>> THIS SEGMENT IS PART OF OUR

CHASING THE DREAM INITIATIVE ON

POVERTY AND OPPORTUNITY IN

AMERICA.

APPROXIMATELY 100 HOMELESS HIGH

SCHOOL STUDENTS ARE LEAVING THE

CITY STREETS AND SHELTERS, AND

THEY'RE HEADED OFF TO COLLEGES

AND UNIVERSITIES, INCLUDING SOME

PRESTIGIOUS INSTITUTIONS SUCH AS

HARVARD AND COLUMBIA.

BUT JUST HOW DID THESE YOUNG

PEOPLE THRIVE AMID THEIR

CHALLENGES?

WELL, THEIR OWN GRIT AND

INTELLECT PLAYED A PART.

JOINING US WITH HER OWN PERSONAL

STORY OF BEATING THE ODDS IS

ATHENA.

IT'S NICE TO HAVE YOU WITH US.

WE'RE GOING TO START OFF

CONGRATULATING YOU BECAUSE

YOU'RE ON YOUR WAY TO HARVARD

UNIVERSITY.

>> YES.

>> AND THAT'S WONDERFUL FOR YOU.

THAT'S SO EXCITING AND

REFLECTIVE OF YOUR

ACCOMPLISHMENTS.

FIRST QUESTION FOR YOU, WHAT

THOUGHTS ARE GOING THROUGH YOUR

MIND AS YOU ARE ABOUT TO CLICK

ON TO FIND OUT IF YOU'RE GOING

TO HARVARD OR NOT?

>> SO, I WAS ON THE TRAIN HEADED

HOME, AND IT WAS 6:00 P.M.,

MARCH 28th, RIGHT WHEN THE

DECISION WAS RELEASED.

AND I WAS GOING THROUGH ALL MY

COLLEGE DECISIONS, AND AS SOON

AS I SAW IT, LIKE I SAW THE

ACCEPTANCE, THERE WAS A LITTLE

CONFETTI GOING ON THE SCREEN.

SINCE I WAS IN THE TRAIN, I

ACTUALLY LIKE --

>> HOW DO YOU JUMP UP AND YELL

WHEN YOU'RE SITTING ON THE

TRAIN?

>> EXACTLY.

I ENDED UP CALLING MY FRIEND

BEFORE I LEFT THE STATION.

I WAS SUPER EXCITED.

I GOT INTO HARVARD!

>> CONGRATULATIONS, AN

ASTONISHING ACCOMPLISHMENT.

I THINK THE NUMBERS NOW ARE IN

THE 40 THOUSAND APPLICANTS TO

TAKE ABOUT 12 OR 14 HUNDRED

STUDENTS.

SO IT'S AN EXTRAORDINARY

ACCOMPLISHMENT.

SPEAKING OF EXTRAORDINARY

ACCOMPLISHMENTS, WE LED THIS OFF

SAYING THAT, HAVING BEEN IN

HOMELESS SHELTERS.

EXPLAIN YOUR STORY, HOW YOU GOT

THERE.

>> SO ABOUT A YEAR AND A HALF

AGO, MY MOTHER AND I DIDN'T HAVE

ANY MORE MONEY TO PAY THE RENT.

AND WE WENT TO PATH, WHICH IS

RUN BY DHS.

AND THEY GAVE US A SHELTER

LOCATION AND WE PRETTY MUCH HAD

TO JUST GO THERE, LOG IN, SEE

HOW IT WENT.

AND IT WAS DEFINITELY SCARY

BECAUSE I DIDN'T KNOW WHAT TO

EXPECT.

THERE'S A LOT OF STEREOTYPES AND

KIND OF JUST EXPECTATIONS THAT

COME.

>> WAS IT DIFFERENT WHEN YOU GOT

THERE FROM WHAT YOU EXPECTED?

>> DEFINITELY.

>> HOW?

>> IT WAS A LOT BETTER.

>> IN WHAT SENSE?

>> WELL, IT WAS VERY CLEAN.

THERE WEREN'T ROACHES, THE

PEOPLE WERE NICE, MOST OF THEM.

I MEAN, I DIDN'T REALLY RUN INTO

ANY PROBLEMS.

>> AND HOW LONG THEN DID YOU

SPEND IN THAT FACILITY.

>> I'M STILL THERE.

>> OKAY.

>> SO IT'S BEEN A YEAR AND A

HALF.

>> HOW DID YOUR --

LET ME ASK YOU THIS QUESTION.

BETTER QUESTION FIRST, WHAT SORT

OF MISPERCEPTIONS DO YOU THINK

THERE ARE OUT THERE AMONGST THE

PUBLIC?

BECAUSE YOU SAID THIS IS VERY

DIFFERENT FROM YOUR OWN

EXPECTATIONS.

WHAT SORT OF MISPERCEPTIONS

AFTER HAVING SPENT NOW A YEAR

AND A HALF THERE, DO YOU THINK

THERE ARE IN THE MINDS OF THE

PUBLIC?

>> WELL, ESPECIALLY IN NEW YORK

WHEN YOU WALK AROUND AND YOU SEE

HOMELESS PEOPLE AUTOMATICALLY

THAT'S WHAT YOU THINK BEING

HOMELESS MEANS.

SO YOU THINK OF A SHELTER AND

YOU THINK IT'S FILLED WITH

DIFFERENT PEOPLE AND IT CAN BE

SCARY BECAUSE --

>> YOU CAN THINK PEOPLE HAVE

DRUG PROBLEMS.

