I'm a student-athlete here at UMass Dartmouth; I played basketball and lacrosse. I'm part of several organizations on campus such as Enactus and SAAC. Also, I intern at the Center for Marketing Research in Fairhaven. I've also worked on several committees for the university and several projects within the community such as the hip-hop youth group 3rd EyE and Relay for Life.

I have learned a lot from students here at UMass. I learned how to live and work with so many personalities and cultures. I was able to explore different cultures and open my mind to so many different lifestyles. I learned both inside and outside the classroom from students—but what I learned from them outside the classroom has impacted me the most.

I've learned how to be a "master student." I learned how to succeed in the classroom, to dominate on the athletic playing field, and to evolve as a person within the UMass community.

My greatest challenge here was to be a student-athlete. I had to compete both on and off the court/field. I had to get good grades to play, and sometimes time management and other distractions were minor setbacks. But I overcame them and now I can say that I'm the first generation from my family to earn a degree and to play collegiate sports. In athletics, I accomplished many achievements, such as becoming a thousand-point scorer for the university in basketball.

I would like to thank College Now, for they are my first family here at the university. They believed in me when no one else did. Also, I'd like to thank my family, friends, and the UMass community.