we would gather in the living room and Danielle would play the piano while the rest of us

sang hymns.

Show 5: "and the Dirksen family taught me the importance of appreciating one another’s
different qualities."

Of course, those 28 months were too short to fully understand all five families, but I
learned from and was shaped by each of them. By teaching me English, nine year-old
Cody taught me the importance of being able to learn from anyone; the Martinez
family showed me the value of spending time together as a family; the Struiksma
family taught me to reserve judgment about divorced women and adopted children;
Mrs. Ortiz taught me the value of discipline and the Dirksen family taught me the
importance of appreciating one another’s different qualities.

The "Tell" / "So What":

Getting along with other people is necessary for anyone and living with five families has
made me more sensitive to others’ needs: I have learned how to recognize when someone
needs to talk, when I should give advice and when to simply listen, and when someone
needs to be left alone; in the process, I have become much more adaptable. I’m ready to
change, learn, and be shaped by my future families.
RE YOU A HIGH-ACHIEVING, LOW-INCOME STUDENT LOOKING
FOR OPPORTUNITIES TO RECEIVE COLLEGE ESSAY &
APPLICATION GUIDANCE?

THE MATCHLIGHTERS SCHOLARSHIP MIGHT BE FOR YOU—

APPLY TODAY.

THE "FOOD" COLLEGE ESSAY

EXAMPLE
Montage Essay, “I Love/I Know” Type

I’ve spent most of my life as an anti-vegetable carboholic.  For years, processed snack foods
ruled the kitchen kingdom of my household and animal products outnumbered plant-based
offerings. 
My transformation began with my mom’s cancer diagnosis. My mom went on a 100% whole
food plant-based diet. I fully embraced this new eating philosophy to show my support. Eager to
figure out the whole “vegan” thing, the two of us started binge-watching health documentaries
such as “What the Health” and “Forks Over Knives”. We read all the books by the featured
doctors like “The China Study” and “How Not To Die”. I became entranced by the world of
nutritional science and how certain foods could help prevent cancer or boost metabolism. 

Each new food I discovered gave me an education on the role diet plays on health. I learned that,
by eating sweet potatoes and brown rice, you could cure acne and heart disease. I discovered
eating leafy greens with citrus fruits could boost iron absorption rates. I loved pairing my foods
to create the perfect macronutrient balance. Did you know beans and rice make a complete
protein?