1499-character version (out of 1500 character limit): Brown – Public Service
1997, Prague. I dreamt of becoming an author who will be read by every child around the world. My dream, however, shattered within minutes as a Discovery Channel documentary told me that children were being forced away from schools to work in sweatshops, never getting a chance to learn to read...

356-word version: John Hopkins - Sociology
1997, Prague. I dreamt of becoming an author who will be read by every child around the world. My dream, however, shattered within minutes as a Discovery Channel documentary told me that children were being forced away from schools to work in sweatshops, never getting a chance to learn to read...

459-word version: Cornell – College of Agriculture and Life Sciences - Sociology
...Although my decision and aspiration to end illiteracy and bring hope to children never waned, as I grew out of my innocence, however, I realized that my mission was much more complex than I naively thought...