Essays
1. Tell us about a deeply held view or value with which you grew up that has changed. What was the source of that original view or value? What caused the change? What have you gained and lost in this change?
As a child I was raised in a Christian family, going to church every Sunday morning, then going to Sunday school that night. For 12 years of my life I followed this routine, not necessarily because I always wanted to but because of my parents. I grew up thinking that believing in God wasn’t a choice, but it was required because my parents did. I did what my parents did, I worshipped God because my parents did, I closed my eyes and bowed my head during prayer because my parents did. It wasn’t just me, plenty of children around the world have the same beliefs and ideals as their parents, their parents are who they look up too. I wanted to be so much like my parents, that I am still currently the youngest person to ever join Redeemer Presbyterian Church, at the age of six. My father became a deacon of the church and my mother was heavily involved in volunteering and teaching Sunday school classes. Because of how involved in the church my parents were, I decided I would get more involved. When I was in ninth grade, I became a youth leader for the Middle School youth group in our church and continued to do that throughout my high school years. I was never given the chance or time to develop opinions or beliefs of my own, because I didn’t see a need to when I could just follow my parents.
As the end of my senior year came and I started college, I finally got the chance to form my own ideals. I wasn’t spending as much time around my parents, and I started to not go to church on Sundays anymore. It was a changing point in my life, where I didn’t just believe the things that I read out of the Bible and accepting the stories that my pastor had been telling me for years. I questioned them, and as I thought about them more and more I could make no sense of them. My change came from me not just following, but taking my own initiatives. I feel as though I became a realist, a logical thinker, and religion goes along with neither. I cannot make myself believe something that I cannot see or touch proof for; therefore, my views and beliefs concerning religion completely changed.
The only things that I really lost from the change were the mere comforts that come with being a Christian. Those include believing you will go somewhere when you die, believing that everything happens for a reason, and having a reason to rejoice rather then grieve when a person dies. I have lost those beliefs, and lost the beliefs that much of my childhood was based around. But I have gained a sense of freedom and a sense of independence, two things that many college students want and strive for. I did gain the feeling that a spiritual being is not holding me back. I do not feel like I am being told what to do, and I do not have a certain set of rules, such as those presented in the Bible, to follow. I have complete free will. With that free will, I am forming my own ideals and not just following my parents. I am being my own person and setting up the foundation for the person that I will become in the next few years. I gained the ability to know that I should not just do things because others do, but to form my own opinions about something and follow those to be my own person. I learned that I didn’t need religion in my life to have structure, I could have order without having to believe in someone or something other then myself. I gained the knowledge of how to lead my own life, in the direction that I want to go without influence from others, which is something that many people never get to experience.
2. Tell us about an issue to which you are passionately devoted. Describe why this is an issue of significance to you and to the larger community.
The government is something that we come into contact with on a daily basis, regardless of whether we want to or not. Every time we buy something, we pay taxes. Every time we drive, we are following traffic rules set by the government. The government that we follow day in and day out, the one that is supposedly for the people by the people, has the power to force me to risk my life defending this country, and has the power to pick me up and throw me in a place like Guantanamo Bay for the rest of my life. Since 2001, government spending has been out of control and has left us with over a 12 trillion dollar deficit. Since 2001, our government has been on the rise concerning power and size, and why? Is it because we the people need guidance and help with our everyday lives from the government? Why can we not go back to the Jeffersonian Democrats view of limited central government, with state’s having a majority of the power. I am deeply devoted to a small government, and for the leaders of any said group or country to fully understand when they should lead, and when they should follow.
If we go back in history, we can see several trends that take place. In the 1770’s when the Articles of Confederation were passed and taken into effect, our country was thrown into chaos with literally no central government and the states being able to have their own militaries and own currencies. Our founding fathers realized we needed at least some form of central government, which is where the Constitution that we have today comes into play. Those original authors of the Constitution did not ratify it and then attempt to take complete control of everything, but rather mediate things such as taxes and the military, but left the majority of things to states or to the people themselves.
When looking at more modern history, the government has been on a slow but steady rise since Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal was introduced in 1933. I ask why. Of course during certain times such as war we need more leadership as our very freedoms and liberties that we take for granted are under attack. But why during times of peace does the government feel the need to spend enormous amounts of money that aren’t needed. As an intern during the 2008 presidential elections, I learned several things about John McCain’s platform under which he was running. One very distinctive area that I remember from his speeches was him wanting to reevaluate the government’s programs and resize as necessary. A report came out in September from a Washington think tank, stating that it was estimated that over 48% of the U.S. government could be cut, and anyone can see this at expectmore.gov. Why can we not cut government spending on programs that aren’t needed and use it to help feed the hungry, build homes for the homeless, and pay back our national debt?
I could write and write about the negative effects of a larger government on our society as a whole. But it also affects me personally. The larger the government, the more regulations there are for various aspects, such as businesses. My father owns a small business, and has been greatly affected by the taxes and new “reforms” that Obama has passed. My mother is on Social Security Disability, and her minimal payments every month will decrease in value if our enormous government passes the healthcare bill that is currently in the Senate.
