During my sophomore year of college, I watched Vik Muniz’s documentary, Waste Land. I will never forget how that film impacted me. He inspired me to use my creativity as something transformative to inspire others and, ultimately, to benefit their lives. I am hopeful that my work and who I am becoming will bring the best out in others and make them think beyond what they believe to be possible. I want to empower others to take the necessary strides to make positive changes in the world. 

Why I love my job:

I love my job because I have always promised myself I would work somewhere where I had the opportunity to make a larger impact in the world. I feel that 50CAN gives me the ability to use my creativity to impact the world in a positive light. What better way to make a difference than to fight for the ones that will write the future. 

My connection to public schools:

I attended public school from K-12 before attending a private university. During my time in the public school system, I was lucky enough to excel. However, others did not. I helped tutor children in junior high who did not receive a lesson because they were forced to sit in the hall for the duration of the class for bad behavior. They not only had no desire to be in school, but they were not receiving the care and assistance they needed in the classroom. When arriving at college, I felt that many of the other students had more opportunities in their K-12 years than I did when it came to earning college credit, taking diverse courses, and being given opportunities for travel. At the time, I did not realize what I was missing out on because I thought just having good grades was enough. 

What I’m bad at:

I am bad at putting myself before others. This can sometimes make me a bit of a pushover and cause me to neglect my own needs. While I am very good at building others up and ensuring that they are as happy and comfortable as possible, sometimes I do this at the expense of myself. I am working on being direct with myself and others about what I need and want. I am also focusing on taking hold of my life and doing the things that I love.

The image that represents why I work at 50CAN:

This image is one of me and my favorite person. My grandmother was that person in the family that holds everyone together. She was great at reading people, an amazing artist and had an answer for everything. She also had the biggest heart for others and was kind beyond comparison. I didn’t find out until after she passed that she constantly told everyone in my family that I was different than the rest of them and that I would do something really big with my life. She is the reason I push myself to be better than I was yesterday and the reason that I do anything, really. 50CAN puts me in a position to do something big and she helped me get here.