When you think of Harvard Law School, a few things probably come to mind—wealth, prestige, distinguished libraries, maybe sweater vests. You likely wouldn’t conjure a picture of a sanitation worker getting up at 4 a.m. to clean dumpsters and sort trash before school.
But, then, you don’t know Rehan Staton.
While getting into Harvard Law School is no easy feat for just about anyone, Rehan, whose single-parent family was poor, truly had his work cut out for him. And he doesn’t take all the credit either—he gives most of it to the people around him.
The 24-year-old college student told Today, “After going through everything that we did as a family, I just felt that we got into Harvard, and like, I just can’t even explain it. It was ‘we.'” The community around him made all the difference, he says.
Rehan admits he was “hungry for more” after living through years of family struggles and poverty. While growing up in Bowie, Maryland, his mother abandoned the family and moved out of the country when he was 8-years-old. However, that was also when he began learning the value of hard work. His father had to labor at multiple jobs to support Rehan and his older brother, Reggie.
Those times tested the family as a whole. As Rehan’s grades slipped, he channeled his energy into sports. He excelled at boxing and martial arts and won national and international competitions which he hoped would become his way out of poverty—but a rotator cuff injury would derail those plans completely.
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After years of struggling, Rehan’s high school grades were so poor that he was rejected from every college he applied to. So, instead of heading off to college at 18, he took a job at Bates Trucking and Trash. Most of his colleagues there had been formerly incarcerated. For many individuals, taking the job would feel like an utter low point. But for Rehan, it was when his life began to turn around.
“It was the first time in my life a group of individuals that weren’t my father or my brother just came around me and… really just empowered me, uplifted me, told me I was intelligent.”
He believed the hype, when his coworkers urged him to go back to school, and one of the company owners, Brent Bates, helped him enroll in Bowie State University. Rehan earned a 4.0-grade point average and was able to transfer to the University of Maryland.
But Rehan’s struggles still weren’t over. During his junior year at Maryland, his father suffered a stroke, and Rehan had to return to work at Bates in order to save their family home. Many people would’ve given up, but he doubled-down on his schedule. Instead of dropping out of school, he woke each day at 4 a.m. to work his sanitation shift before class.
He graduated in 2018 with accolades, and was chosen to give a student commencement speech. When he took his LSAT test, he scored exceptionally well—in the 80th percentile—and began applying to law schools.
Rehan set his sights high—on Harvard.
Luckily, because that school comes with a hefty price tag, the young man found another supporter. Carmie McCook, a communications coach who calls him her protégé, started a GoFundMe page to help him with the cost. The initial goal was $75,000, but it surged to over $185,000 in donations. Carmie wrote on the page. “I felt incredibly strong empathy and admiration from him. A bond was formed and I told him I’d always be there for him if he needed me for anything. He now calls me ‘Ma’.”
When it came time to finally hear the news whether Harvard had accepted him or not, Rehan recorded the moment on video. With his brother sitting next to him, he opened the notice on his computer—and their reaction was pure joy.
“Yes, Rehan is smart, but what makes his achievement even more admirable is his courageous journey to this moment,” said his mentor.
While most people heading to Harvard Law have the grades, the financial support, and maybe the sweater vests, Rehan just had his own painful story to stand on—the same story that makes him an inspiration.
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As a note GNN seems very awesome, I think one of my kids’ school classes was an assignment to do a report on a “good news” article from GNN LOL. Nice!
Awesome to hear that, Roger! Thanks for sharing.