“I took a trip with my mom last year to London and Paris for a week, and that was probably the best thing I’ve ever done. I’d never been to Europe; it’s really cool to experience other cultures. [My mom and I] take a lot of trips together; we do a lot of random things, really, like volunteering or recommending books to each other. We’re pretty close. She is really all about women’s empowerment. So from a really young age, she was always telling me how important it is to be proud that you’re a girl, know that you’re super strong, and [know that] you don’t need a man or anything to make an impact or be important. That’s actually how a lot of the adults in my family [are]. Mostly my mom is just the embodiment of what it means to be a woman– a powerful woman. She’s just someone I look up to. I just want to be as strong, beautiful, and smart as her.”

(Sophomore)