Westerville Central High School senior Levi Burks and excerpts from her Common App essay were featured in a New York Times article that examined personal essays seniors from all across the country wrote for their college applications.
The March 17 article, “‘When Normal Life Stopped’: College Essays Reflect a Turbulent Year,” examined admission essays from more than 900 seniors and found common themes: the pandemic, race, family and loss.
Burks’ essay wrestles with the conflict between her admiration for her father, a police officer, and the negative image of the police.
“When I was young, I imagined him always being a hero to others, just as he was to me,” she wrote in her essay. “How could anyone dislike him??? However, as I have gotten older and watched television and social media depict the brutalization of African-Americans, at the hands of police, I have come to a space that is uncomfortable.”
Read the New York Times article here. Read Burks’ essay here.