Discuss a teacher or mentor who has had a significant impact on your educational journey. by Salem

Discuss a teacher or mentor who has had a significant impact on your educational journey. by Salem - January 2025 Scholarship Essay

I migrated from where I called home Ethiopia to America when I was fifteen for a better education and life. Home for me was not the materialistic thing or the place, home for me was the family, friends, school teacher, and school friends. When I moved here my family's priority was registering me for school. A fifteen-year-old girl only had an option to go to school, without knowledge of any English. Because in my country neither we speak nor listen to English. The first day of school was a nightmare that I remember still after I graduated. Everything was new to me the buildings, students, teachers, even the notebook and pencils. I struggled to communicate with the teacher and students. I could not understand when the teacher taught and gave instructions on how to complete homework. With all of my problems and confusion stage of my life, there was an English teacher who could not resist helping her student out of drowning. She offered to help me out over my lunch break to teach me the basics so I could understand the teacher when they told me what to do and for me to speak up if I needed help or anything. I was able to learn quickly and manage to pass my classes. I had to take English classes more than a regular student should take, because English is not my first language, and had a hard time understanding it. Ms. Thomson encouraged me to buy books, so I can be better at reading, to watch movies and news so my speaking skills improve, and to communicate with the students and siblings, so my speaking skills get better. I wanted to change so I gave a try everything she told me to do and I recognize myself changing day by day. I was confident in my junior year of high school to be able to join clubs and student activities and run student officers. I was able to win the election to run as an officer for the National Honor Society organization and representative for the class of 2024 in our high school. I was able to graduate with a 4.0 GPA and have been accepted by more than 10 universities. I achieved all these because of Ms. Thomson's help from the beginning of my journey.