Scholarship_Essay

Tiffany Brown Ultimate Accomplishment I truly believe that I deserve this scholarship. I have worked so hard and come so far despite what I have been going through. Within the last two months my grandfather, who has Alzheimer’s, had to be put in a nursing home because my mom and I could not take care of him anymore. My mom and I were his caretakers for the last five years. Between taking care of my grandfather and helping my mom who has her own debilitating problems, concentrating on my education has been quite challenging. Despite all of this, I have pushed myself enough to pass all of my classes so far. Now, as I reach my last quarter here at Edmonds CC, I am faced with yet another major dilemma that could seriously jeopardize my chances of completing my program of study by the end of spring quarter. My grandfather owns the house that my mom and I live in and he paid all of the bills. Now that my grandfather is in a nursing home, all of his retirement money that was used to pay the bill’s, now has to pay for him to live in the nursing home. My mom is on disability because of a back injury. She also had a total hip replacement and a partial knee replacement, both of which have to be operated on again. It is hard for her to walk and get around because of the pain. Though my mom receives disability, it is barely enough to take care of her-self let alone me as well. I haven’t been able to work for the last three years because of my own medical problems. After seven unsuccessful surgeries, I am completely blind in my left eye because of a reoccurring detached retina. I have tunnel vision out of my right eye which has also been operated on because of a detached retina. According to Washington State law, my vision isn’t bad enough for me to be eligible to receive disability. My mom and I just don’t have the money to stay in my grandfathers house nor do we have enough money to afford a place right now. We have to find somewhere else to live by the end of May. Attending Edmonds Community College has been one of the best decisions that I have ever made. I have learned so much and have met some of the most interesting people while attending college at Edcc. I chose to pursue a degree in Computer Information Systems because I know it is a field that will always need people with the most up-to-date knowledge of computers. I had heard from a friend that Edmonds offers excellent IT program’s so I had to check it out for myself. Now here I am, a quarter away from graduating. I have to admit that the feeling of graduating is sort of bittersweet. I enjoyed attending Edcc so much that I don’t really want to leave. I’m thinking of returning to Edcc in the near future and pursuing another degree program, perhaps Web Development. Acquiring my degree in Computer Information Systems will open up so many career opportunities for me. I am hoping to use this degree to get a job as a database developer or a systems analysis. If I do return to Edmonds and get a degree in Web Development then a career as a web site developer would be my goal upon completion. I know that I will succeed if given the chance. This scholarship will help me pay for a place to live so I can focus on finishing school and starting my career. Graduating from college is the most important goal of my life and, with your help, I can achieve. Thank you so very much for your time and consideration. Sincerely, Tiffany A. Brown