Rodney Harris Biography

Transitioning from middle school to high school now college. Hardships and victories I have experienced it all. I have gone from the shy student to one of the most involved and active student in my school.

My journey through undergrad was similar to a flight going through a lot of turbulence. I came in knowing what I had to do, make Good grades, shadow doctors, and volunteer/participate in community service. However, there were a lot of trials and tribulations. It was not until after my freshman year when I hit rock bottom academically that my whole world

Elementary was extremely entertaining. Every month my group will go to a field trip or throughout the week we will have activities outside in the playing field. I graduated elementary with many diplomas, and achievements even The President’s Education Awards

A lot has changed since freshman year. I moved to Oak Ridge, so my father and I could be with the family. I switched to Oak Ridge High School and struggled tremendously, but most importantly, I made friends that needed me. Although my trust issues are still very much a problem for me, I’ve learned to cope with them by surrounding myself with people that I love. My heart continues to swell every time I

I organized college trips with my school staff and a career day for the students. I joined the student government and worked closely with the administrative staff. I made a 180-degree turn in my life. The teachers didn’t believe I was the same girl who was missing class, had a couple of fights in school and recovering from depression. The summer of 2015 I attended summer school and night school so I was able to graduate in August 2015. I had classes Monday-Thursday, my first class started at 9:00 AM and my last class ended at 9:00 PM. On Friday, Saturday and Sunday I worked from 9:00AM-11:00 PM in the Dyckman Community Center. I felt like superwoman! It was overwhelming but I knew this was the consequences of my actions freshman year. It was hard but it wasn’t impossible and I was able to motivate other students as well. They saw how dedicated I as to graduating and many students followed my steps. I graduated in August 2015 and received an award for the best intern of the year. I took a semester off because I didn’t want to go straight to college three weeks later after going to school for 12

Well my journey starts out just like most high schoolers. I graduated for high school in May of 2012. I got ready to start my next chapter in my life at Iowa Central Community College. I had no clue what I was going to major in. I knew only one thing that I wanted to play football in college, and get my education payed for free. Also I wanted to make it to the highest level in football to play at the FBS level. Some things I had to do to reach that goal where be a good football player as well as a great student. I shortly figured out that I was going to just do essential studies and graduate.

My story prior to CSP has so many events and memories involved with it. I went to Delano High School, which is a small town around the Plymouth area. I was a student athlete that loved to be involved in activities. I was a three sport athlete through my Sophomore year and then dropped Volleyball so I could take a heavier class load. I took College in the Schools classes to get credits for college starting my Junior year. The teachers that taught our CIS classes were the best ones and helped all of us learn how to study which will help me here at CSP. Some of my friends were there to support with everything I had going on and we formed really good study groups. My friends were also their to keep my head up and push through things that I couldn’t do without their support. My parents have been my best role models and I still continue to look up to them and listen to what they have to say. They were always very supportive with whatever I wanted to do and gave me advice when I needed it.

With a new friend, Labshel, she was able to introduce us to her friends. Gaining friends with the help of other friends and my socializing skills I was able to create a big group of them like those seen in movies. Our group of friends consisted of a funny, jokester, shy, outgoing, wild and smart friend. As my first year of high school went by it was an exciting ride with many crazy adventurous. Learning new academic skills such as Algebra 1, Living Environment, Global 1 and much more it helped me expand my mind to new things. Starting as a nervous and worried freshman I ended the year with gaining new memories and friendships. Freshman year made me realize how amazing my next three school years were going to be I was ready for this new journey in a total new school with new people and new friends. High school was nothing like I imagined, it was an amazing year for me and I was so glad everything was going good. Freshman year was both stressing but fun and i’m so glad I was able to experience it with such amazing

