Famous Frosh: Khadijah Williams, Another Homeless to Harvard
The adjective “Dickensian” is exactly three syllables too long to describe the typical Harvard application essay. Not so for that of Khadijah Williams, who overcame homelessness to be accepted to the class of 2013. (Finally, someone who won’t complain about being Quadded.)
In spite of her poverty, Khadijah graduated fourth in her class from Jefferson High School in Los Angeles. Her story is undeniably compelling. The media’s coverage of it, however, is less so. Khadijah was first profiled in the L.A. Times with an article that reads like the reporter took a pyramid-scheme screenwriting seminar over the previous weekend:
At the shelter, [Khadijah] was often bullied. ‘You ain’t college-bound,’ the pimps barked. ‘You live in skid row!’
Does this mean the Advocate will finally get some real grit? Read about Khadijah’s prom dress and a bundle of (really) shameless jokes after the jump.
In July, Vanity Fair covered Khadijah’s trip to the NAACP’s centennial celebration, where she was Julian Bond’s guest of honor. The magazine, with its typical journalistic rigor, cut right to the heart of the story: the edgy drama of finding something for Khadijah to wear.
…fashion designers Abigail Lorick and Keith Lissner…didn’t have anything lying around that would fit Khadijah….She couldn’t find a dry cleaner in Ithaca to take her sizes, and none of the drug stores she visited had a tape measure, so Lissner asked her if there was something that she had recently worn that fit her well.
‘I told him my BCBG prom dress,’ she said.
It’s a little alarming to see Khadijah so abruptly Eliza Doolittle’d into Spanxx and Swarovski with the shamelessness of a reality show makeover. This is more alarming.
Stay tuned for the next installment——matching a sorely disadvantaged African-American with unwelcoming WASPs is one historically demonstrated to cause hilarious tension. We wish Khadijah the best at Harvard, at least until the Cambridge Police arrest her for trying to get into her own home.
SHAMELESS JOKES
Why she’ll succeed in college: Can impress everyone on her FOP camping trip with her outdoor living savvy.
Her biggest obstacle: Coming up with a second, equally interesting fact about herself to use for icebreakers.
In ten years: Hospitalized following Adderall-fueled breakdown. Alternately, Secretary of Education.
Final club: Any with its own space.
Extracurricular of choice: Comping Spare Change.
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September 9th, 2009 at 12:57 pm
Why is every single story about Harvard? Why don’t you try covering the other seven schools as well?
September 9th, 2009 at 1:23 pm
Send us tips! We have several posts from other schools in our docket, but we can’t help it that the Cantabridgians are such easy targets.
September 9th, 2009 at 1:58 pm
Dean Cain, aka Superman, was on “Are you Smarter than a 5th grader” last week and only got $25,000 after he incorrectly quessed who wrote Robinson Crusoe. Suprised that isn’t on here.
September 9th, 2009 at 2:46 pm
I think all the stories are about Harvard because most of the active writers and editors are Harvard students, including the author of this piece. In addition, stories about Harvard tend to attract more national media attention. I believe this blog became popular when Yale’s Aleksey Vayner was in the news (Yale, of course, also plays well in nat’l media). I agree it would be great to see more stories from the other ivies, but it’s hard for this blog’s editors to ignore stories about the Ivy League that are already in the national (blog)press.
And if you are wondering why that is the case, consider that in many places in the United States, people have not even heard of Ivy League schools with the exception of HYP, or even just H. I once had to explain to a friend of mine that I went to “Yale, you know, like Harvard and Yale?” That is not a joke.
September 9th, 2009 at 6:18 pm
Nothing happens at Dartmouth :(
September 10th, 2009 at 6:54 pm
I am a 21 year old straight male. I hunt, play football, and shotgun beers in my free time.
This story made me tear up.
September 10th, 2009 at 7:30 pm
@darthmouth
Clearly you don’t go to Dartmouth, or you’d know that DARTMOUTH HASN’T STARTED FALL TERM YET. Patience.
September 11th, 2009 at 6:17 am
@KEGGY
I said nothing happens, not nothing is happening.
September 12th, 2009 at 7:58 am
She’s definitely won’t wanna leave the dorms if she’s homeless. Super senior anyone?
September 12th, 2009 at 5:51 pm
Tons of things happen, people just don’t care enough to report it with pictures to a blog.
October 31st, 2009 at 2:39 am
this shit is not funny.