Chandra N. Crudup
Arizona State University
Doctoral Candidate

Over 35 years ago, an African American man with a scholarship to play basketball at Northwestern Nazarene College (now Northwest Nazarene University) aspired to be a Social Worker.  He never finished that dream, instead he ran off with the girl of his dreams to get married.  Little did he know that his first born daughter would pick up that dream and carry it beyond what he could ever imagine. She knew that her father did not finish college, but it was not until her freshman year at Azusa Pacific University when she called home to say she was changing her major from Communications to Social Work that she was informed of her father’s past aspirations.  Not only was she the first one in her family to graduate from college, she advanced to obtain her Masters and is now on a quest to go the distance with a doctoral degree. See, that girl is me, and my father raised me to always go above and beyond, do my best no matter what, and seek the Lord in all things.

As I continue forward with my educational and professional desires to begin researching and writing about biracial identity development, I look forward to continue to grow as a person in my faith.  I have taken that which was once my father’s dream, and have turned it into my own.  The Lord has taken the desires of my heart and is laying the foundation beyond what I could ever imagine. Completing this dream will be a challenge in many ways, including financially.

I currently have been accepted into Arizona State Universities Social Work Doctoral Program.  Going back to school presents a financial dilemma in finding a way to support myself going back to school (i.e. rent, utilities, food, bills, books, cost of program etc.).  It has been six years since I have been in school and I have not yet paid off the student loans that helped me through my first two degrees.  This Doctoral program is a full time program.  Usually the school of Social Work attempts to help first year students with most of their financial costs, so students do not have the burden of having to work as well.  Due to the universities severe budget cuts and increased tuition, ASU was not able to offer me a financial package for my first year in the program.  I currently am employed at two different locations. Upon the beginning of this program, I will only be able to be employed 75% time at one of those places.

As many others in the country, I too have lost my house within the last year to foreclosure.  I fail victim to an all interest loan and a bank that was not willing to help make payments reasonable in comparison to my income.  The support of the Love Images Ministries Scholarship will help alleviate the financial stress of the upcoming decrease in my annual income, student loans from my prior degrees, a foreclosure and lack of financial package offered by the university.  As I move forward in faith to begin this final chapter of my education, I trust the Lord will be faithful to complete it.