Disciplinary Action

Disciplinary Action During my freshman year of college, I underwent a fairly dramatic experience that I can actually say changed the course of my life. Early on in my academic career [YOU NEED TO STATE WHAT ACADEMIC ISNTITUTION THIS IS] there was a situation in which a negligible amount of alcohol and marijuana was found in my room. At the time I was young, recently removed from high school, and enthralled with the newfound freedom that comes with living on my own for the first time.

My priorities were a little ambiguous; I wanted to succeed in college but I also had many life lessons to learn. This would prove to be one of the harshest lessons I learned, and the one that would ultimately help me shift my focus to academics and to viewing every day as a way to get closer to pursuing a successful professional career. The punitive measures for my actions came swift and austerely -- I was suspended from my educational institution for the duration of the semester.

However, I was able to use this situation to my advantage in a number of different ways, foremost of which involved dedicating myself to the scholastic pursuit I formerly took for granted. One of the first things I did after getting suspended was to enroll in Wagner College. Although it did not provide me with the sort of collegiate experience I initially desired, I viewed my tenure there as the proverbial "second chance" and an opportunity to demonstrate my academic worth.

I realized how easily I could have lost everything by focusing more on recreational activities than schoolwork, and understood that I might never get another chance to excel academically again with such a suspension on my record. Therefore, I made the most at my time at Wagner and am proud to say I completed my semester there with a 3.75 GPA. The renewed vigor with which I pursued my academics was due in no small part to my involvement in a rehabilitation program.

In addition to my suspension, my time spent in rehabilitation enabled me to truly see my position for what it was. Going to college was an opportunity for me -- a wonderful one with virtually no other limitations than those I placed on myself. Not realizing this fact at the beginning of the semester, I had woefully taken it for granted and was on the verge of having this opportunity, and the life it could create for me, taken away.

My rehabilitation stint helped me to realize that there were other ways of expressing the excitement, fun, and pain of life other than engaging in mind altering substances. It helped me to identify my true purpose -- to complete my undergraduate program, enter law school, and one day practice law in such a manner that I can help to present opportunities to the less fortunate who do not have any on their own.