You are not your circumstances. That statement couldn’t be any more true for the phenomenal Trameka Pope, a Chicago high schooler who graduated at the top of her class at Chicago’s Wendell Phillips High School, even though she was homeless and a teen mom. After giving birth to her daughter when she was in the 8th grade, Trameka was determined to make her life count. “I didn’t give up. I pushed myself hard. And my baby motivated me every day because I wanted to provide for her and I also didn’t want to be a statistic,” Pope said.
And if graduating at the top of her class despite all odds wasn’t enough, she’s received over $600,000 in scholarships and over 26 college acceptance letters! What?! Talk about Black excellence!
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That age-old phrase, “It takes a village” is real! Trameka didn’t do this alone. Her support system primed her for success. Her high school guidance counselors helped her apply to college, staff from Chicago Public Schools took her on college tours and the rest was up to the ambitious and amazing teen. This is the kind of teen mom that MTV should be highlighting. Message!
Pope plans to attend Western Illinois University and hopes to get her Ph.D. in social work. We’re all the way here for her. Congrats! Way to teach your daughter that nothing is impossible!
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BEAUTIFUL NEWS: She Was A Homeless Mom, Now She’s Valedictorian & Stuntin’ With Stacks Of Scholarship Funds was originally published on hellobeautiful.com