This is a piece I wrote when I was applying for scholarships at the end of my time in high school. However, I have noticed that although these feelings were committed to paper almost four years ago, my goals for the future and the ambitions I expressed have not changed since I wrote this essay.

When I discovered music in fifth grade, I could not think of anything else I wanted to spend the rest of my life doing. However, in sixth grade I came to the devastating realization that, despite my grand ambitions, I would not become a famous singer or musician. Upon reaching this conclusion, I began thinking about what I loved to do. At that time I had just become a camp counselor at TRS, where I had gone to camp since I was six, and I realized that I loved working with children. I went home from work one day when I was twelve and told my parents I wanted to be a teacher. Regardless of my father's nagging to not choose a career so soon, I could never find anything attainable I wanted to be more than a teacher.

My goal for the future is inspire children to learn and take an interest in their own education. I intend to do this by becoming an elementary school teacher. I am anxious to start my endeavor and, with the help of my family and the University of Mary Washington, I have been given the opportunity to achieve a Master’s degree in five years. I plan to work hard and learn new ways of educating children that are both entertaining and efficient. I aspire to be like the teachers who inspired me to learn back when I was in elementary school. They encouraged a good work ethic and, while they were sometimes strict, they brought out the best work their students could produce. My elementary school teachers tried to personalize the learning experience. I aim to do the same in the future with my own students. My goal is to change the future of America and the world by providing the next generation of students with the education they need for success.

My success will be measured by the smiles on the children's faces, the amount of knowledge they acquired, and the number of students I was able to entice into enjoying their educational experience.