>> PEOPLE CAN HAVE DRUG

PROBLEMS, MENTAL PROBLEMS.

BUT SINCE A LOT OF PEOPLE WHO DO

GO INTO SHELTERS ARE FAMILIES.

AND GENERALLY THE FAMILY

SHELTERS, EVEN THOUGH IT'S STILL

A SHELTER, IT'S NOT AS BAD AS

YOU WOULD EXPECT.

BECAUSE LIKE I SAID, IT WAS

CLEAN, AND PEOPLE THERE ARE

TRYING TO GET JOBS.

LIKE, THEY DON'T WANT TO BE

STUCK THERE.

THEY'RE NOT LAZY.

IT'S JUST CIRCUMSTANCES DIDN'T

LINE UP FOR THEM.

>> IT'S INTERESTING THAT YOU SAY

THAT BECAUSE WE'VE TALKED WITH

FOLKS FROM THE DEPARTMENT OF

HOMELESS SERVICES IN THE PAST

AND I THINK THAT ONE OF THE

NUMBERS THAT SURPRISED A LOT OF

PEOPLE IS THAT SOME 70 PERCENT

OF PEOPLE WHO ARE BEING HOUSED

UNDER THEIR AEGIS, IF YOU WOULD,

ARE FAMILIES.

AND OUT OF THAT, A FULL THIRD OF

THEM ARE ACTUALLY WORKING

FAMILIES.

>> EXACTLY.

>> SO THESE ARE NOT PEOPLE WHO

ARE JUST SITTING, HANGING AROUND

AND NOT DOING ANYTHING.

THEY'RE WORKING.

BUT FAMILIES WHO FOR SOME REASON

THE NUMBERS JUST COULDN'T

STRETCH FAR ENOUGH.

>> YEAH.

>> ARE YOU COMFORTABLE TELLING

YOUR FRIENDS THAT THAT'S WHERE

YOU ARE.

>> WELL, PERSONALLY, I HAVE

FRIENDS THAT I DEFINITELY TRUST

SO I HAVE TOLD THEM.

BUT I THINK IT REALLY DEPENDS

WHO YOU'RE SURROUNDED BY.

BECAUSE I WAS SURROUNDED BY

LIKE, MY HIGH SCHOOL HAD A LOT

OF PEOPLE THAT WERE VERY

ACCEPTING.

LIKE, A LOT OF ARTISTS.

>> FIORELLO LAGUARDIA HIGH

SCHOOL WHERE YOU DID, BY THE

WAY, 4.0 CAPTAIN OF THE

GYMNASTICS TEAM.

ALL SORTS OF THINGS THAT YOU

WOULD EXPECT FROM A HARVARD

STUDENT.

>> YEAH, THANK YOU.

AND SO I DIDN'T REALLY HAVE A

PROBLEM.

BUT I HAVE MET OTHER PEOPLE

THAT, JUST THE HIGH SCHOOL THEY

WENT TO, THEY DIDN'T FEEL AS

COMFORTABLE SHARING THAT

INFORMATION SO NONE OF THEIR

FRIENDS KNOW ABOUT IT.

BUT FOR ME PERSONALLY IT WASN'T

TOO MUCH OF A PROBLEM.

OBVIOUSLY WE DIDN'T JUST GO

AROUND SAYING HEY I'M HOMELESS.

>> I MENTIONED AT THE TOP

TALKING ABOUT APPROXIMATELY A

HUNDRED STUDENTS, AND THE CITY

RECOGNIZED THE HUNDRED OF YOU.

AND YOU ACTUALLY MADE SOME

COMMENTS AT THIS.

AND YOUR COMMENTS WERE SO

THOUGHTFUL AND SO PERCEPTIVE.

HAVE YOU FORMULATED IN YOUR MIND

YET WHAT YOU WANT TO STUDY AT

HARVARD AND WHAT YOU THINK YOU

MIGHT WANT TO DO AFTERWARDS?

>> WELL, I'VE BEEN PLANNING TO

STUDY COGNITIVE SCIENCE AND

COMPUTER SCIENCE.

I'M NOT EXACTLY SURE WHICH

DIRECTION I'M GOING TO TAKE BUT

I FOUND THOSE BOTH INTERESTING.

AND I'M ALSO GOING TO BE

STUDYING RUSSIAN BECAUSE I TAKE

A BIG INTEREST IN LANGUAGES.

>> GREAT, SO YOU'RE GOING TO

HAVE ENOUGH TO KEEP YOU BUSY.

>> YEAH, DEFINITELY.

>> WELL, YOU ARE A MARVELOUS

SUCCESS STORY.

>> THANK YOU.

>> AND YOU SHOULD BE PROUD OF

YOURSELF, AND YOUR MOTHER SHOULD

BE PROUD OF YOU.

I'M SURE SHE IS.

AND I THINK WHEN YOU LOOK AT,

AND FOR THE CITY GOVERNMENT AND

THE DEPARTMENT OF HOMELESS

SERVICES, THEY CAN LOOK AT

SOMEBODY LIKE YOU AND SAY, SEE?

THIS IS WHAT WE'RE DOING HERE TO

HELP PEOPLE MOVE ALONG.

SO AGAIN, CONGRATULATIONS.

WONDERFUL ACCOMPLISHMENTS AND

GOOD LUCK AND HAVE FUN UP AT

CAMBRIDGE.

>> I WILL.

>> TAKE CARE.

>> YOU TOO.

♪♪