College tuition

I am first in a lot of things. I’m the first born of five children. The first to graduate high school and the first to attend college. A lot of people take pride in this sense of superiority, but I’ve found it a bit challenging given the fact that both of my parents have a 10th grade education. My situation, without a doubt, has molded me into a stronger student and person.
    I recently graduated from Sequoia High School with a 4.2 GPA and with a full International Baccalaureate diploma, which basically translates into a lot of freakin’ homework. The International Baccalaureate Program, also known as the IB Program, helps high school students like myself prepare for college. I took seven IB courses for two years, wrote a tedious research paper, participated in various community service projects, and questioned the meaning of life through my theory of knowledge class (high school was so much fun! #sarcasm). I was also president of the Black Student Union for two years and I co-founded Sequoia’s first slam poetry club. I tutored elementary students once a week for two years and coached the pop warner cheer team for three years. In the midst of all of this chaos, I maintained a part-time job at Pottery Barn in Palo Alto. My high school career and my role at home allowed me to know independence at a very young age.
    Long before and throughout high school, I’ve had an indescribable love for various forms of art. Books were my closet doors that lead to Narnia, and I had this weird fascination with film. At the prime age of seven I decided that I would be a published author living in New York City and explore every inch of the world. I could never really paint nor draw, but I loved going to the De Young, gazing at the primary colors that smothered the canvas,while I tried decoding the hidden message. Ever since I was a little girl I knew my living situation was different than that of my friends, and art allowed me to step outside of those four walls and live somewhere else for a bit. I want to do that for others. I want to provide people with a magic carpet that takes them anywhere they wish to go. Don’t get me wrong, I’m very proud of where I came from (as people should be), but people shouldn’t feel restricted to dream. That is why I have decided to major in film and media studies with a minor in screen play writing.
    I have been accepted to Manhattanville College in Purchase New York and want nothing more than to attend this fall. Manhattanville has blessed me with a generous scholarship of $50,000. Tuition is a whopping $54,000 leaving me with a $4,000 gap. I have exhausted my resources at Manhattanville College and both of my parents were unable to take out a parent loan/ serve as my cosigner for a student loan. I hate asking people for help, let alone asking for large sums of money, but people are unable to prosper without guidance. I’m not solely asking for your financial assistance, but for an opportunity to allow others the elation of riding a magic carpet.