The Ezzard Scholarship Essay

Since I was in elementary school, I have always had an interest in cartography. I had started drawing maps of neighborhoods, schools, parks, cities and even states by the 5th grade. Whenever my family and I traveled to North Carolina, all I would do the entire trip was stare out the window and view the landscape and topography. Since I have been in high school, I’ve aspired to pursue a career in Urban Planning to build and redesign neighborhoods and cities across Georgia and the United States. Although I am excited about becoming an Urban Planner, I have to earn a degree in Urban Geosciences which I plan to achieve at Georgia State. The Ezzard Scholarship will allow me to pursue my dream career and to positively impact and build communities.

When I began high school and started taking AP classes (and scoring a 5 on the AP Human Geography Exam), I realized that I could use my abilities to change communities for the positive. Urban Planning excites me because I can use my abilities in cartography and drawing to create sustainable, safer, and happier places for people to live, work, and shop. Living in the East Metro Atlanta Area, south of Conyers, I realize how much help many metropolitan areas need to combat the effects of urban sprawl. This environment aided me in recognizing and understanding what current problems face large cities and how these problems can be fixed. Looking at the amount of time, resources, and money wasted every rush hour in Atlanta inspires me to go the extra mile and learn as much as I can about Urban Life and Urban Ecology so I can be better prepared to assist Atlanta and other cities in becoming better and more efficient places to live and work. After college I want to be able to draft plans and go out into the world and actually talk with people and understand the needs and concerns with each community. After studying Urban Geosciences at Georgia State I will be able to apply the skills and knowledge to help redesign better