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Wren Rust

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Bold Points

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Finalist

Bio

I am non-binary. I have Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome (POTS). I am an athlete. I am recovering from an eating disorder. I am a writer and artist, but I love math too. I am a friend, a sibling, a kid, a student, and sometimes a pain in the butt. I am resilient. I am also a bad ass. As young people, finding our identities is a huge part of our realities. We are constantly trying on new faces, shoving ourselves into boxes and then trying to break out of them, making mistakes, and learning. I am always learning. In college I want to study communications so that as an adult, I can write and create graphic content for young people who are going through the same things that I am today. I want to create resources for teens who are finding themselves and platforms for those without voices. We are young and we deserve all of the opportunities to explore ourselves and the world around us.

Education

Cab Calloway School of the Arts High School

High School
2021 - 2025

Miscellaneous

  • Desired degree level:

    Master's degree program

  • Majors of interest:

    • Communication, Journalism, and Related Programs, Other
    • Graphic Communications
    • Physical Sciences, Other
    • Rhetoric and Composition/Writing Studies
    • Educational/Instructional Media Design
  • Not planning to go to medical school
  • Career

    • Dream career field:

      graphic journalism

    • Dream career goals:

      Creative Director

    • Barn Yard Attendant

      Delaware Youth Conservations Corps
      2022 – 2022

    Sports

    crew

    Varsity
    2020 – Present4 years

    Awards

    • We competed at US Nationals

    Research

    • Environmental/Natural Resources Management and Policy

      Johns Hopkins University
      2021 – 2021

    Arts

    • Design
      2019 – Present
    • Visual Arts
      2017 – Present

    Public services

    • Volunteering

      Work Based Learning Programs — Helping with the upkeep of the public park services
      2022 – Present
    • Advocacy

      JCC Youth Activist Theater — Writer & Actor
      2021 – 2021

    Future Interests

    Advocacy

    Volunteering

    Entrepreneurship

    Devin Chase Vancil Art and Music Scholarship
    When I was twelve years old I was hospitalized for two months. I wasn't allowed to see my family accept during visiting hours. I wasn't allowed any devices. I couldn't go to school. I couldn't play the sports that I loved; I couldn't even walk around. I was so anxious that I could hardly talk. But there was one thing that I could do... create art. Art is the universal language. One doesn't have to speak or even know what they want to say to do it. It is a way for us to share ideas without ever opening our mouths. We can be bedridden, mute, even blind, and still participate in this extraordinary way of expression. For a person who is healthy, art is amazing. For a person who is sick (physically or mentally), art is life saving. When you are sick, it can feel like nothing is worth it. You might feel like a liability to your family or you might find yourself completely and utterly alone. You might spend all your money on medical bills. You might be working so hard to take care of your family, that you ignore you pain until it seems to late to fix it. When you are sick, everything seems pointless. But even with all of that awful, you can still make art. If you take away someone's paints, they will find a pencil. If you take their pencils, they will start collaging. If you take their glue away, they will fold beautiful origami creatures. You take their paper, and the will style their clothing in a new, artistic way. You take away their clothes, their homes, their everything, and they will still make a beautiful drawings with their figure and the dirt on the floor. I want to grow up, and share this universal language. I want to communicate visually, and teach others to communicate without speaking too. I want to be a graphic designer or illustrator of children's' books, so that I can spread information to those who need it. I want to make it so that every person, regardless of ability, race, class, body, sexuality, or gender knows that their voice can be loud through art, and no one can change their words or their opinions unless they want them too. Because that is what art is... it's a voice. And as long as you are brave enough to use it, no one can take it away.
    Bold Growth Mindset Scholarship
    When I was twelve years old my world was turned upside down. Not only was I diagnosed with anorexia nervosa, but I was thrown in a mental hospital, in a different state from my home, for two months. After leaving the hospital I was diagnosed with PTSD. These experiences changed my reality forever. I was no longer the happy little kid from a warm family, but a weirdo who would start crying at the mention of a doctor. My day time was haunted with memories and my night was full of nightmares. For most kids, this is the end... it doesn't get better. I refused to believe that. At age thirteen, I started a blog that talked about mental health. I provided not just relatable stories, but tips so that other people could recover. It was like a journal, that always ended on a positive note. As time went on, I, like my readers, began to take my advice. I always ended my real life thoughts with hope, just like I did in my blog posts. Writing for other people, and giving them hope, helped give me the strength I needed to always keep a growth mindset, and find the silver lining.