. Some months later, when I felt more confident in my chess ability, I moved on from playing the computer to playing people who were much stronger than me. My progress was arduous; there was no chess community in Monroe, the small town where I was living. I could not participate in tournaments or ask more experienced players to explain an advanced concept to me. While this made improving in chess difficult and somewhat frustrating, it helped me to develop perseverance and self-discipline. Finally, after a year of experience, I was able to participate in my first chess tournament ever in my current hometown of New Orleans. The games were very long, and I was playing against people with years of experience. I lost the first game of the tournament, which was discouraging, but I won every game after that. I ended up placing second in the whole tournament, and my chess career looked bright. Two years and countless chess games, books, and tournaments later, I am now the top-ranked high school player in the state of Louisiana. I was honored to represent my state in the Denker national tournament of high-school state champions. The difficulty I had learning chess inspired me to start my own chess coaching business. I currently coach kids ages 6 to 13, and I just added my first adult client. My experience coaching chess also led me to begin an academic tutoring business. It has been extremely gratifying teaching Latin, math, and science to students and watching their test scores improve from D’s and F’s to A’s and B’s. Tutoring and coaching have made me consider whether a career in education is my calling. I am very thankful that I discovered chess; it changed the way I approach problems and think. It has given me confidence, taught me discipline, and helped me develop entrepreneurial skills. More importantly, playing chess makes me feel alive; it is hard to imagine my life if I had not sat down to play that first game.

Academic Interest Nearly three years ago, a failed run on a college campus led me to discover a lifelong hobby. I was training for a half marathon and had committed myself to a run around the Louisiana State University campus, amid the oak trees and the Spanish moss, but the cold, humid air proved too much for my lungs to handle. I remember the feeling of disappointment I felt as I brought my hands to my knees in exhaustion. However, as I slowed to a stop, I became aware of my surroundings. The quiet lakefront trail I had run through just minutes ago had transformed into something much more exciting. Young students were running around, dancing, debating, and yelling at each other. In this chaotic and wonderful environment, something caught my eye—two students playing chess. I joined the small crowd that had formed around the game and watched attentively. The two players were completely focused on the position of their chess men. Their hands moved incredibly fast and beautifully. The reason for their haste became evident when I noticed the chess clock they hit between each move. Every time one of the players hit the clock, the timer paused, and his opponent started moving. Both players had under a minute left. Pieces flew across the board, and the competitors traded knights, rooks, pawns, and insults. The piece shuffling ended with one word: “Checkmate!” A spectator took the place of the losing player, and a chess match resumed. I watched people play chess for probably an hour. When most of the crowd had cleared, I gathered the courage to sit down and challenge the undefeated player. I lost the game in a humbling ten moves, but I gained a new hobby. On the car ride home, I downloaded a chess app on my phone and battled the computer. I set a goal of playing a few games and watching a chess video on YouTube each day. Some months later, when I felt more confident in my chess ability, I moved on from playing the computer to playing people who were much stronger than me. My progress was arduous; there was no chess community in Monroe, the small town where I was living. I could not participate in tournaments or ask more experienced players to explain an advanced concept to me. While this made improving in chess difficult and somewhat frustrating, it helped me to develop self-discipline. Finally, after a year of experience, I was able to participate in my first chess tournament ever in my current hometown of New Orleans. The games were very long, and I was playing against people with years of experience. I lost the first game of the tournament, which was discouraging, but I won every game after that. I ended up placing second in the whole tournament, and my chess career looked bright. Two years and countless chess games, books, and tournaments later, I am now the top-ranked high school player in the state of Louisiana. I was honored to represent my state in the Denker national tournament of high-school state champions. The difficulty I had learning chess inspired me to start my own chess coaching business. I currently coach kids ages 6 to 13, and I just added my first adult client. My experience coaching chess also led me to begin an academic tutoring business. It has been extremely gratifying teaching Latin, math, and science to students and watching their test scores improve from D’s and F’s to A’s and B’s. Tutoring and coaching has made me consider whether a career in education is my calling. I am very thankful that I discovered chess; it changed the way I approach problems and think. More importantly, playing chess makes me feel alive; it is hard to imagine my life if I did not sit down to play that first game.