Help Savannah Martinez attend MSU

Hello my name is Savannah Martinez and I am the first generation from a Caribbean LatinX and Central American family of immigrants to even step foot in college. I have always had to work twice as hard due to me having an IEP, and I couldn't let that get in the way of making my family proud of me. I have had to prove to them and myself that the sacrifices made for me have been worth it. The journey of life hasn't always treated me fairly. I was born and raised in Newark, New Jersey and my biological father had a substance use disorder to drugs and alcohol, this brought an immense level of mental trauma to me. I fell a victim of abuse while in the care of my biological father as a child due to his substance use disorder he was unable to protect me. I have also witnessed the women in my family barely survive generations of abuse.

My mother strived and encouraged me to be the change and break all of the generational curses passed down so that I may be an example of an overcomer. I have always pushed and fought to get the best grades, I even took AP classes and tutored many of my classmates in my free time. Over achieving what was expected from an IEP student. Sadly my Junior year, I was severely bullied , it took a toll on me and derailed my progress. It drained me emotionally and mentally depleted me, on top of the childhood trauma I was working through. I was overloaded and experienced an emotional and mental crisis. During this period of crisis my GPA went from a 3.7 to a 3.0. With the support of my Bet HaSHEM YHWH family, I received the mental help I needed and worked on getting back on track. I strived to get my GPA up, ending my senior with a 3.3.

When the time came to apply to college, I immediately applied for Montclair State University. I knew that was the school I wanted to go to from the moment I went on the campus tour with my mother and step-father. Being on the campus and learning all it had to offer I was overjoyed. It felt like this was where I belonged and knew I would thrive here. Montclair State University was one of the few places that gave me the opportunity to follow my dream to be an artist that changes the world, with their phenomenal fine art program. Sadly after filling out my FAFSA I came to the unfortunate realization that I wasn't getting any help financially for school. I wasn't awarded any federal grants. I applied to so many scholarships and grants, even loans and still haven't received anything. I checked everyday with the hope that something would change, praying that the number of 10,484 dollars would go down but no luck. I sadly don't have enough money to do monthly payments. My parents just had a baby and my baby brother was conceived through IVF which changed our financial state drastically. I have always wanted to go to college and financially my family is not able to pay for me to go. But I still believe and have the faith that I will go to my dream college and be able to start on time for this fall semester.

I am utterly grateful for your contributions. Thank you for believing and helping my dream of going to college come to pass.

-Savannah Martinez a future Montclair State University graduate.