ASL Foundation Scholarship Winner Spotlight:
Leslie M. Figueroa
The sun shone truly brightly this June, the day I received your letter gifting me with the Dr. Sherman V. N. Kent Scholarship for the coming year. I am honored to be a recipient of this prestigious award.
Upon opening the letter, I noticed the date on the check sent to me – July 4th . Whether intentional or coincidental, it spoke volumes to me. This check, in a sense, is an independence celebration for me; freedom from bondage in a sedentary and restricted financial life; freedom of choice; freedom to make a positive, productive difference in my child's life, in my life, in other people's lives.
A favorite quote of mine has been the backbone to my resolve to go to school and improve my life; I would like to share it with you: “It is never too late to be what you might have been.” - G. Eliot
One of the happiest days of my life was at the end of my very first day of classes at Rollins a couple of years ago. My dream of going to college was no longer a dream, it was a reality. A dream which spanned over 20 years, and it was empowering when it finally came true.
I am currently a single mother to Frankie, the joy in my life. My twelve-year-old son has Fragile-X Syndrome, which is the number one cause of inherited mental retardation in boys, and Autism. His prognosis was not a positive one; I was told by several doctors to make his life comfortable, to provide for all his needs, that he would be unable to walk, talk, even do basic functions in life let alone learn academically and cognitively. Never having believed in the word never , I proceeded to work with my son, always with the hopes that he would gain something, anything, no matter how minute it might seem. I provided his therapy around the clock, and home-schooled him in a variety of ways until I reached through to him. I remember clearly the day a wall around his world broke down in order for him to reach out to me and respond. For the first time in eight months of repetitive teaching, he physically pointed to the color that I had said out loud. Even though his gaze never wavered, and his eyes never looked at the color, he responded. My belief that inside my son was an intelligent young mind begging to come out was realized. My son could hear, see, touch, taste, and feel the world around him the entire time; the problem was that the world didn't know that, and so many were quick to throw in the towel because he did not meet the normal standards of awareness and understanding. From that day, the floodgates opened for my son, and he thrived. I home-schooled him for several years formally until I decided that the school environment might provide more for him in the social experiences, and so I placed him in the public school system. My son can walk, although he has a fear of heights, stairs, and curbs. He looks me directly in the eyes, and smiles. He does not talk, but speaks volumes with the sign language I taught him, the use of picture symbols, and his assistive technology device. I currently work actively with my son's teacher in writing programs for his use, and providing tools that can be used by the other students in her classroom.
For years I tried to go to college, but it never materialized. I only knew that once I got into school I would take a variety of courses as I loved to read, learn, and expand my horizons. During the course of my son's growing years, I had been told repeatedly that I missed my calling as a teacher. I shelved that thought to ponder at a future time, as my son was my priority. I had a mission and a responsibility to help him thrive, and hopefully, to reach his maximum potential whatever it would be. My son was, and is, my inspiration. Then there came a period of time where in the space of a couple of weeks, quite a few people told me I needed to heed my calling. These were people in my son's life, a home-schooling evaluator, even a complete stranger had spoken to me. It seemed as if getting hit repeatedly with the same message over again was finally, consciously sinking in; it was time to share what I knew with other children. I realized that although the love I have for my son is what allowed me to do all I had done with him, I had more than enough love to share with other children who also deserved to break through their invisible barriers, to be heard, and to thrive.
I applied to the only school I wanted to be a part of, Rollins College.
My first day was full of excitement, but it also held some trepidation, because I am profoundly deaf. Being deaf, I worried about being able to keep up in a class environment, to keep up with the teacher and the high demands that came with being in a good college. I was blessed with wonderful teachers who altered their styles at times to make certain I saw their faces in order to read their lips, and allowed me to choose my seating in class.
Since before leaving High School, I worked, and continued to do so until the end of my pregnancy. I had been a manager for several different companies and a troubleshooter called in to solve problems in either the finances or running of some stores. I was a volunteer Fire-fighter and Emergency Medical Technician for eight years, and was state-certified in three states. For a couple of years I worked two jobs at the same time. I also ran a business on the side with my former husband. Once my son was born, I realized he was a special needs child with a full array of handicaps on his little plate, and so I remained at home to care for him. At the time when I seriously considered the idea of going to college, my son was doing well, and was in a new social environment at school. I wanted to improve his and my life, and the best way to do so was to go to school then enter the workfield in the ideal job for me; as a Special Needs Education Teacher.
I have been on Welfare for a couple of years now, and I do not wish to be. Since I began taking classes, it has been a struggle to have childcare for my son. Very few people wish to care for a handicapped child, and those who would do so, charge at a high cost. During one semester, I had a total of seven different caretakers to get me through the term. Currently, I am not in classes this semester as I was unable to find someone safe and good to watch my son for a reasonable fee. With that decision out of my hands, I made some dramatic changes in my life and removed myself from Welfare. I am about to enter the workforce with a part-time job in an effort to save some money to help in child care. Without childcare, I am unable to go to school. Without schooling, I am unable to become a Special Education Teacher. Life cannot move forward. My ultimate goal with these changes is to return to school this coming Summer full-time to catch up, then resume in the Fall. This is a risk I am hoping will work according to a plan that looks so good on paper.
I have maintained excellent grades since my first day. I helped critique and trouble-shoot the first Psychology on-line class, and received a 103.5% for the course. I discovered several missing pages in the textbook of another course that had been completely overlooked, and received praise from the publishers for the discovery. I thrive in being in the college learning environment and I believe it showed in my everyday works, not only in my grades. I had been told repeatedly that my work was above and beyond what was required and/or expected, yet it was always within the guidelines required by the teachers. My only A- grade was a 94%, considered an A in every other course I have taken thus far. I have been a member of the Iota Sigma Chapter of the Alpha Sigma Lambda since March 2004.
Should I receive your scholarship, it is my desire to use it to procure safe childcare for my son, so that I may go to school with the knowledge that I have placed my son in good hands. I cannot go to school otherwise. I refuse to leave my son with just anyone in order to go to school, and I have never done so, hence the reason I have had such a difficult time with the childcare issue in the past two years. If any funds are left over, I would also like to buy software for a computer that puts voice-to-text, which is like ‘live' closed-captioning. This way, I may further improve the quality of my learning experiences.
The desire to be at Rollins College has only increased since I began. I am so much closer to a dream that I had wondered for years if it could ever become a reality. A better life for my son and myself is within my grasp; it is my hope that you might help me attain it.