We need a central government, we need a group of people that can provide aid and can provide a person that we can all look up to, to hopefully lead us in the right direction. But those same leaders that could lead us towards what is right, can lead us away from what is right. In our government, the leadership has developed into a position where they have a blank check and can do as they please. Is that really what our country needs? I think not. Give the people more power and more say so, you’d be surprised what U.S. citizens are capable of.
3. What does this program stand for? What attracts you to this program? What do you have to bring to The Caldwell Fellows? How will this program help you develop to the person you want to become?
In my opinion, this programs stands for an opportunity. It’s an opportunity for exceptional students who want to be leaders in our society to take advantage of something that is on our campus, and further our skills and expertise in the area. My grandfather told me just the other day how proud he was of me for going to a university, and how proud he was of my ambitions to go to law school, stating that I am a leader of the future. This is a program that will help and develop the future leaders of this country and the world. It is an opportunity for future leaders to take advantage of and gain from. This program stands for something that is highly prestigious and desired, and something that has clear benefits if accepted.
I fully believe that what my grandfather said is what attracts me to the program. I want to be a future leader of our society; I want to further our civilization to something more than it is now. From what I have read on Chancellor John Caldwell, he is the type of man that I aspire to be, inspiring people and motivating them to provide service to the community around them. The opportunities that present themselves to Caldwell Fellows are something that I wish to attain. I am currently a member of Impact Leadership Village here on campus. At one of our dinners, Kylee Phillips came and spoke about how she took the initiative to find the things that she loved, and she ended up with being President of the Inter Residence Council as well as a Caldwell Fellow. She has accomplished many things that many students do not even get the chance to do and I hope to get as close as possible to following her in leadership positions, and the things that she has done for her community and NC State.
I will not write in this essay that I am the best student, or the best leader, or better then anyone else, because I am not. Although I will try my hardest, I cannot promise that I will be the best Caldwell Fellow there has ever been, but I can bring other things. I can bring character; I can bring the will of a person that will not give up on his dreams. I can bring a person that plans on devoting my life to public service, and service to the community around me. I can offer someone who is willing to take risks to succeed, and who will take full advantage of any opportunity. I can bring a person who will lead when necessary, but also knows when to follow. I will bring a person with experience, yet the desire to learn more. I can only bring what I can personally do, but I will bring a hope and wish that I will inspire and help others.
This program will give me a building block, a place to start. As a freshman in college, I am still getting used to being on my own, being completely responsible for myself, and perfecting time management. I have already engaged myself in Student Government, as well as Hall council here on campus and I’m looking for a place to go that will take me to higher places through service and leadership. As I said previously, I am not perfect, nor will I ever be. However, I do know that if I want to reach my goals then leadership development should be one of my highest priorities along with school. The Caldwell Fellows program will provide a mold for me to become the person I want to be.
Experiences
Our selection committee wants to know about your experiences, activities, and honors that you consider most significant. You are encouraged to list items in order of importance TO YOU, which are both AUTHENTIC and relate to our SELECTION CRITERIA. In other words, this application is about who you are, not who you think we want you to be. Each item listed should ideally reflect some aspect of the selection criteria and should aid the reviewer in knowing why you are a good fit for the program. Note that when you are inputting your text, you should save frequently and 'preview' your application to make sure the formatting appears as you desire.
During the election year of 2008, I served as an intern for the Republican Party Office in my home city. We had three interns at our office, one for North Carolina, one for the South, and one for the East Coast. I was the intern for North Carolina, and served as the head over organizing phone banks and organizing walks going door-to-door. I was given complete control of all resources to successfully campaign for the Republican Party, and while we didn't win all the positions, we did win some.
All four years that I was in high school I also served as a Middle School Youth Leader at Redeemer Presbyterian Church. Every Wednesday night I would come in and lead worship and then lead a small group, and I taught the large group (about 45 members) once or twice. The Middle Schoolers whom I taught looked up to me, respected me, and listened to me while in our small groups. I learned just as much from those children as they learned from me. I led several Middle School retreats as well.
One of my most memorable experiences playing baseball was my time as the captain of my All Star team during the last season I played. I was the starting catcher and played all 7 innings as well as batted clean up. I was known as the encourager, constantly on my feet and yelling at my teammates to step it up, give it their best. I was the leader of the team, and my teammates looked up to me when we were losing or down. I led them to the state regionals where we lost in the first round.
For eight months in 2008, I had a job serving in a retirement home. I served food to people from the age of 63 to 95, four nights a week. Some of them had Alzheimer's, and many others were nearing the end of their lives. When I accepted the job, I had three job offers on the table, but I took this one due to the service that it required. While serving I had the opportunity to talk to the people and learn from them, and experience a different generation of our community I had never had before.
Another sports-related experience that I have is with paintball. I started playing for fun with friends, but quickly grew to be on the competitive level. I worked a job to pay for my expenses to play, and kept playing because of my love for the sport. I kept pushing myself to become better, to get onto a better team and play more. I didn't give up, and I pushed myself to become better. I eventually tried out and got onto a sponsored team, where we placed 13th in the southern regionals.