| CWM 2010 :: "I Want to be Like Her" Essay Contest |
The "I Want to be Like Her" essays are a chance for girls to read about the success stories of women in mathematics. They then write a short essay on why they could look up to and follow women who have oversome hardships and striven for success in their fields. The five essays below were chosen from all of the essays submitted as the winners in this years celebration.
|
 |
Ta’Shari Manigault -8th Grade - Perquimans County Middle School
Denise Stephenson-Hawk
I want to be like Denise Stephenson-Hawk because of the way she carries herself, her struggles, and how she worked hard to achieve her goals. Denise carries herself as a strong young lady no matter what people said to her. She kept her head up. She had lots of struggles, and knowing that she grew up poor reminds me of myself. Reading her story really inspires me. The next time that someone picks at my clothes or my hair I am going to keep my head up. I am not going to let someone else make me less of a person. I have a great love for math and I was usually ahead of the class. Now I am in algebra, I am learning new things and I will still try to be ahead of the class just like Denise Stephenson-Hawk.
Erika Roberson - 7th Grade - Central Middle School
Peggy Harman
I want to be like her because even though she could not afford to go to college she still challenged herself to pursue her dreams. Even though she did not go to college she now works in the field of science. I think that her story is very encouraging and that is why I want to be like her.
Jennifer Guzman - 8th Grade - Mattamuskeet Middle School
Tahari R. Amer
I would like to be like Tahari R. Amer because she works in the area of developing instruments and sensors that measure the parameters needed. She started her college education in Egypt by going to medical school. She is a hard workingwoman because she got married at 17, moved to the United States and had two children. Then she has a difficult time when she quit working and went to school full time. After working at NASA Langley she fulfilled her dream to work with scientist and researchers. She is an inspiration because when she first came to the United States of America she took her first calculus class and even though she could not speak English, she made an A in the course. Tahari is involved in many things and overcame many difficult situations, that is why I would like to be like her.
Rachel Forbes - 8th Grade - Perquimans County Middle School
Lenore Jackson
Lindsey Lewis - 8th Grade - Central Middle School
Tahari R. Amer
I want to be like Tahari R. Amer because she helped to pave the pathway to success for women. She started out studying abroad in Egypt, which I find fascinating to know. Other countries offer schooling opportunities that are not available in just America. She found time to get a degree and raise her family simultaneously. I know this takes an amazing amount of self discipline and control. She has accomplished many academic goals. She also was able to do out of the ordinary tasks in her work field such as climbing a wind tunnel to install a probe! I myself wish to not only spend my workday in an office writing papers but doing things against the grain so to speak. She came to the U.S. not knowing our language and still managed to keep up her grades. Somehow this woman can make time for friends and activities. I think she is a strong idol and amazing woman.
Kendall Futrell - 7th Grade - Central Middle School
Fern Hunt
Fern Hunt is a woman who loves her job and is able to find joy in math. I want to be like her because she loves her job and is inspiring someone. She says that “it is human activity that everyone at one point or other in history has engaged in.” You can just hear how passionate she is. I may not want to do exactly the same thing. I don’t even know what I want to do but whatever it is I want to have her passion. She is smart and uses her intellect that is why I want to be like Fern Hunt. |
|
