Lesbian student Courtney Renwick needs your helpand all one has to do is watch YouTube.
Renwick, 26, is competing to win the Go, Learn, Succeed scholarship offered by her community college, Harper College, in Palatine. First prize is $1,500 and second is $1,000, and all she has to do is get the most views on the video she made and posted on YouTube.
The video features Renwick and her friends and family stating what they believe in. She said the video is very raw with few edits.
"I wanted to keep it that way because human life is often unscripted," Renwick said. "It's these very unscripted raw moments that make human life beautiful."
Renwick wanted to feature others' beliefs because "you need to accept everyone else's beliefs even if you don't believe in them."
After Harper, Renwick plans to transfer to a four-year school to earn her Licensed Clinical Social Worker ( LCSW ) degree, and incorporated some core principles of acceptance used in social work into her video.
Developed by Carl Rogers, an influential person in the field, the principles of empathy, positive regard and congruency are something Renwick takes to heart.
"I believe everyone has inherent dignity and worth," she said.
Renwick spent some time working for a corporation, but didn't enjoy it and left to return to school to eventually "do something in society."
The experience at Harper has been positive for Renwick. She said the school has a "phenomenal program" and is very LGBT-friendly, with a pride club and understanding instructors. She wants to transfer to a social work program at one of the several universities whose programs Harper helped to design.
Renwick will be working at an internship at the Palatine Opportunity Center this summer. The center offers crisis intervention services, women's programs and a summer camp. She'll be helping them to develop an aerobic walking program for low-income adults who don't have access to a gym or good health care.
She'll also be working with her program coordinator to develop more videos like her scholarship one to be used by the college.
After earning her license, Renwick hopes to stay in the Chicago area helping at-risk and low-income families.
"I'd also like to work with the LGBT community," Renwick said. "That's where my heart is."
People can follow Renwick on Twitter at @veggiecourtney or on Facebook in the Courtney Renwick Scholarship group. To view her scholarship video, visit www.youtube.com/watch?v=cs1ppPBHsc8&feature=youtu.be