Jozie Elizabeth Dilli's Cliques

Even though I’ve eaten lobster rolls, sported L.L. Bean jackets, and cruised lighthouse-studded coastlines, I am anything but a New-Englander. Though this has been by 4th year in Massachusetts, I still feel like I’m still the new kid on the block, the midwestern girl who’s naive to the traditions and expectations of New England. But, I am comfortable here, a result of many challenges I had to face over the time I spent in Massachusetts. These challenges did not arise when I first moved out—I was very unhappy the first and second year—it was during Sophomore year, when I started to adapt and be happy, did challenges from home spring forth on me. These challenges were from the people that I had left, family, friends, and others who felt that

Given my background, experiences, and personal identity, I will contribute diversity to Georgia College with my passion, strong determination, and my outgoing personality.

Moving to a new country, a new culture, and a new society after 18 years of living in my small hometown was really tricky, especially for a teenager who just got out of high school. Leaving my home and friends, changing my routine and letting go of the simple, insignificant daily things that I used to do over and over again is surprisingly heartbreaking. You see, I was born and raised in Jordan and have lived there for about 18 years before moving here to Chicago. When I first started college here at Moraine Valley, I was a bit scared that I might not be able to fit in with the students or get used to this new culture. I was not a complete ignorant of American culture since I watched a lot of American TV back home, so I did not really experience

Even after making the transition to Deer River High School in sixth grade, I continued to glide through school. My pattern of being underchallenged continued until I discovered College in the Schools classes this past fall. Finally, I was challenged (perhaps at times even more so than I imagined,) and I’ve grown exponentially in the past academic year. However, I feel as if that exponential growth is reaching its capacity in this specific environment. Becoming a part of the College of St. Scholastica’s academic environment would allow me to begin a new pattern of exponential growth both as a student and as a person.

I choose this prompt because it looked as it was the best of the prompts fitting to me. I myself come from several different backgrounds, I also carry a lot of different talents. People like those are very unique and are very productive in diverse community, and they turn to be very productive and effective individuals in their community. The past autumn I applied to the University of Washington, which is one of the high ranking schools in the nation, so I applied to all of their 3 branches, Seattle, Bothell and Tacoma, hoping with my different unique talents and personality I will be accepted and be offered admission to one of the 3 branches. Several months later I am here talking to you, that optimism I had has become a reality, I’ve got accepted into University of Washington Tacoma and I am still hoping I will also get accept into the Bothell branch as well. Being born in Seattle, growing up here and at the same coming from both an African and Arab background is pretty unique, on the other hand being a Muslim and a practicing religious Muslim, was also something fascinating, living in America in this time, where Islamphobia was at its peak. In addition to that, being an individual who is deeply involved in the community, specifically youth affairs at a young age of 17 was very productive I can say. Summing all those qualities and talents, I told myself this will help me achieve a lot of things in the future, being a personally diverse individuals who is both academically and spiritually active and built, and in addition to the a productive young individual for the community was indeed something unique and attractive to schools and jobs in the future.

In “Keeping Close To Home: Class and Education”, Bell Hooks argues that we have to not only maintain our ties to home but adapt to the new settings around us . In order to strive in one’s life, you must be able to interrupt daily life changes and maintain stability. (74). She explains that being an African American woman, coming from a Southern state, not really experiencing the things she did once she transitioned to Stanford University was a little frightening for her.(74). Hooks found many differences in the environment she now lived in. For example, the way the students interact with one another was strange to her. Where she comes from, children treated their parent with respect, but her white, middle-class roommate thought otherwise. She explained that “things were different” there and people “[thought] differently.”(76).

Leaving high school I was consistently in the majority: I co-captained my basketball team and was always welcome to play. In my Bronx experience overall, I often felt racist, close-minded, and self-centered because of the reactions that I was having internally with this new environment. And even more I felt ashamed for this. I quickly wanted to escape back to Ann Arbor to be back in the majority, but I didn’t want anybody to feel bad for me. I knew that what I was thinking was mostly wrong, but I also felt it was human. Large paradigm shifts in one’s life often come with large sentiments, both good and bad. Also, I felt that my experience in the Bronx became easier and easier as I integrated and adjusted. As the shock to my system eased my feelings eased, too. I eventually began to feel extremely connected to the Bronx, the differing cultures, and even my almost omnipresent

