"This semester was the final of my four years at college. I can’t believe how things fly by so fast. I say that now, but I feel as if I was just writing my first paper for the Foundation just three months ago. This past semester was nothing out of the ordinary, except that I was not out of the country for the spring for the first time since my freshman year (more on that later). Something I have always wanted to do is to learn to play an instrument. Something about the violin has always intrigued me; the sound is beautiful and the peaceful melodic sound it emits intrigues me. This past semester I took private lessons from a professor at my University and was able to play a short piece by the end of the semester. This past semester I continued to volunteer and arranged for graduation. I was not sure about what I wanted to do after graduation and explored several options. I finally decided to choose something that would further my studies and at the same time be a job that I would love. As I write this, I am currently at my desk in Beijing, China where I have signed a one year contract to teach English at a school in Beijing. I chose this because I love working with children and I want to be able to speak Chinese, which I believe will help me enormously with my future career objectives.

I had an exceptional four years at UE and am grateful for the Lilly Endowment and all the experiences I had during my college career. If it were not for the Scott County Community Foundation, I am not sure where I would be now, or in college at all.

Thanks to everyone who work to make this Foundation work and support our community."