by Alex

by Alex - December 2024 Scholarship Essay

My toughest academic challenge was English as a secondary language in 2022. Coming from a Spanish speaking country it can be difficult to get used to a new language. Although I had already learned some common words. It was still difficult for me. Adding to that, my family was facing financial difficulties during that time due to the recent 2020-21 COVID pandemic, and I had to take care of my sick gramma. This made me be late to first period in high school most of the time and I was struggling with school work. I was failing most of my classes and my family was going through a tough time because my gramma had, sadly, passed away. This discouraged me from going to school for a few weeks. I was depressed and my grades were dropping real bad. Luckily I had the help of some of my teachers and friends, they helped me see the light and I was determined to finish high school. I started going to school more regularly and I decided to put more effort into my classes. I saw an improvement. Although it was a bit late, as the school year as coming to an end. I still had to take summer school, but I took it as an opportunity to grown, not only academically but also spiritually. This experience has taught me that everything can change in a blink of an eye, and that is up to us to whether accept the change or surrender to it. I never gave up, I still finished high school, with honors. I think that’s proof of resilience and determination.