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Send a Former Addict to Columbia University

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Hi, my name is Isaac, and I have just been accepted to the School of General Studies at Columbia University! I will be studying political science in hopes of attending graduate school at the School of International and Public Affairs. I am so excited and thoroughly terrified. I am sure the next three years will be some of the most difficult I have faced, but I know I can overcome the challenges that are sure to arise. I know this because I have faced much larger and much more dire challenges before.

Three years ago, my prospects were much more bleak. There was nothing on the horizon. I had dropped out of high school, and what had once been a weekend fondness for illicit substances grew into full-fledged drug addiction. I eventually couldn't stay sober for more than a few days and began getting in trouble with the law. Most terrifying in hindsight was my lack of hope and direction during that period. I had no dreams, no hope that either life or myself would get any better.

Thank goodness I was wrong! One night I found the willingness to try something different. (Enough hospital visits, community service hours, and broken relationships will do that to a person) I checked into an addiction treatment program. The years that have followed have been most miraculous, though not always easy. After graduating from treatment I moved into a sober living community in Tucson. When an addict is transitioning to sobriety, one of the first things they will find is that they have a new mass of free time and free space for thought. This was true for me. I promptly enrolled in the local community college and found that some of the ideas I had about my potential were wholly wrong. I found I could do well in school and I began to enjoy it, something I never did in high school. I began to dream of what I could do with my life and who I could help. This has become an invaluable part of my sobriety today.

When I applied to Columbia I did not think I would get in. "That would be too perfect of a story", I thought. Despite my hesitancy, I jumped through the hoops thinking it a waste of time. You can imagine my surprise when I got the email that began with "We are pleased to inform you..."! Then came the fear. Fear that I wouldn't measure up in such a rigorous institution. Fear there had been a mistake. Most of all fear of financial insecurity and thought of massive debt. Despite the fear and all the protestations of my best logic, I felt I should attend. The opportunity for good is too great to pass up. The question now is how?

I apologize for my long-winded backstory but now to the point. I have been lucky enough to receive some funding from the university which will cover most of my tuition and I am prepared to take out a loan for the rest. I will be working part-time as well to try and offset some of the interest that will accrue on my private loans. All of this is of course before factoring in the ridiculous cost of living in New York City. I have chosen this funding goal very carefully. It is the amount I expect to spend on rent for the three years I am at Columbia. No matter how this funding campaign goes, I am attending. I will find a way to make it work because if I can do it there is hope for all those struggling as I once did. I thank you from the bottom of my heart for your support.

Organizer

Isaac Zierenberg
Organizer
Tucson, AZ

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