{"id":14695,"date":"2026-06-02T21:23:20","date_gmt":"2026-06-02T21:23:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.maryslibrary.com\/?page_id=14695"},"modified":"2026-06-02T21:29:03","modified_gmt":"2026-06-02T21:29:03","slug":"grades-11-12-essay-winner-olivia-h","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.maryslibrary.com\/?page_id=14695","title":{"rendered":"Grades 11-12 Essay Winner: Olivia H."},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"essay<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

What Does America Mean to You?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

E pluribus unum. Out of many, one. America has continually shown itself to be the place
that brings together all people, dreams, and backgrounds. For a high school senior about to enter
the next stage of my life, going to university to obtain a degree in political science to protect the
beauty of America, it means three things: opportunity, community, and patriotism.

In America’s melting pot, thousands of jobs, hobbies, and choices present themselves to
every person who tries. As I enter the job market in hopes of becoming a congressional staffer,
our democracy provides me with opportunities throughout the government system. I can work as
a staffer for a Representative or Senator, become a lobbyist for a private company, or become an
elected official myself in any of the levels of government. America is one of the only nations on
Earth that gives this many opportunities to its citizens. America inspires me to continue pushing
towards all of my dreams no matter the challenges I may face because I know that if I can strive
towards my goals, I too can achieve the American dream.

In our beautiful nation, we bring together millions of people from different backgrounds
and cultures that share the beauty of being an American. There are millions of high school
seniors that are just like me who want to work for our government. This means that there is an
entire community of people for me to connect with before even branching out of my peer group
and interests. America provides connection and community for those who wish to foster it. The
media and society that our world lives in breeds difference and polarity, but the intent of America
is to bring those people together to collaborate to make a better world for all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

America’s values are ones that are instilled in our citizens. Life, liberty, and the pursuit of
happiness ring true from the mountains of Colorado to the valleys of Virgina. Here in the slopes
of Pennsylvania, I too can chase a life filled with opportunity. I can vote in our democracy and
reap the benefits of the liberty gifted to me. I continue to pursue a life filled with the happiness of
community and opportunity. Our patriotism of America lies not in the current reality, one of
division and hate, but the one we are promised, one of happiness, equality, democracy, and one
that is truly beautiful.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As we celebrate our 250th year as America, we must remember that America is a country
of new beginnings and a bright light for youth like me, immigrants, and citizens alike. As I enter
into education for a political science degree, I will learn how to preserve the beauty of
America and nurture these values of opportunity, community, and patriotism for citizens for
hundreds of years to come.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Back to main page<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

What Does America Mean to You? E pluribus unum. Out of many, one. America has continually shown itself to be the placethat brings together all people, dreams, and backgrounds. For a high school senior about to enterthe next stage of my life, going to university to obtain a degree in political science to protect thebeauty […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-14695","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.maryslibrary.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/14695","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.maryslibrary.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.maryslibrary.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.maryslibrary.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.maryslibrary.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=14695"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.maryslibrary.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/14695\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":14719,"href":"https:\/\/www.maryslibrary.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/14695\/revisions\/14719"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.maryslibrary.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=14695"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}