Semester 1 Portfolio 2015

http://duncanclarksportfolio2015quarter2.weebly.com

College Application Essay (Draft)

1. Some students have a background, identity, interest, or talent that is so meaningful they believe their application would be incomplete without it. If this sounds like you, then please share your story.     
     
               Dribbling the ball up and down the court is almost a daily activity.  Sweaty foreheads and sweaty shirts fill the air with the aroma of the basketball court.  Feet stampeding across the court and squeaking from baseline to baseline.  All of this,  just to put the ball in the basket.  This is what I've done for as long as I can remember.  I started playing with a ball in my hands before I could even walk.  Ive been on a team since the age of 5.  Although I have started playing at a young age,  my love for the game has never faded.  This game has been a part of me for my whole life.
               Just like anybody playing basketball it has been a journey for me and it has not been easy.  During my Freshmen year I had suffered from a season ending injury.  The day before tryouts I had gone to the doctors to get my ankle checked out.  They made me take a series of X-rays and MRI's until the doctor had finally told me I had Osteochondral lesions of the talus.  He said that there was a part of my bone that died and that I couldn't play basketball this year.  I couldn't even touch the ball for a total of 8 months.  Once I was able to play again I had to re-learn everything I forgot how to do so many things that I could do easily before.  And it was very frustrating,  I was always mad about how I wasn't getting the results that I would be getting before.  But I had learned how to deal with it, I just had to practice playing a different style.  I had to play slower and smarter instead of more athletic and aggressive.  And it worked I just kept working at playing smarter and smarter and it definitely gave me results that I was happy with.
               Ever since I was born my mom and dad have been my biggest supporters.  When I was a baby they would play bouncy ball with me or they would even play with me on my little tites hoop.  And as I grew older and started becoming more serious about basketball my mom  became more of my number 1 fan, and my dad became like my personal coach.  My mom was usually one of the team moms on what ever team I was on at the time.  And my dad would try to be one of the assistant coaches on the team.  But if he couldn't that meant that just me and him would be going to the park more by ourself's to work on my game and do drills.  Me and my dad were always like best friends we like most of the same things and act exactly the same so it was no wonder that after all these years that it was so easy for him to coach me.
               Basketball is one of the biggest parts of my life.  It really helped me find out who I really am.  And it has a lot to do with the person that I am today.  But it also comes at its own price because there will always be obstacles for me bigger than the ones that I have faced so far.  And I have to remember to always remain calm and take it easily one step at a time and to not let it consume me.  I also have to thank my parents for always being by my side and kept pushing me to pursue basketball and be the best that I can be.

Paragraph Thingy

               The big game was on.  Me and my friends had been anxiously waiting the whole week for this game.  We gathered in the local Irish pub to watch it.  It was a great game so far,  the score was tied at 21-21 at the end of the half.  I had placed a bet on this game with my good friend Billy.  I don't usually place bets with Billy because he is a sore loser and always is a pain in my behind to pay up.  But this time he seemed different he seemed as if he was confident instead of his usually salty self.  So when I talked to him he said that he had done his homework and that here is a 75% chance of his team winning.  Of corse that had me nervous but I still had my faith once the game started.  And I had no reason to be nervous once the second half started.  The score went from being 21-21 to 42-28 going into the fourth quarter.  Everyone in the pub had also been going for the team that I had bet on. So when they had scored yet another touchdown in the fourth quarter everyone was going nuts.  Well everyone except for billy who sat cross armed by the bar table next to the bud light sign.

                I had never seen something like this before.  There was a man that was about to attempt to walk across two sky scrapers on nothing but a thin piece of string.  And may I mind you that the man had nothing below to catch him so if he fell he would die.  Everyone had their phones out ready to record this man doing this insane stunt.  As the man took his first step on the line you could feel the nervousness from everyone.  While the man was going across the line I was probably more nervous than the man was,  my hands were shaking like it was on vibrate.  The man seemed to be doing great until he just got a little past the middle,  he almost tripped.  He was struggling to find his balance his body was swaying with the line to get his balance back.  But he eventually found it and once he did you could smell everyones breaths as we all sighed in relief.  When the man reached the end everybody went crazy we all screamed and cheered for that man.

College application Essay Prompt

The college application essay demonstrates your ability to write clearly and concisely on a selected topic and helps you distinguish yourself in your own voice. What do you want the readers of your application to know about you apart from courses, grades, and test scores? Choose the option that best helps you answer that question and write an essay of no more than 650 words, using the prompt to inspire and structure your response. Remember: 650 words is your limit, not your goal. Use the full range if you need it, but don’t feel obligated to do so. (The Common Application won’t accept a response shorter than 250 words.)

1. Some students have a background, identity, interest, or talent that is so meaningful they believe their application would be incomplete without it. If this sounds like you, then please share your story.

2. The lessons we take from failure can be fundamental to later success. Recount an incident or time when you experienced failure. How did it affect you, and what did you learn from the experience?

