This is my fourth consecutive year attending Warren Wilson College (WWC). I have been a full time student every semester and have taken classes that both challenge my intellect and encourage healthy work habits. I expect to receive a Bachelor's of Science Degree in Environmental Studies with a concentration in Ecological Forestry by Spring of 2018. Forestry has been my passion for five years now, and every summer since 2014, I have worked in New Mexico alongside the Forest Service persuing my career. Someday, I hope to go to graduate school for entomology and plant pathology to further tailor my skills in environmental sciences. Warren Wilson College has been a perfect school for me because it matches my intensity, excitement and rigor in the field of forestry in addition to providing me with the hands on experience that will help me stand out in the job market once I graduate.  Warren Wilson College engineers a mindset that contrasts the "normal" universities’ student objectives. The uniqueness of the school is so dramatic and exciting it keeps drawing me back. This is a place where people want to make a difference in the modern world and they want to do it in unconventional ways. I have designed my academic curriculum so that I can do my part in maintaining a forest ecosystem while also understanding the ethics of philosophy as well as having taken additional courses that allow me to facilitate a conversation amongst a small group in order to reflect and understand decision-making.  These philosophy and interpersonal skills are important in being able to contribute to the larger conversation of forestry which is how humans interact with natural resources and how we can respectfully go about managing those resources.  That is the Warren Wilson College that I enjoy being a part of and work hard to re-enroll in each and every year.   However, my journey at Warren Wilson College has not been a smooth nor easy one. Issues involving family, health, and finances have factored in each year, making my success a constant uphill battle. But this has not nullified how amazing it is to be in college, learning about new ideas, questioning teachings, and overall being involved in a community.

It is important to take nothing for granted because so quickly conditions change. Everyday it feels like some bad news from home keeps tearing at me and forces me to decide whether being in school is worth the financial burden that my family bears.  Dropping out would be a waste of my potential and all the sacrifice I, and others, have put into my education. As a native American student of the Navajo (Dine') Nation, the odds have perpetually been against me. When it came to college, many believed it would not be possible to receive ample funds to attend a university in the first place let alone be able to complete my major in four years. In high school, my parents were struggling to make ends meet and put food on the table.  So, one day my mom sat me down and explained the only way I would be able to continue my education was if I received a full scholarship. When I received a letter from Warren Wilson College granting me a sponsored education, all of the world seemed to open up and embrace me with a loving hug. I had worked hard and stayed focused on my studies all throughout high school because what I value most in life is education. With the aid I received from WWC, I would now be able to continue building myself a better life.  However, on entering my junior year, right before classes were about to begin, my financial aid was drastically cut by half, whilst tuition and room and board increased. My family’s income remained the same. Now, looking ahead with only one year left of my undergraduate career, I have almost completed what was deemed impossible. My life is about to start in which I will enter a prestigious workforce with an honorable degree where I can contribute and give back to my community and the broader community at large.  But first, I have to be able to finish my degree, and the only thing between me and my goal is the ability to pay tuition for my last semester of college.

Any assistance towards my goal of $9,000, will help make it possible for me to continue attending and finishing at Warren Wilson College.  Without assistance, it won’t be possible to afford tuition to finish college at WWC.  I would have to transfer to another university where I would be required to take an extra year of college being forced to postpone my degree.  Throughout my adolescence, college has been a barely attainable aspiration.  Now,  my ability to complete college with a Bachelor of Science in Ecological Forestry is almost tangible.  Education has been central in my lifetime. It is the way to escape and feel equal to another.  Education allows one to understand another's point of view and aptly share his/her own opinion.  Most of all, education pushes children to go above and beyond what is laid out for them and provides a pathway to excel in their own niche in society.  I would like to believe, my ability to graduate, keep learning and push myself towards graduate school is not only a testament to how hard I have worked to get here but also a reflection of the opportunistic education system I was brought up in.