Share the Dream: My Life, My Focus, My Goal Share the Dream: My Life, My Focus, My Goal: Rodriguez, Armani

Talent Merit Scholarship Recipient

Greetings, my name is Armani Haze Rodriguez, and I'm a 19-year-old freshman at the University of Massachusetts, Dartmouth. I graduated from high school in the class of 2025 from Providence Career Technical Academy, a tech school where I learned the carpentry trade. I was born and raised in Providence, Rhode Island, where I lived with my Mom, Dad, and six siblings. I'm Dominican and Puerto Rican ethnically, with a family influenced by Hispanic heritage. Coming together as a family for holidays was always the best. After my grandma Carmen passed away in 2019, it's been otherwise. This devastated my family with such heartbreak. The only thing I wanted was for us to be together for tough times, but my family couldn't seem to cope with her death. Nine months later, my uncle Ronaldo passed away; then a year later, my aunt Milta passed. The three of them were siblings who loved each other dearly and were the heart of our family.
 I started playing football at 12 years old for the West Elmwood Intruders. While playing for the intruders, COVID-19 had just hit the United States, and everything began shutting down. Sticking with the passion I had for football, I started playing spring ball and traveled along the east and south coast, facing competition from all over the country. Transitioning into high school, I began playing for Central High School, since my school didn't have a team of its own. While playing for Central, I was a starter on varsity all 4 years. I've earned plenty of awards over the years and finished out my senior year by earning All-State First Team, First Team All Division, and Division 1 Linemen of the Year. I committed to UMass Dartmouth during the spring of my senior year. For many years, the goal of playing college ball motivated me. Growing up, it didn't matter; I just wanted to be able to play college football. I put in a lot of hard work leading up to camp, including working out 5 days a week while working 3 jobs, so I could save up for tuition.

Scouting has been in my life forever, and I've earned the rank of Eagle Scout. I've been a Boy Scout my whole life since my dad was a cub master and my older brother was also in Scouts. At the age of 4, I began learning the Scout Oath and Law, repeating it over and over until I memorized it. For my Eagle project, I organized a free youth football clinic for the kids in my community, giving them words of encouragement and wisdom about the game of football. Putting together the camp was the fun part; the build-up on the day of the camp was the stressful part, when I had to make sure everything went well and make sure no injuries happened. Throughout my academic studies, athletic pursuits, work life, and daily life, I’ve lived by the Scout Oath and law, trusting it will make me a better person to everyone I encounter. As I explored Dartmouth’s academic programs, sociology and anthropology stood out to me because they connect deeply to the role I’ve always taken in my community—being the person others come to when they need support or understanding.

When I first committed to UMass Dartmouth for football, I initially didn't know what I wanted to study since they didn't have the major I was originally interested in, which is sports management. As I explored Dartmouth’s academic programs, sociology and anthropology stood out to me because they connect deeply to the role I’ve always taken in my community, being the person others come to when they need support or understanding of the challenges that shape their life. I applied directly to the College Now program with the help of my recruiter, Coach McCormack; he was aware of my financial struggle and knew that College Now had many ways to help academically and financially, knowing they would lead me in a good direction.

College Now has been a great resource to me when I have trouble with finding someone to talk to or when I need an academic advisor who is consistently on my side, ensuring that I'm trying my best. The most helpful thing that College Now has done is to pay for my books. I didn't have the funds to pay for the books I needed for the course, and college now covered that financial burden. The ability to be able to earn a scholarship has been the most motivating to me. Trying to get a 3.0 GPA or higher has been my goal and my inspiration to keep going, so that my parents don't have to pay so much money out of pocket. Having a spot on the football team has been a blessing in itself, but with that, my head coach holds a big responsibility for us to be on track with all of our classes, with weekly meetings to be sure that we are passing our classes.

When I was in high school, I imagined college as a place where everything would fall neatly into place with more freedom, less pressure, and the chance to manage my own schedule. But once I actually experienced it, I realized college is very different from what I expected. The biggest difference is the level of responsibility. In high school, teachers reminded you about deadlines and checked in constantly. In college, professors expect you to keep up on your own, and missing one assignment can set you back quickly. High school stress was mostly academic; college stress feels more connected to real life and your future, which makes it heavier. I also didn’t expect how common it is for students to struggle with mental health. A strong support system matters a lot more in college. Although there are many resources you can use to help you with what you may be struggling with, you must be proactive and will have to seek them out on your own. I will be majoring in sociology and anthropology, learning about human behavior, the study of society, social behavior, and how people interact in groups.

Higher education and earning my degree will be the key to maximizing my impact on society and my community. I am passionate about helping others, and I plan to use my degree and life experiences to become a social worker. In addition to being a social worker, I aspire to educate, support, and inspire the youth in my community through scouting and sports; two things that positively impacted my life and helped make me the man I am today. I plan to volunteer and be involved in my local Boy Scout troop; possibly even visiting schools and community events to help with recruitment. I held a youth football clinic in my community as part of my Eagle Scout project. I aspire to hold more clinics like this in my community to continue to provide children with a safe, educational, supportive environment to learn about, practice, and grow their passion for football. Through my future work as a social worker and with continued involvement in scouting and sports, I will be able to aid youth and their families in connecting with organizations and resources that will support and help them lead healthy, happy, successful lives. I truly believe that barriers and a lack of knowledge about local organizations and resources can affect a child’s ability to follow their dreams; I want to help break those barriers so other children can enjoy some of the opportunities I enjoyed through scouting and football. 
Social workers help people navigate some of the most difficult, complicated moments of their lives, as well as celebrate their journey and successes. Social workers also impact communities as a whole by educating others, working with groups of people regarding social justice, distributing or obtaining resources, and addressing societal challenges. Whether it’s supporting an individual, small group, or a community, I believe that my future work can have a positive ripple effect on my community and society as a whole. In addition to supporting my community and society, becoming a social worker will greatly benefit my family.  Social work is a crucial part of society that is always needed. Becoming a social worker will provide me with a steady, consistent job and the flexibility to work in a variety of settings. Everybody goes through difficult times. I hope to use my future knowledge and training to support my family and friends through any challenges that arise. I am passionate about helping others and can’t wait to continue my journey through higher education, with the ultimate goal of helping as many people as possible and leaving the world a better place.

One issue I am aware of that I believe I can have a positive impact on is the stigma regarding mental health and mental disorders. Many people fear, dismiss, or think less of individuals with mental health problems. I want to help break this stigma; everybody deserves compassion, understanding, and a fair chance in society. As a future social worker, I can help individuals with mental health concerns and disorders find resources to best support their needs. Some of those resources might involve becoming involved in sports, arts, clubs, hobbies, and more. Being a part of these activities will not only enhance the individual’s life, but it will also help others involved become educated about mental health and hopefully break the negative stigma. Additionally, there is often a stigma around seeking mental health support; many people feel ashamed or hesitant to seek support. By educating members of my community and advocating for mental health support, I hope to break that stigma. During college, I realized how many mental health supports are available and realized that many people do not know about these supports or may feel hesitant to use them. I think it is important to seek help when you need it. I aspire to help others feel comfortable and confident to seek mental health support when needed; I believe I can achieve this goal through becoming a social worker and continuing my involvement in scouting and sports.