3. Reflect on a time when you challenged a belief or idea. What prompted you to act? Would you make the same decision again?

4. Describe a problem you’ve solved or a problem you’d like to solve. It can be an intellectual challenge, a research query, an ethical dilemma-anything that is of personal importance, no matter the scale. Explain its significance to you and what steps you took or could be taken to identify a solution.

5. Discuss an accomplishment or event, formal or informal, that marked your transition from childhood to adulthood within your culture, community, or family.

UCLA

Describe the world you come from — for example, your family, community or school — and tell us how your world has shaped your dreams and aspirations.

Tell us about a personal quality, talent, accomplishment, contribution or experience that is important to you. What about this quality or accomplishment makes you proud and how does it relate to the person you are?

University Ov Washington

Tell us a story from your life, describing an experience that either demonstrates your character or helped to shape it.

1. The University of Washington seeks to create a community of students richly diverse in cultural backgrounds, experiences, and viewpoints. How would you contribute to this community?

College Questions

Saint Mary's:
               I would like to go to this school because I really like how it is on the west coast and is not too far from home but far enough to be away and to experience new things.  And I especially like how it is in a good driving distance from San Francisco because I've always liked the thought about living next too or in a big city so it already seems like a reasonable choice for me.  But the location of saint Mary's isn't the only thing that interest me, what also interest me is that the student body isn't big its enrollment count is only like 4,000 something so I can interact with new people more on a personal level and also not get lost in the drift.  And another big benefactor that interest me a lot is that its athletics are D1 which is a big plus because I would hopefully like to play basketball for them and to be able to root for the other games at the other games also.

UC Davis:
               I like this college because I like the fact that they have a lot of programs and facilities that you as a student are able to go to at your disposal and make the most of.  I also like how it too is in California on the west coast.  Another thing that I really like is that Their athletics are D1.

Portland State University:
               I like this school because of this location on the west coast.  I also like that they are sponsored by Nike so they get nicer facilities and a lot of nice gear too. And I also like that their athletics are D1. And I like how it is a good mid major school too.

Seattle Pacific University:
               I would like to go to this school because its on the west coast. Also that their enrollment count isn't the high either so I won't get lost as much. Another reason is that Their athletics are D1. And their classes are a lot smaller.

Pacific University:
               I would enjoy going to this school because it is in the pac 12. I also like that it is near portland oregon. Another reason why I like this college is because they have a high acceptance rate and has a low enrollment of only like 3,000-4,000.

Coming Of Age Poster (Draft)

Coming Of Age Essay (Final)

Fearing the thoughts of other people is experienced in every teenager. Before and in the beginning freshman year I would always care too much about what other people thought of me. With over thinking about my effect on people made me more scared of doing many things. And to this day I regret it, I was too shy and I have  missed out on a lot of things because of that. Then came along the extra baggage I had to lug around that’s called “The Boot”.
It was called Osteochondral lesions of the talus. It is basically a part of my ankle bone had died because there was not enough blood flowing to that part of it. When the doctor came in the room and gave me the news that I couldn't play any sports this year my heart dropped. I felt like shit, I had to remain crippled for most of the year. I remember sitting in the doctor's office with tears coming down my face, while my mom was talking to my doctor in shock. Saying “ No doctor that can’t be true, the test results must be wrong.” Having the boot was a big learning curve for me. I remember the first week after I had received the news that I was still in shock like “I cannot believe this is happening to me”, “what am I gonna do?”, “What are people gonna think of me?” then, In the second week that I was more mad, like I would say things like “Why does it have to be me?”, “ Why couldn’t we deal with this earlier or faster?”. And by the third week I was just tired of complaining already, I realized that my foots not gonna heal faster if I continue to feel bad for myself and complain.And that I can’t feel bad for myself the whole time. Before I had the boot I couldn’t wait for anything I had no patience at all. I always wanted things done then and there I hated waiting. And things have changed by now. I would also always consciously worry about what people thought of me, It was always something that I would worry about before and I would over think about it too much. But from being in the boot people look at you and treat you differently, a lot of people treat you as if you can't do anything, or they feel really bad for you. And for me that was one of the worst parts about being in the boot. I never really liked how everyone felt bad for me because I just always kept the thought in my mind that someone out there had it worse than me and couldn't come back from it at all so they should feel bad for them instead of me. But eventually I had gotten used to how people looked at me and just didn't care anymore. And that translated to how I am without the boot, now that I am out of the boot I don't care about how I look anymore and I have more self love about myself, knowing that I am who I am and I can't change that and I shouldn't for anyone, so I should just embrace myself more now and not care about what other people think of me.

Being in the boot has taught me so much. And it has had to do a lot with who I am today. I don't care anymore about my fear about what people think of me, I can understand waiting longer and I am actually ok with waiting longer now too. But I feel like being in the boot has also brought me closer with my self and to start understanding myself better now. And I am willing to do more things and try new things now.