Personal Narrative: My Journey To The Honors Program

When I was younger, I had a difficult time making new friends because I never started conversations and never stood up with what I believed in. I was told to join clubs and be open to make new friends, but I always seen myself fading into the background. I was tired of being known as “the shy girl” so I decided to make a difference in my life. I built up enough confidence and took the initiative to join clubs and open myself to new opportunities. Although it was difficult at first, I found myself getting comfortable and wanting to make a positive change to the community by becoming a leader. This was the most significant experience of my life because I conquered my shyness. This is why the fours pillars that best define my pillars is leadership, service, confidence, and dedication.

Going into college, I would like to peruse many of my goals. I would like to start out getting my general studies in and then build up to become a Registered Nurse. After I accomplish becoming a Registered Nurse I would like to work on becoming a Nurse Practitioner. One reason I am striving to complete these goals is to be able to have a good future and hopefully a good job will come out of this. Neither of my parents went to college and I want to be able to accomplish that for myself.

My personal development has been molded by many people and things, yet the four pillars of National Honor Society have exceeded all other influences in their potency. Scholarship, service, leadership, and character— each pillar engenders its own unique form of impact upon me. Furthermore, the foundation of my future goals harmonizes seamlessly with the pillars; I shall strive toward success by applying them throughout my life.

I was walking down the hallway on my way to lunch when I saw people with a paper in their hand, curiously I walked up to my friend and said “what’s that?” my friend asked “NHS” I didn’t immediately panic, because I thought maybe I would get mines later on, as the day went on, heart became to explode with disappointed, erupting when the bell rang and i realized that it was official Malik wouldn't be a member of Nhs.

“What defines you as a person is not the life you were born into, but what you made of it” Shahid Kapoor said. This quote can mean many things, but to me, it means that the things that are given to you are not as important as the things you have to work for. The things I have had to work for over the last 17 years of my life have shaped the person I am today.

Due to my involvement in my school, I have a plethora of opportunities that affect my community. As a member of the National Honor Society, we stay involved in activities that benefit our chapter and Walkerton itself. For instance, we annually undergo a food drive at our school in order to supply food for the people in the community. Then we transport the food to the food pantry and once every month we take turns to distribute the food to the people who need it. This distribution we do for the community aids the people in need as most people receiving the food are unable to transport the food themselves. Alongside the food drives, I spend hours of volunteering for concessions, tutoring students after school, and aiding for the band teacher.

To society I seem to be very talkative on the other hand I can be intelligent. For example was in National Honor Society, had above average grades, I was very outgoing and did a lot of sports and clubs throughout the years. People would also agree that I always have been very clumsy. In general people would say I am not an overall serious person.

Although I have been faced with a number of obstacles that have changed me as a person

For many years my mother and I relocated as many as three times a year and we depended on government assistance to keep us afloat. Upon moving to North Carolina and gaining financial stability I made it a personal goal to serve others just like me. The truth about where I came from is an essential key to determine where I will go, and so I share my story with everyone.During my junior year of high school I was inducted into the National Honor Society. During the induction I lit the candle symbolizing leadership. Unbeknownst to me I was creating my destiny and months later I became the President of my school’s chapter. Being a teenager there are but so many things I can do and I struggled to understand the fact that I cannot do everything-- not yet. I sought inspiration to handle my cognitive dissonance from the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. who stated “If I cannot do great things, I will do small things in a great way.” As a future student, I dedicate every fiber of my being to embody Howard’s core values. I hope to serve as yet another representation of excellence and walk in the footsteps of many great leaders before me in the path to

My high school requires twenty-five service hours each year of high school in order to graduate, plus an additional fifteen to be involved in National Honor Society. While this may make all of the community services I have participated in sound like a mere school requirement, it is actually the complete opposite of that. Without those school requirements, I am not sure how involved I would be in my community. But due to them, I am always involved in some way.

Being in Rowan’s Thomas N. Bantivoglio Honors Concentration allows me the opportunity to enrich my experience at Rowan. Rowan’s Honors Concentration not only emphasizes excellence in academics, but an understanding and appreciation of cultures and the arts, student health, wellness, integrity, and curiosity, and community service and civic engagement. I am interested in joining Rowan’s Honors Concentration because of my desire to partake in community service and gain a deeper appreciation of cultures and art.

This year has been extremely hard for me personally and financially, so the funds would help lessen the stress that I’m experiencing. Recently, I transferred from Manhattanville College to Montclair State University. Initially, I started my educational journey at Manhattanville because of what I thought the school embodied and exhibited. I thought it was an institution that valued encouraging diversity in all social, cultural and academic settings. I thought the institution would support students who wish to continue their education in foreign languages. I thought the college would support the tenure faculty opinions and build settings where professors were inspired by their students. After two years at mville, the administration dismantled

A rain forest possesses a great deal of knowledge, awaiting someone hungry enough to act upon their desire to feast. A university acts much in this way, creating a diverse haven to learn and develop. However, there are many niches within a rain forest; many areas in which one can develop their knowledge of a particular subject matter. A college acts in this manner, establishing an environment in which one can refine their passions. Also within the rain forest exist areas in which distinct species can communicate, socialize, and live in harmony. In this way, an honors college supports student growth by showing students how knowledge in the field is discovered, developed, evaluated, compared, and applied. A course within my ideal honors college will celebrate the diversity of the students who participate in the class, support the interests of each student, and challenge the limits of the traditional classroom.

When I first signed up to join the honors program at the university I was fairly nervous. Growing up I was a timid person and my assumption was that I would not fit in a critical thinking course. When I arrived on first day of class I was floored by how excited I was for the class. Throughout the semester the class has become more and more enjoyable with few moments that I did not enjoy. I now have the ability to go home and successfully debate with my parents about some political or social matter (without becoming infuriated and leaving the room).

Looking out into the crowd, I saw my mother and grandmother with proud smiling faces and tears running down their cheeks. This was the moment they had been imagining, and the moment I had been pushing myself to attain over the last four years at Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU). As the announcer said my name on the hot summer day in June, I walked to the podium and accepted my diploma. I gave a giant smile to the audience and a nod towards my family, thanking them for their love and support, giving credit to those who had helped me along my journey to graduation. This was by far the most meaning moment of my life because of the struggles I endured, and the journey I had taken to achieve my success. I will never forget that moment and my personal quest to graduate college.