C H E E R L E A D I N G
I joined the JV cheer team in 2017 as a Sophomore. Even though I wasn't the Captain of the team, I still made an effort to bring cheers to the team and help us improve. Because of the hard work and dedication I put into the squad, the coaches awarded me with the title of MVP.
The following year, a lot more people were interesting in trying out for the team because of our improvement during the past year. My performance at tryouts in 2018 earned me a spot on the Varsity team. I also earned the title of Co-Captain of the team even though I was only a Junior. I continued to put work into the team, while also encouraging others to teach cheers. During my Senior year, I was chosen as part of a select group of cheerleaders on the Varsity team who didn't have to tryout again to be on the team. Because of this, I decided to be a helping hand for all the other prospective cheerleaders that were trying out. This year, we got a new coach who was a lot tougher, so I had to put in a lot more work to be a part of the Captain squad. I was extremely proud of myself when my name was called among the other two Co-Captains. The team put in more effort than ever this year, and I am so happy that I got to be a part of such an amazing group of young ladies. I will never forget the relationships I build and the leaderships skills I gained. |
B A N D
I remember the first time I decided I wanted to be in the band. It was in 8th grade during the OrlandoFest music festival. I was there with the choir, but we decided to support the band at their performance. The minute I heard them play, I knew that I needed to join the band. It was so interesting to me how all these instruments with such drastically different sounds could come together and make such beautiful and unified music. My mind was made up when we left the performance. I was going to join the band next school year.
During the four years I've been a part of the Senior Academy Band Ensemble, I was accepted into a music program at UGA called JanFest and have become the first chair clarinet player in the band. I am so proud of myself for my accomplishments in band because I was the newest member when I joined, but I didn't let that deter my growth and determination. |
D E B A T E
I've always enjoyed having discussions with people who had a different opinion than me. It gave me an opportunity to learn something new or see something from a different point of view that I never thought of before. The only challenge I faced in those conversations was speaking without making someone feel like I was being rude because I had a very direct tone of voice. Joining the debate team helped me tremendously with this.
When I became a part of the team during my Sophomore year at Drew, we learned about structuring your arguments and presenting them to the judge. I learned how to think and develop ideas quickly. I also had to learn how to speak a little more professionally, so that the judge wouldn't deduct points because they thought I was being rude. Eventually, I perfected it and won three out of the four rounds at my first tournament, which is very rare for you first time debating. At the end of my Junior year on the team, we won the state championships. I wouldn't have been able to contribute to that if I hadn't retained the skills my debate couch taught me. I will continue to use those skills as I move forward in life. |
"The only person you should try to be better than is the person you were yesterday"
— Tony Robbins
— Tony Robbins