How has your upbringing shaped where you are today?

• “In African culture everything is school school school, school again, oh you graduated, go back to school, you gotta get 5 degrees before your parents are even satisfied. But even though my parents did push that…them coming here and being immigrants and stuff like that, they had to work. They instilled that hard work ethic in me, as far as you gotta get stuff done, no matter what you gotta get it done. There are no excuses for anything. So, I would say that, they instilled, the hard work, never give up for any reason because we came from something that was a dire situation and we here now and making it.”

Why did you decide to go to college?

• “Man, honestly, I remember it like it was yesterday. It was senior year, I went to the student council office and I was like yo, I got nowhere to go to school at. He was like well you graduate in 2 weeks, I said yea..see I was one of those drunk in love guys so I was trying to chase the girl. Don’t do that. You learn. Don’t do that. The reason I went to college, my brothers went to college, my father went to college and l like I said in the African culture they push school school school. So, I knew I was going to school. My parents weren’t going to allow me to just sit in the house. That’s the reason why I went to school plus at the time I thought I was the greatest athlete in the world. So, I’m about to go to college, I’m about to turn pro and then yea.”

How has your perspective of college shaped from childhood into your adolescence?

• “Well I had a librarian, I remember this in 6th grade, she was like yea right now middle school is fun, when you get to high school its even more fun but when you get to college, its gonna be out this world. That right there made me think, I can’t wait till I get to college, this is gonna be so much fun. That’s the idea of college I had coming up as an adolescence. Fun.”

Post-graduation, what were your feelings and thoughts?

• “Day of graduation, it was exciting. Cause you know I was second born from my mom, who did it right, I went to college, got my degree. Then I’m sitting here like okay what Ima do? I felt like these 5 years went by fast, at 22 years old, now what. Do I go back to school or just go into the workforce? “

Was it worth the debt?

• “Nope. I would say yes again, occupation-wise, yes cause I wouldn’t be in the current occupation I am in without my degree. Everything else in life nooo cause it’s a headache trying to pay this stuff back and stuff is coming out my paycheck every month. No in that sense, but yes in occupation.”