I’m involved in a group at the University of Minnesota called “ESA” that stands for Ethiopian student association, every year once a year we put on a show that displays the Ethiopian culture. I’m also involved in a summer camp as a mentor for young kids. The camp's philosophy is to teach young Ethiopian kids that were born in America about their culture and how important it is to embrace it. I believe this is one of the most important things that make me different my peers but moreover that my success in education isn’t an option but more of a mission for

I am a first generation college attendee at Hendrix College. I was born in New Orleans, Louisiana on April 28, 1998. I lived with my great-grandmother for seven years eating soul food like pig’s feet, rabbit, and other wild gain. Shortly after moving in with my mother, Hurricane Katrina hit landfall. Katrina completely uprooted her new life. At seven, I witnessed people without homes, clothes, and food. For a short period of time I was even one of them. This experience altered my perception about life; I am blessed to have a home, clothes, food and education. My high school years were the best years of my life. High school was a place where my unfiltered self was celebrated instead of criticized. In high school, I realized my passion was working

Growing up, my family was my community and my community was my family; and still is to this day. Throughout the years, they have taught me key principles of life and shaped me into the person I have become. From the good times to the bad, the community of Athens, Texas…These little things being events such as Friday night football games, church on Sunday morning, the annual Henderson County Livestock Show, Fiddlers Festival, and so much more. The traditions of my hometown have been around for centuries and I hope it remains that way for the years to come because that’s what makes Athens feel like home.

Through “The Village”, Wofford transcends its function as an educational institution by creating cohesive and vibrant communities where I can nurture personal growth through interactions with a diverse student body. Wofford College attracts me through its conscientious care for every student. As an international student, I would also have all the necessary resources to recreate and expand my cultural livelihood on campus through its many Religious and Spiritual Clubs, such as my favorite: The Association of Multicultural Students, which provides invaluable and unique services to students like me in making the transition to college and creating a safe, supportive place for us as we begin to “Lift as We Climb.”

Our lives aren’t granted to last us forever. We grow old and were all given a certain amount of time. We live in such a beautiful world, giving us so much to offer. For example; having mountains to climb, rivers to swim in, cities to explore but people don’t acknowledge the beauty of their surroundings. I don’t understand why society would settle in one spot when there so much to see. I want to travel the world and see the different cultures and environments this world has created. I got the chance to visit Utah this past summer and it made me realize that Utah might be the state where I want to continue school. It will be a drastic change in my life, but I have come to realize that change doesn’t always have to be necessarily bad, but for the better. I have watched my mom change her whole life around from working at a liquor store to now working for the city of Riverside. She has inspired me to go out and do what my heart desires. My mom continues encouraging me to pursue my dream job of being a fashion designer. There’s so many careers that interest me that I wish I could major all

I don't know how or why it became their go-to phrase), I didn't want to fit in with them in the slightest. As a result, I disassociated myself with my peers; causing me to speak less and less in my classes. Consequently, didn't hang out or go to the parties like my classmates did. For forever and a day, I had no friends. Lunch was spent eating with me and my shadow. Instead of assimilating into the erratic culture that Tulsa had to offer, I established my own path to freely walk along. With my thoughts and feeling as my campus, I was blessed with the capability of effectively discovering my likes, hobbies, and interests. That decision I made long ago, has transformed me into the person I am today. By straying from the normality of Tulsa, I was graciously given the opportunity to appreciate myself; in turn, successful finding my own

Writing the personal narrative and seeing my views on how I have impacted a few communities has encouraged me to reflect on how my parents have impacted how I interact within Macon’s community. Moving away from home and coming here has not had a significant impact on my life like I thought it would have. As a freshman and a sophomore, I was not as active as I would have liked to been in my college career. I did not really have a good understanding of why I was attending college, and being introverted made it difficult for me to settle in the new community that I was in. I preferred staying in my room and was not involved in the activities on campus or in the Macon community. This changed when I began to work as a tutor. I became more interactive

I was essentially living a dual life: I neither wanted to be left out and isolated at school, nor did I want to ignore my family and native culture. Because my parents were facing the same challenge, they could offer me no help. I had to solve this dilemma on my own. I overcame this obstacle by calling up, what I considered, my inner resources. My well-roundedness, versatility, and confidence were all vital in helping me become the person I am today. I have found a harmonious balance in which I can be both an American and