- We are very blessed, here at Swarthmore
in having a tremendously
diverse student population.
Whether it's domestic minority students,
international students, first generation
college students, and
that livens the classroom.
- [Anyssa El Manfaa] My
mother's Palestinian,
my father's Moroccan.
They lived in south Philly, but in 2001,
when I was four years old, my father was
deported back to Morocco.
- Me on my own, two girls, 21 years-old,
what am I going to do?
My aunt, she said, "Your sole job is
to provide them with
stability and security
for their life."
I knew from a young
age, you know, she loved
books, and reading, and
trying to keep that,
you know, with her through her growing up.
- [Anyssa El Manfaa] I
graduate from high school.
I didn't know what I was going to do.
No one in my family
really went to college.
I failed my first semester, and I
have no shame in admitting that.
I had not idea what I was doing,
no clue how to do college.
I thought I didn't belong, and I
applied for a job to bakery.
I guess I was kind of
seduced by the paycheck.
- [Felicia El Manfaa] We as parents always
want more for our kids.
So no, I didn't want her
stuck in this 7-3 job.
Where will it bring you?
You know, are you truly doing
something that you love?
- [Anyssa El Manfaa] It
was a convention going on,
it was a mathematics conference.
There were people everywhere,
it was a huge line.
And in that line I
overheard this conversation.
A very specific topic,
or subtopic of physics,
that is very dear to my heart.
In that moment when I was there putting
the cake in the box, it just set off a
spark in my head again.
I just remembered that curiosity I had as
a kid and as soon as I
got up to the counter
to get their cake I said, "Hey, let's
talk about this."
I was ringing him up and he said,
"You know what? Take this."
And he dug in his pocket and
took out a $50 bill and he handed it me
and he said, "Why are
you working this job?
Got to school kid, you're all right."
I needed that change, so I quit.
I quit my job and I used that $50 and my
savings to go to school
at Community College
of Philadelphia.
I took Liberal Arts Honors
in community college.
My primary interest was on
International Relations.
- [Felicia El Manfaa]
This girl found her niche
and that's it.
- [Anyssa El Manfaa] So,
I had one semester before
graduation and I needed
to find a plan to fund
my transfer process.
Like, I knew scholarships were out there
but I didn't really hear of someone who
I could relate to who
had earned a scholarship.
I got the Jack Kent Cooke Undergraduate
Transfer Scholarship, and once I got that
It just opened the doors to everything.
Swarthmore offered the McCabe Scholarship,
and after that it was all over from there.
I said, "This place is taking care of me
so much", I'm so excited to start.
- [Sa'ed Atshan] Her story
is very inspirational
and I think that this is
someone who's tenacious
and hardworking, and super
intellectually curious.
- [Anyssa El Manfaa] I am
supported by a huge network
of faculty, students, student groups.
I have all the support in the world.
- [Felicia El Manfaa] For
other people who don't
have generations of college
education and things,
you can't be anything but proud.
- [Sa'ed Atshan] And I
see her in the future,
engaging in diplomacy, negotiations, I see
her as a bridge builder.
This is someone who's
going to be able to bring
people from different
walks of life together.
- [Anyssa El Manfaa] As a south
Philly kid, as a community
college student, as a
first generation student,
as the daughter of an immigrant,
all of these intersections I thought was
a type of identity that
would hold me back.
Well, I have to get rid of like attaching
myself to that now because I realize that
there's a really bright future ahead.
