Jada Sampson, 17, lives in Far Rockaway. She’s the senior class valedictorian at the Academy of Finance and Enterprise in Long Island City, and was supposed to give a speech at the school’s June graduation ceremony.
When my principal called earlier this month to say that I was class valedictorian, it was one of the happiest moments in my life. Being my school’s first African American valedictorian is a huge feeling of pride.
I’ve been picturing graduation for four years. My family would be there in their finest clothes, smiling at me, crying tears of joy. My great-grandmother is 95 and a Guyanese immigrant. She asked God to spare her life so she could see my graduation day and see me get a scholarship to college.
Waking up at 5:30 every day was tough, especially when I only got five hours of sleep after a long night of homework. My commute was 90 minutes to two hours each way by subway. If there were service problems, that meant missing breakfast at school. The school almost didn’t accept me, but my mom advocated for me.
Not every subject came easily. I failed a geometry midterm freshman year. But it taught me that I need failure to see what I’m doing wrong.
I have a lot to say in my speech — about my journey, especially because I used to be afraid of failing. But when you see what you’re doing wrong, you can fix it and do it better next time.
The school is planning a virtual ceremony and I’ll speak at that, but it’s not the same. Maybe I can be NYU valedictorian in four years.
— As told to Doree Lewak
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