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When I Attended USC, I was on Food Stamps
The latest admissions scandal is no surprise to disadvantaged students.
In casual conversation with colleagues, I may mention that I’m originally from South Alabama and that I received my undergraduate degree from the University of Southern California. After this admissions scandal, I don’t want anyone to ask how I was able to attend USC ever again.
For most of my career, I was made to feel that somehow my admission to USC was a fluke. It was my first choice school and I ended up attending both the film school and the art school there. When I received my admissions letter in February 2003, I cried for joy along with my mother the rest of the day. All I had to read was “You Got In!” written on the cover of my admissions packet.
I previously discussed how I’m constantly asked how I attended USC and how mentally exhausting that question is, especially as a minority. The person who asks typically is a white person and given the difficult time I had as a student, I abhor the implication I got there by “affirmative…