Liberia Personal Statement

I’ve done several plays including “Beverly Hillbillies”, “Get Smart”, “My Man Godfrey”, and “May The Farce Be With You”. I’ve also done a few musicals including “Urinetown”, “AIDA”, and “Shrek”. I’ve also worked behind the scenes as the Dramaturg and set crew whilst helping out with some middle school productions. I’ve been in choir for 4 years lead by my inspiration and hero, Tim VanEperen. When I first joined, I had major confidence issues with my singing, but he worked very hard with me to get over them. I’ve sung Alto 1 & 2 and currently Soprano 2. I hope to continue doing what I love in the community. I participated in Forensics for two years doing Solo-Acting Serious, Solo-Acting Humorous, and Play Acting. I’m also very passionate about the environment which is why I’m in Earth Club! We are a bunch of tree huggers who strive to teach the importance of recycling and doing everything we can to conserve energy, water, and help stop

Being in choir provided me with an outlet for self-expression. By singing choral arrangements, I was able to become comfortable within myself. My increased level of self-confidence was achieved by performing and participating in concerts; I believe the abreaction of my stage fright was able to transition over to my everyday life and overall help my self-confidence go up. I am still quite unsure of myself, but I

From Starting off with zero confidence and feeling like I didn’t belong, I have come a long way, most of that I owe to music. Choir is who I am, of the students here at PHS I fall under the category of “choir kid”, I am proud to wear that label. Along my way through choir, I have developed a love for fitness through choir. Some of the friends I have made through the years have been bodybuilders, they taught me to not care what others think of me, and if I did have a problem with what they thought, to prove them wrong, to show them that you can become. Music has made me into this person I want to be. I have found a true passion in music, choir has made me be into person I am. Its

Throughout my life, I have been taken by music. However, it was not until my 8th grade year in middle school that I realized that I could be a musician for the rest of my life. Before that, music just seemed like something to keep me out of trouble. I wasn’t the best player at that time, and I still knew very little about it all. How could something like that ever support someone? Still, it was the only talent that I could find any success in, and it was still very enjoyable, so I wanted to still give it a shot.

Trying to find balance between those two, maintaining my ability to perform and lead others, and effectively getting things done was one of the hardest things I’ve ever done in life. Having the pressure put on myself daily gave me insight into the future. Through the small productive task the band was taking daily I could see problem spots or potential unproductive actions quickly and maintain progress. At home, when practice was over, I would research, study, and read all about leadership skills as well as personal relations. I learned from many of peers that a leader even with great skill will accomplish nothing if they don’t learn to respect, inspire, and influence those around them. Having the built reference experiences and seeing many different approaches of leadership I cherished every single principal I was able to learn. In the end, I did not become the perfect leader or the leader with the most talent, but I was able to empower my peers to push through the pain of the season and influence them to stick to the repetition need to build a great skill. The band finished third place overall becoming bronze medalist in Class 5A but won first place in the music category. This is the best the band has ever been and the highest place the band has finished in. My hopes and dreams for the members in band after this year is to continue to grow and perform to the best of their ability. I valued everything I was able to take

I came to realize that playing music can bring someone great fortune. I had no plans for the future, no goals, nor dreams before I starting my path in music. I never wondered without direction. But one day, good fortune came to me. A fortune I would have never of thought of. It was The Gracias choir and music. I was thinking to myself “I have never been so happy nor have I had so much enjoyment to live. To have an open mind to people around the world by delivering my heart threw my music. It looks like a dream!"

I never sang too loud so if I messed up, no one would hear it .After every class I would go up to my Choir or band director with about five questions. But it simply was not enough. So my sophomore year I was given vocal lessons that taught me that I can match pitch consistently , and that my range was bigger than I ever thought it could be. I discovered a talent that I loved and I intended to perfect it .I performed in multiple cabarets and had the opportunity to sing with my choir at the Carnegie music hall. I was finally getting the swing of music; but that was not enough due to my obstinacy. I wanted to learn

When my high school years rolled around, I made a few Liberian friends. By my sophomore year, I was not ashamed to be seen with them. Slowly, I started saying I’m Liberian when people asked me my ethnicity. No more of, “My dad is black, and my mom is Liberian.” I started telling people that my favorite food was rice with stew and pepper chicken. To a young mind, it was quite liberating, but it was not full-fledged by any means. I still hung on to my Black associations. I would still hang around my Black friends, most of the time. Even though I was making progress with accepting my heritage, I was still attached to the Black community. I mean, I grew up in North Minneapolis; the Black epicenter in Minnesota. Growing up in the rougher neighborhood

My number one goal in all aspects of my life is to cultivate, preserve, and further the field of music through music education. It is a strong belief of mine that education is about innovation, not re-invention. In the future I hope to find ways to make music relevant to all students; to find ways to connect the classroom a student's everyday academic and personal life. Another aspiration of mine is to teach music abroad. This is something that I suspect

Liberia was the second free black republic but was established by white Americans based on racism.

From around 1800, people opposed slavery in the united states. Some abolitionists and slaveholders discussed the idea of setting up a colony in Africa as a place to relocate freed African-American slaves. They also tried to recruit colonists from among populations of free blacks and free people of color. Most opposed relocation, as they had been born and had claims to the United States.The first ship, Mayflower of Liberia, departed New York on February 6, 1820, for West Africa carrying 86 settlers. Between 1821 and 1838, the American Colonization Society developed the first settlement, which would be known as Liberia. On July 26, 1847, it declared its independence.in 1816, the future of Kru Country took a turn due to an event that took place

Over the course of my life, I have had many opportunities to overcome and learn from various obstacles. I have learned how to not only identify problems, but encounter the solutions. This greatly benefited me during my time serving as a zone leader in the Cuernavaca Mexico mission. Because of this experience, I am confident speaking in public and teaching large groups of my peers. I am organized and have a grand testimony of the power of planning daily and weekly. Before my time in the mission, I dedicated much to the arts of singing and acting. I have worked hard to develop a talent, and through that talent, I have had the privelege of performing in eleven stage shows, musicals, and benefit concerts, as well as traveling with a jazz acapella

I think it is so interesting how the history of Liberia is involved with America. I had no idea that the American Colonization Society sent freed slaves back to Africa. I cannot fathom what it must have felt like to be taken as a slave to a country and then return as a free person, but still have your country’s flag resemble the country that enslaved you. The culture of Liberia seams very deep with the clothes they wear and foods they eat.

Ever since my years in elementary school, I have had a love for music. This love developed in middle school where the notion of teaching music came to me. In high school, I knew the profession that was right for me was music education. After graduation, I began my journey to my calling by attending Shepherd University.

Becoming a music educator is not a brash career choice, but rather a fulfillment of the desire to insure the continuation of a love for music. While many claim to have a superficial appreciation for music, it is the educators who preserve and develop it. As a music educator, I would like to make my students feel secure in their abilities, create lifelong bonds with others dedicated and passionate about music, and contribute in the continuation and preservation of music.