Rodolfo Mejia

Period 7

Personal Statement
In the United States, people usually categorize each other based on what they own and on what
ethnicity they are for example people usually assume that if you're latino you are a
criminal,immigrant,and a failure that we are just the typical stereotypes.This has always been a
challenge or controversial topic for my family and I because we dont want to reinforce it and are
trying to change peoples views on us.I come from a family that consists of five children,single
parent,and their grandmother,there are three boys in the family me being the oldest of them and
two girls consisting of my older sister and little sister.Our life has been tough especially for my
mother she raised all five of us by herself with the help of my grandma.We are a typical small
family that helps each other out in the time of need and dont rely on anyone outside our own
family.Does being a regular typical hispanic family that everyone assumes we are put us in the
stereotype?Just because Im hispanic does that mean Im an immigrant does that mean I am a
criminal.

I am mixed between Salvadoran and Honduran.I can speak both English and Spanish since I
was born here in the US.My mother is Salvadoran who came here to the US sometime before
my older sister was born in 1994 and my father is Honduran,but at a young age my father
decided to leave my mother and I to go raise his other family and forget about us.It was
challenging growing up with a single parent because my mother couldnt take care of my sister
and I while she was working and so my grandma took the role of my mom while my actual mom
was working.I knew my mom was working for my sister and I and so I became less dependent
on her and this affected me my whole life even in school.Our family isnt perfect though,after the
family grew we started having more issues due to the introduction of my new stepdad.He was
different from the other guys my mom introduced us he had just come from Salvador and had
an issue with substance abuse.Seeing him do that to himself and how it affects others in my
family has made me realize that I dont want to be apart of the stereotype and would like to
better myself in and out of school.

I got to the nearby public high school Foshay Learning Center. In school I take my work
seriously but make sure to interact with my friends as well.I Have taken the role of being the
Leader in many situations for example being the Anime Club President and being the leader for
group presentations.Im very interested in history and like to discuss and debate historical
events with my teachers at school to challenge myself.In my school it is common for many
students to get into a college right after our graduation.I want to go to college right after high
school.Im challenging myself by studying hard and making sure my grades are up to what I
want them to be and also to complete my college applications before theyre due.To make sure I
get into anyone of the colleges Im applying to I am also signing up to take the ACT.

In the future once I enter college I plan to pursue a major in Psychology and a major in
Japanese.I have always been interested in Psychology because I want to explore and study the
human mind.I also want to get into this because my younger brother has autism and by doing
this I hope to gain some insight on it.I like the Japanese culture and language and hope to
someday maybe live there to learn the culture a bit more.