It was tough at first as everything was unfamiliar to me, but by my sophomore year, my sisters and I got used to the new life and started to love going to school. However, my parents were having a difficult time finding jobs. When my mom came home from the first day of work, she skipped dinner and cried the whole time. I finally understood how hard it was for her to give up her life in Vietnam and start over again. I learned to cook and to do chores around the house to help my parents. Instead of staying after school, I came home earlier, helped my sisters with homework, and cooked dinner for them when my parents came home late. I started doing a lot of things that I had never imagined I would ever do as a teenager. I saw myself changing slowly, becoming more of an adult, and it made me feel good. Seeing my parents’ struggling with their lives, I reminded myself that I had to try my best in school. I created a calendar for myself, so that I would never forget any homework assignments. I also found that keeping a studying schedule at home was very helpful for me to arrange my time logically. As a matter of fact, the schedule helped improve my grades in all the classes that I took. Day by day, I sensed the gradual development of responsibility in myself. I got admitted into UC Davis, my first step on my journey to become a

I enrolled and then attended. During middle school, I became conscious about social issues in the world. This caused me to see things differently, which did end up in me losing friends. In seventh grade, my grandmother who was a mother to me, passed away from terminal cancer. It was another hard loss for my family and me. In eighth grade I applied to five schools but only got into two, ESSM and Mountainview Early College. I decided to come here since this school has more experience. It wasn’t my choice high school, but I am still glad I get to come to a magnet school.

High School was not something I was good at, let me be honest I was a bad student. I skipped classes and didn’t do my assignments. I got into a bad relationship that hurt me and I got into drugs that made me feel numb. At that time my family and I didn’t have a connection; they were just people I saw at home. My mom worked most of the time and my dad went out every night while my sister was being diagnosed with schizophrenia and was dating a boyfriend who was her caretaker; you could say my family was not a family. When I had to get sober and become an independent young adult I chose to go to the University of River Falls. When I started there I was so happy to be on my own and to be three hours away from the dysfunctional thing I called a family. The first week there went wonderful, I loved the fresh air and the trees and I got along with my roommate so well. I was also excited to go home and see my mom, my parents are separated, and tell her all the great things about my independence.

As I began my first year in high school, it was a really exciting year for me knowing that I was on the path to success, and was on my way to following my sister, who was just starting her first year in college. It was a source of pride that our family had a daughter who was pursuing a college education. Seeing my sister do her homework and getting involved on campus made me excited on starting my own college path which would lead me to a career I desire. As a hardworking student I am always intrigued in trying new activities. Through my past community involvement I have been able to balance my life as in my academics and extracurricular activities.

Elementary school is where it all started, it taught me not to sweat the small stuff. Nobody cared about what you wore or what you said. We would always have races between my friends to the fence and back to see who was the fastest that day. It was all about having fun. Nothing beat field day, the day everyone looked forward to all year. This is the time golf got introduced to me. My dad worked at a golf course throughout my elementary and middle school

Over the past year I have made a huge transition from High School to College. While High School and College have some similarities, they are majority different. High School was a time for me to find myself, have fun, and discover new responsibilities. While College is more of a time to get my things together so that I can get my degree. High School and College are different due to the guidance, leniency, and time.

I had missed a great ordeal at school, academically and socially. Luckily for me, my counselor was able to register me to take all the classes I missed over that period online the following year! Due to this action, my Sophomore year has consisted of me taking all my normal Sophomore classes every day at school, and then working on the five remaining online classes in my spare time. After going through all of this turmoil, I am exceedingly proud to say that by the end of the second trimester this school year, I will have completed all five of my online classes from last year in addition to my normal course load! This school year, I was also able to return to the school band and color guard as well as joining the “Toasters” speech club, and I will be inducted into the “National Honors Society” this spring. When I first envisioned my freshman year of high school way back when, that daydream did not include hospital visits and feeding tubes. It was filled with school dances, my first homecoming, new classes- new freedoms; However, looking back on it all, I am thankful for the experience that I was given to conquer. I was able to grow intellectually as a person and further appreciate life more than ever before, and I would not trade my life experiences for anything.