Meet the senior who got into all 11 colleges she applied for, including 5 Ivy League schools

By Peter Maxwell

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    WOODHAVEN, Michigan (WXYZ) — A local high school student is celebrating a remarkable academic achievement. Samarah Saggers applied to 11 colleges and was accepted by every one of them. Five of those acceptances even came from Ivy League schools.

Samarah told me that she has always believed in reaching for the stars. The senior at Woodhaven High School is president of her class, valedictorian, and she’s never given up on her dream of attending a top-tier college.

“When I first got into my first one, it was it was like, I don’t know how to even describe it. I was shocked, I was overjoyed and I was ecstatic, but most importantly, I didn’t believe it was real,” she said.

However, it was rel and a dream come true, not only that she got into all 11 colleges, but that she also got into the five Ivy League schools.

“I got into Yale, Princeton, Harvard, Brown and Cornell,” she said.

“Holy cow! How did you pull that off?” I asked.

“I don’t know. I ask myself that same question every day. I don’t know,” she said.

Samarah knew early on where she wanted to go and already knows her major.

“I Have currently decided Yale University in the fall. I am planning on studying cognitive science or computer science and psychology, and also getting a certificate in Spanish. I think I want to go to law school after,” she said.

I had the chance to find out how, from her mother, Sherry, who raised Samarah and her brother as a single mother.

“I saw the potential way back in elementary school and it followed through, all the way from middle school and high school where she was just so focused,” Sherry said. “I nurtured that. I prioritized for her her education rather than assigning her chores and things like that.”

Samarah’s story is a reminder that with hard work, determination and a little bit of luck, anything is possible.

“At the end of the day, it’s not necessarily what college you go to or what your plans are after high school, you still have the power and ability to make a meaningful impact on society,” she said.

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