Deanna Bowman
Myself Third Spirit of New York 2002 Scholarship Winner
Landmark High School
City College of New York
"Last year Deanna assisted me with our annual Senior Send-Off Ceremony, and she along with another student was in charge of creating all of the certificates. Deanna made sure that the students involved had a chance to share their ideas.… She consistently takes the lead in any activity she is involved in. She has a great deal of confidence in her abilities and is never afraid to 'step up to the bar.' … Her energy and drive is what students admire most. She has a way of motivating them to see her point of view.… Even though Deanna has a lot of responsibilities, she consistently strives towards excellence and has been one of our star students at Landmark High School."
—Daisy Fontanez, College & Senior Advisor
Work, Volunteer, and Extra-Curricular Activities
- New York Public Library
- The Lighthouse
- RCN Entertainment
Excerpts from Deanna's Essay
My understanding of civic responsibility is services done to benefit others, not yourself. It is also when you help others in need. I've been involved in both internships and community service activities. … I was asked to do community service for my school for a year and a half.… I was next placed in community service at The Lighthouse, a corporation that services the visually impaired.
I was placed to work with Stan, a GED teacher and tutor for the visually impaired. At first I was asked to retype directly from a GED book so he could enlarge the print and transform it to Braille, a form of reading for the visually impaired. After a few visits, Stan asked me to do something that would change my life forever.
Stan had a student, Charlotte. She was in her 40's, blind, and had never been taught how to spell. He asked me to teach her how to spell through speaking to her, and going over recorded tapes. It was GREAT! She didn't pick up correct spellings completely at first, so I decided to give her weekly quizzes. Eventually she aced them and we got along perfectly. I had to leave when June rolled around, and it was a sad goodbye. To help her out, I gave her a recorded tape of spelling words with my voice instead of the tapes Stan gave me to help her.
I feel I helped Charlotte, and I had fun while doing it. While working at The Lighthouse, I realized that they did so much for the visually impaired. They helped them get an education, found places for them to live, gave charity money, and much more. I was blessed to be a part of that environment and to help out Charlotte and others who were not blessed with two working eyes. I realized that when I go to college and beyond, it is my duty to help others that need it instead of just trying to gain an entry for my resume…
In the end, after doing this community service and learning such a great life lesson, I was able to identify civic responsibility.… I have made a pact with myself to do community service on my own.… I want to help out others who are less fortunate, or who just may need a little bit of help. I can tutor children in math and reading, pick up garbage to make the city look better, or even become a big sister for someone who needs a positive influence in their life. Who knows? The rest is up to me and no matter what I do, I'm going to take my civic responsibility seriously.
