The Brown sisters Scholars San Diego

Being a part of the military means making sacrifices on a daily basis – missing important events like holidays, birthdays and anniversaries. Sacrificing things most families take for granted is one of the most challenging parts. However, being part of the military has taught us that family extends beyond blood relations. We have met lifelong friends who understand the sacrifices families like ours make.

We all graduated from Oceanside High School where we were involved in many different activities like the dance team, volleyball, track, basketball and orchestra. All of us are first generation college students and we all graduated from a community college before transferring to California State University San Marcos. Brandy is studying Psychology and plans to get her Ph.D. with the goal to work with brain injury patients. Shawntae is studying Sociology with an emphasis in Critical Race Studies and would like to teach at a community college and publish her own research. Brittany is studying Biology and plans on attending the accelerated BSN (Bachelors of Science in Nursing) program where she would like to specialize in Oncology.

Our dad has always stressed the importance of applying for scholarships to help pay for the rising costs of higher education. Having three first generation college students attending school at the same time would have been a huge financial burden had we not been introduced to the Marine Corps Scholarship Foundation.

Organizations like the Marine Corps Scholarship Foundation impact the lives of those who sacrifice the most – military families. They stay true to their promise of honoring Marines by educating their children and have allowed us to network with students and professionals who are facing the same challenges we face on a day-to-day basis. Not only has the Marine Corps Scholarship Foundation supported us financially, they have also taught us how to make the most out of our college experience. They have impacted our family in more ways than one, but the most important was allowing us all to dream big and not let the cost of education get in the way of reaching our goals.