Equality is a part of life that I have come to value. Earlier in my life I experienced what it is like to be treated unequally because of who I am. These experiences made me value equality more. In high school (until senior year) I was unable to take AP courses because I have a disability and the school’s policy was to not provide accommodations to AP students. I was also obliged to leave classes to scan materials so that I could read them. By the time that I would return to class I might have missed the discussion about the document and the class moved onto talking about the next topic. These experiences taught me what it feels like to be treated unequally.

Luckily, I have also been able to experience being treated equally and the opportunities that come with equality. Now at Cornell, I feel that I am treated the same as my friends and classmates who do not have disabilities. Whereas in high school, my experiences and opportunities were constrained by a discriminatory system I now feel that who I am does not constrain me.