Graduate School Personal Statement

My decision to become an educator arises from origins akin to the spirit of the Latin root ‘educere’ meaning “to lead out.” Great teachers significantly evolved my consciousness and helped me make a footprint in this world, and I aim to perpetuate this altruistic legacy to upcoming secondary school youth. At the end of middle school, I wrote a poem “White” which was published in a national poetry anthology. This poem is a window into my younger mindset with which I entered high school: “I am a timid voice that whispers, barely heard in the distance. Symbolic of surrender, a flag dancing in the breeze. A fluffy feather of a dove peacefully gliding through the air. Blending in with the wall, my wisdom forms a blank stare. I am the porcelain skin of a newborn baby. A bright hopeful light at the end of a dark tunnel. Decorative foam on thrashing ocean waves. I say nothing yet I imply everything. I am white, powerfully silent.” White light exists as stored positive energy, hence it is powerfully silent. White light is the summation of all wavelengths but its color potential can only be revealed when it comes into interactive contact with the facilitating presence of a prism. I am most grateful to noteworthy teachers and professors who released the radiance of my academic potential; utilizing its energy has been an endless source of my productive joy. In elementary school, I retreated into the safe haven of my shower to both speak and spark creative ideas. I harbored there to avoid the sounds of familial discord that predicated my parent’s divorce due to my nuclear cardiologist father’s cocaine addiction. I tentatively approached high school Public Speaking, almost withdrawing after the initial extemporaneous exercise. The wise, encouraging teacher inspired me to put the brakes on my performance anxiety and challenged me to approach speaking exercises. Thus, I was successfully drawn beyond my self-envelope into more articulate liberation. I earned 100 in Public Speaking and

subsequently went on to join the Debate Team, where I was delighted to be elected Speech Captain! Senior year, I stepped up and volunteered to deliver the morning news over the loudspeaker. Singing also creates happiness for me, but once again in elementary school, the shower was my concert hall. In high school, the Music Theory teacher heard my voice, urged amplification, and invited me to join the high school opera. I carried the torch and sang the second soprano in Die Fledermaus and La Boheme due to the catalyst of this appreciated educator. My writing voice too lacked range and reach until my astute English teacher called me out on my deficient of self-expression. While my first English AP paper was technically and grammatically competent, Mr. Weinstein told me that it lacked the courage of my conviction. His initial criticism stung, but I knew Mr. Weinstein’s words came from a caring and constructive place. Consequently, I sat and pulled out my ‘writing guts’ and produced a poem with a fellow student that will soon be published in this magnificent teacher’s imminent book. The development of a writing partnership was like playing a two-hand piano duet, and the outcome was quite good. As Mr. Weinstein created a classroom culture of sharing talents and viewpoints, my self-consciousness melted. Reading and writing soon felt as vital to me as breathing rich, redolent air. As I could speak and write, my thinking sharpened, and my grades ascended with momentum. I scored 5’s in all English and History APs, and I became an AP Scholar with Distinction. My high school cumulative GPA of 94.3 on an unweighted scale helped attain my admission to Boston University’s School of Education. As a Presidential Scholar, an award given to five percent of freshmen applicants, I was ready to be a BU terrier. High school teachers

had help groom an initially self-doubting student into a college-ready candidate whose mascot would be a small dog known for its charmingly assertive style. At Boston University School of Education, I have achieved standing on the Dean’s List for five consecutive semesters. Junior year of college, despite a surplus of courses and a diagnosis of mononucleosis, I earned a 4.0 GPA. I entered school ready to participate, and freshman fall became Secretary of the History Educators Club: a dynamic forum for undergraduate students similarly passionate about history and social studies education. Sophomore year I became an Alpha Delta Pi sorority member and took on a leadership role as New Member Coordinator to orient incoming affiliates to this service-worthy national organization, Junior year summer I endeavored BU abroad study to Dublin Ireland, where I took classes while working in a college administration office. I adapted to functioning well in a new culture, and I ventured to explore other European cities to broaden my mindset. A highlight of my BU experience was being chosen from a pool of applicants to be a Dean’s Host at the School of Education. For admission, my transcript was evaluated by working alliances of SED faculty, staff, and alumni. As a Dean’s Host, I meet accepted SED students and educate them about the reasons why BU should be their chosen college home. My academic knowledge has also taken a practical application through my student teaching role at the Pierce School in Brookline, MA. As a senior, I student taught in a seventh-grade social studies classroom where I both designed and delivered lessons on Ancient Civilizations, as well as earned my official endorsement as a licensed educator in the state of Massachusetts. This learning by doing assignment reinforces my chosen calling to be an educator. In applying for a Masters of Education at Boston University, I step forward to becoming an academic mentor, joining a profession that has been so personally illuminating for me.

Education has lifted humanity out of the Dark Ages, and I want to carry the torch and follow the footsteps of teachers that hold a place in my personal memory Hall of Fame.