Boy who walked three miles daily to library for five years gets accepted to 12 colleges

Lashawn Samuel has been accepted to 12 colleges and universities this spring. Some of the universities including his choice – The Ohio State University – have even offered him full scholarships.

“I was so excited that I was going to college,” Samuel said, NBC4i reported. “Even if nobody else accepted me, I had this in my pocket. I knew that I had done what I had to do to get into college and my hard work was paying off.”  

Samuel grew up in abject poverty to the extent that for five years, he had to walk three miles every day from his home to the Franklinton branch of the Columbus Metropolitan Library to get help with his homework. 

Growing up amid poverty, Samuel lived in a troubled neighborhood where his home was broken into countless times as well as witnessed his close buddy shot and killed, ABC6 reported. He is also said to have had battles with several health challenges which he overcame.

“I never would have achieved it without God, my family, my friends, and this environment I have around me,” Samuel said. “There’s always going to be a challenge or an obstacle that you’re going to have to overcome or grow out of,” he added. “But as long as you keep true to yourself and have faith and persevere so that you can overcome it, then you will.”

A true fighter, Samuel refused to be pushed off his life goals, trampling all the challenges he had to face on his way to being accepted to 12 colleges and universities in the U.S. He’s now the first in his family to go to college.

“The kid has tremendous perseverance and he just keeps going,” Kelly Young, one of the Homework Help associates at the Columbus Metropolitan Library told NBC4i.

“During a time like this, when we are all facing such uncertainty, I think Lashawn’s story can really teach us,” Young said. “Using the resources that are around us in our community and depending on each other, that’s just the way that we can all get through this pandemic and all the uncertainty of what lies ahead.”  

Samuel first received his acceptance letter from the University of Akron. Then several more including from the Fisher College of Business at Ohio State University, his dream school.