Pennsylvania State University – Statement of Purpose My ultimate goal for pursuing a doctorate in school leadership is to plant project-based schools and educational programs in low-income areas, both domestic and abroad, and to conduct research in the field of comparative and international education.
Growing up in poor neighborhoods in Brazil and Newark, NJ, I noticed the discrepancies between the rich and poor. I witnessed the effects of poverty in both hemispheres, and I have seen generations of people with little to no hope of a brighter future restrained by a lack of education. My parents struggled to get my family out of poverty. Though we eventually escaped, I refuse to forget my roots. With a grateful heart and an urgent desire to help the under-served, I have come to this conviction: children, regardless of the circumstances they are born into, are worthy of love and the opportunity to receive a good education.
My interest in serving low-income communities started my senior year at East Side High School, where I was heavily immersed in school governance by serving as class president. As salutatorian of my graduating class, I was awarded a full scholarship to Montclair State University (MSU), where I pursued a bachelor’s degree in Exercise Science, Physical Education, and Health and served four years as the MSU women’s volleyball team captain. As a college sophomore, I was nominated as an inductee to the Newark Athletic Hall of Fame. As I listened to the inductees share their testimonies, I felt a deep sense of belonging. I was compelled to fight for change. My journey toward answering this call, however, has been circuitous at best. Upon graduation, I initiated my teaching career at a teacher-led, project-based, and technology-enhanced middle school in State College, PA. I was first hired as a physical education and health teacher but soon made my way into the classroom as a seventh- and eighth-grade teacher. As a classroom teacher, most of my responsibilities involved designing, developing, and implementing a project-based curriculum. Working at Centre Learning Community (CLC) has been a fantastic learning experience. Its unique learning environment, cutting-edge teachers, and differentiated daily structure have inspired me to seek innovative ideas, think outside the box, and pursue lifelong learning. CLC has exposed me to a complex learning environment, and its teacher-led approach has allowed me to experience and understand the intricacies of school operations. While I have greatly enjoyed my time in the classroom, as someone who values growth, I also recognize the need to keep evolving. During the 2017–2018 school year, I had the privilege to partner with professor Gerry LeTendre in a unique robotics study. The study took place in my classroom and was intended to increase understanding of how educational robots affect classroom routines, instructional practice, and school organization. The experience gave me insights into how research is conducted and how we can bridge the gap between research and professional practice. I am thus eager to learn more about the entire research process and build strong and fruitful relationships in the Educational Leadership Department. With ten years of teaching experience, I am accustomed to spending countless hours preparing lessons, designing curricula, and conceiving unique and effective ways to reach my students. I am also accustomed to working with and leading others and producing quality work under physical, emotional, and temporal demands. I am confident that I can withstand the rigors of a Ph.D. program and am looking forward to applying these skills in an academic context. I am eager to start a new phase in my career, contribute to the field of comparative education, and begin to develop a personal research agenda. The Penn State University graduate program in Educational Leadership is a rich learning environment that will nurture my interest in school leadership as applied to comparative and urban education. If admitted, I intend to pursue a Ph.D. in Educational Leadership full-time and would be honored to work with professors Gerry LeTendre, Edward J. Fuller, and Marsha Modeste. I think that my personal and professional experiences make me a good fit for the program at Penn State.