Dayvon Daniels College Tuition

My name is Dayvon Daniels, and I am the first in my family to attend college. I want to thank all the people who supported me in attending Newman University in Wichita, Kansas this past year and ask for your support in helping me get through my second year.  I am proud of how much I grew this year. I struggled in the beginning of the year adjusting to the weather, sickness (I have asthma and was actually hsopitalized for a few days), and being alone in a new place. I didn’t do as well as I had expected or wanted to do in my first semester. But then great things started happening. I started meeting people and eventually got a job as the Newman University Men’s Basketball Team Manager. I established a good relationship with most of my professors even though I was struggling in my classes, and they in turn pushed me do better.  A local Wichita family, the Levels, also helped support me by having me over for dinner during the year and helping me purchase winter clothes.

Starting second semester I was a lot more comfortable with my new surroundings, and I had built a good base around me. My friends pushed me to do better and held me accountable, and so did the members of the basketball team and the coaches. I was doing great and my second semester grades were becoming stronger than my first semester grades, until tragedy struck. I had to endure the loss of my mother. I had not seen her in more than a year, maybe two, and did not know where she was living or what her health issues were.  I simply got a call from a relative who told me she had passed.  It was really hard especially since this happened right around Finals week. I kept it to myself because I didn’t want anyone to know what I was going through and I didn’t want to burden any of my friends who were studying for finals.  My grades suffered a bit, because I couldn’t concentrate much on studying that week, but I was able to maintain a healthy GPA and did a lot better second semester.

A few days after I got home to Los Angeles for summer, my grandmother passed away, my mom’s mother. She was the person who felt most like family to me. So these last couple of months have been rough for me, but I will endure like I have done plenty of times before.

 I really want to go back to Newman University next year because I have built friendships with great people. I connect with the teachers, staff, coaches, athletes and administration at Newman and they all want to see me succeed. I hope to get the manger position again which allows me to have spending money for going out with my Newman friends and helps me to establishing more connections. The quality of life at Newman is so much better for me than the options I would have if I were to stay in Los Angeles.

Some days I can not believe that I actually got through my first year of college.  I want to thank those of you who supported me this year because without those of you who have donated to my tuition I know that none of this would be possible. Newman has allowed me to keep my scholarships even though my grades were not as strong as they (or I) would have liked. They believe in me and I hope you will too. I will once again take out a student loan of $5500 for my second year, and I must raise the remaining $11,000 to cover the rest of tuition room and board. I hope you don’t mind me reaching out and asking you to support me again so I can get through this next step in my education.

Gratefully and Sincerely,
Dayvon Daniels