Share the Dream: My Life, My Focus, My Goal Share the Dream: My Life, My Focus, My Goal: Bolbert, Mariam

Talent Merit Scholarship Recipient

My name is Mariam Bolbert. I’m 18 years old and was born in Oakland, CA. At 9 years old, my mother and I moved to Cape Cod. My mother was born in Sierra Leone, and my father was born in Liberia. My parents got divorced in 2014. This caused it to be just me and my mom.

My main motivation is my mother. Her education was cut short after 6th grade. Due to having to work all day and night to support her family, she would be exhausted by the time school started. She never had time to sit down and rest or let alone do her schoolwork. She was constantly bullied by her peers for falling asleep in class, which caused her to drop out of school. Due to this, she has always made sure that I have everything needed to be able to attend school and be successful. She even moved us to Cape Cod with her job to make sure I had all the support I needed. As I got older, I realized that everything that my mom did wasn't her being strict, but instead she was trying to help me. This has caused me to want to use every opportunity I receive and give back to her. This also contributes to why I chose UMass Darmouth.

My freshman year, I went on a field trip to UMassD and instantly knew I would end up here. I liked how it was equally close but also far. I also liked how diverse it was. I also liked how many different clubs there are. All of these things contributed to my decision to choose UMassD. I plan to study sociology. Ever since I was little, I knew I wanted to help people. I was convinced I wanted to be a therapist, but then I later decided I wanted to get into sociology. I want to not only give back to the community but also help as much as I can. I want to help children in situations similar to my mom's and many others. I plan to use my degree to support and help others.