18-year-old, Michelle Harvey has set a record as the first female black valedictorian of Thomas R. Proctor High School, United States.
Her achievement comes 25 years after the school’s first Black valedictorian, who was male, and she now holds the title of only the second Black valedictorian in the school’s 72-year history.
In recognition of her academic excellence, Michelle was awarded a scholarship to pursue her undergraduate degree. ”I don’t consider myself the smartest kid. It’s just the fact that I’m not lazy. I’ve been up many nights studying,” Michelle said.
“The reason I stand out is I work harder than other kids. Growing up in the neighborhood, I was hanging out with a lot of kids who were lazy. They were smart, but they chose to do other things,” she added.
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Michelle got her determination from her mother, who grew up “in the projects” in Rome, and her motivation from her father, an ex-military man who died while she was in school.
“He was always proud to see us get good grades, and then we’d strive harder to make him proud. I just really wanted to push hard and do my best for him,” she said.
Michelle’s outstanding performance earned her a National Achievement Scholarship and acceptance to Vassar College, New York, in the United States. She hopes she can inspire other students who think they can not succeed because of their backgrounds or personal challenges.
“I’m more relatable to a lot of people. I grew up in the same place as everyone else. There’s nothing special in my background; I’m not fancy … I really feel like I’m setting an example, like if I can do it, they can do it, too,” she said.
With the scholarship, Michelle will study for a bachelor’s degree in Neuroscience and Behavioral Studies at Vassar College, United States.
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