Why are you interested in becoming a Biology Scholar? What do you hope to gain from your membership in the BSP community and what do you hope to contribute? I have loved science devoutly since I was a little kid. I deeply respect BSP’s mission and believe STEM disciplines are strengthened when the range of experiences that drive research are expanded. Being part of the Biology Scholars Program would be a great opportunity to become engaged in a diverse community that shares my scientific interests. I would also hope to form a strong academic and social support system that I can be connected to while at Cornell and beyond. I am a hard worker and will contribute my time and effort to make the program successful for myself and others. While in high school, I worked for …show more content…
Though I had several options, I chose to mainstream to a public high school and attended Science Leadership Academy in Center City. It is a city-wide magnet high school that draws kids from across Philly and from every walk of life. My friends and experiences were far more ethnically, economically and socially diverse than if I had gone to private school. I have learned that there are multiple interpretations of people’s seemingly objective information based on the lens it is viewed through. I value ethnicity and cultural background but try to bring an open mind when I meet everyone and not prejudge who they are based on just superficial characteristics. People are complex. I am a proud and comfortable Black man and I am also much more than that. I have been raised in a home that values critical thinking, acceptance of different ideas, social justice and the use of political action. My grandparents came from Mississippi and Louisiana under Jim Crow and I am the beneficiary of their struggles. We never took for granted the diversity and inclusion that is now an intentional and implicit part of my home, social and academic