Stepping off the plane on June 13, 2005, I knew I was no longer in Colombia. Standing in the middle of the metropolitan city of San Diego, surrounded by clean streets, an abundance of cars, and large architectural feats, this city portrayed a stark contrast to my hometown of Bogota. Just 24 hours prior, I had been lying down on the floor of our old apartment, anxiously waiting for our alarm clock to ring; when it did that morning, I had not yet...

True leadership is efficiently handling a situation in which you can teach people and help drive them forward. Leadership is not bossing people around, rather it’s working alongside them to accomplish a common goal. In my life, I have been privileged to be able to lead different groups of people to receive awards and complete our goals. However, one experience that has positively influenced others on a completely different level than the rest, is my leadership in our schoolâ€...

Stepping off the plane in 2005, I knew I was no longer in Colombia. The first noticeable difference was school; I was motivated to learn and achieve greatness. I was told I could accomplish anything I dreamed; however, I knew I didn’t have the resources to procure my dreams. We started from zero, scratch. My own version of the classic immigrant story—moving and hitting the restart button. I was told my socioeconomic situation did not matter. Little did they...

As a senior and student, it is our duty to leave our school better than when we first entered as a freshman. As my junior year concluded, I was faced with a tough selection of classes and choosing whether to pursue journalism, yearbook, or both. These two classes intrigued me, I had been part of yearbook back in middle school and journalism my junior year. I was attracted to our school’s publishing classes, in part because of my love...

An idea that I believe in, is my intellectual development and this idea of staying hungry, hungry for knowledge and understanding. This idea sets me apart as a student because my motivation is fueled by my academic hunger to learn more and understand the curriculum which I am taught. I feed via indulging in knowledge; this method includes self-teaching through the internet or videos, learning from other knowledgeable people, or simply letting my curiosity run free and allowing it to...

An idea that has been important in my intellectual development has been this idea of staying hungry, hungry for knowledge and understanding. As a student, my motivation is fueled by my academic hunger to learn more and understand the curriculum which I am taught. When my teacher teaches, it is not enough to quench my hunger. I need to feed via another method; this method includes self-teaching through the internet or videos, learning from other knowledgeable people, or simply letting...

Upon embarking on our first day, there are a few things you should know. My definition of fun is a little quirky. I love tackling difficult problems and talking with people. I especially enjoy taking pictures, so brace yourself for the capturing of your image on my camera’s sensor. Another thing about me is that contrary to popular belief, I am not Mexican; I come from Colombia. Where do you hail from? Yes, I used the word hail, I...

Education matters to me because I view it as the medium through which a person, such as myself, can exceed in life. My parents did not have the opportunity to attend a four-year university because of their circumstances, yet I have the possibility to continue my education at the next level. Education is essential to me because I grew up with the consequence of my parents having to struggle financially because they did not have the college degree to obtain...

Facing challenges is a bit of a challenge in itself. When life presents you with a series of brick walls there are a plethora of paths to take. While some people tackle the problem head on (in this case needing a lot of power to break through) I try to take a different alternative. Instead of attacking a problem head on, I begin to look for the root of the problem and the root of some of my biggest challenges...