UC Prompt 2: Tell us about a personal quality, talent, accomplishment, contribution or experience that is important to you. What about this quality or accomplishment makes you proud and how does it relate to the person you are?
It was a warm day in my Spanish 2 class of sophomore year when my teacher announced an optional project. I was thinking to myself, "If it's optional, I'll pass". However, it was no ordinary project; it was a service-learning project. Once I heard that I needed this to graduate, I decided that I might as well get it over with instead of procrastinating until the end of my high school year. Even though it was optional, the whole class decided to engage as well. However, unbeknownst to me, my project would become my school's legacy.
The project was based around the idea of helping the environment and reducing poverty in Latin America. The first step was to gather and recycle bottles. Next was to use the money earned to help low income individuals in Latin America. We decided to loan the money to clients of KIVA, a website that allows one to loan money to low income entrepreneurs anywhere in the world to help alleviate poverty. When the loans were paid off, the money was used to again loan to others in need.
I started by collecting the bottles around my house and those that accumulated in the recycling bins of my relatives. Soon after I also collected bottles around my school during lunch and put recycling boxes in classes that I would collect later in the month. The next step was to notify the community to donate as many bottles as possible. After hoarding so many bottles, it was time to take them to the recycling center. This process of collecting and recycling continued throughout the year. Periodically the class as a whole generated enough money to make loans to those in Latin America. Through the course of a year we earned a total of $1000. Overall I contributed to the opening of several privately owned businesses in South America and adopted rain forests and coral reefs. Our globally active project caught the attention of Oprah Winfrey's program the O Ambassadors, which aims to improve the lives of people in third world countries with the help of youth all around the world. My school, Pinole Valley High, was contacted to be part of the O Ambassadors program due to our work.
It has been two years since my service-learning project and still my school contributes to the cause of the O Ambassadors. I am proud that I helped change the lives of several people and preserved nature. I am proud that I helped build a legacy that will continue even after I graduate and one that makes my school stand out from the rest. My project opened my eyes to problems of the world that was clouded by the illusion of prosperity, created by the wealth of the United States. It made me willing to donate to charity because now I know that anything I do can contribute to a momentous change in someone's life.
Hey Guys!
I was wondering if you guys can comment on the essay in general. Thanks
Oh... you needed a service learning project in order to graduate. Okay, the first para is confusing, because you say it is optional and then you say you need it to graduate. You should write:
Once I heard that I needed a service-learning project to graduate, I decided...
Great, so the whole class participated by choice, but you only did it because it was necessary to graduate. That doesn't sound like you are very motivated! :-) Maybe you can present yourself in a more positive light.
You write very well! I think it will be good if you get more specific at the end about the person you have become, how iit affected you, your plans for college.
