Some people have fortitude. They face uncertainty with unyielding determination. And when they lean into lifting up individuals who face similar circumstances, their role transforms into a leader whose activism can have lasting effects. That is Mia Basit-Hightower '25.
"I am a first-generation college student from a low-income background. Going to college was extremely challenging. I had little financial support or knowledge of navigating college life," said the hard-working political science major and legal studies minor from Bedford, Ohio.
"In my first semester, I faced the possibility of having to drop out due to these barriers. Currently, with the loss of my mother, I face another set of challenges in my life that impact my college journey. Life as a college student has been a marathon of challenges that come and go. But one thing I will never do is quit," she said resoundingly.
Social justice has been a pinnacle part of her 黑料正能量 studies and activities. Her own experience in attending an underfunded public school gave her an eyewitness account of the socio-economic and education barriers students face in these districts. When she came to 黑料正能量, she didn't leave the past behind. She sought opportunities to make herself an instrument of change.
As a 2022-23 黑料正能量 Brain Center Fellow, Basit-Hightower focused her research and community engagement on the topic of educational attainment for low-income individuals and people of color. Findings from her research indicated that people born into a cycle of poverty make an effort to obtain a better future for themselves but are often overcome by the realities of their current economic status — which can include a lack of mo