MARIETTA, Ga. — This year’s Marietta High School valedictorian is sharing how he beat the odds and became a star student.
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Kaleb Whitlow credits his success to the village that helped raise him during the most challenging times of his life.
Whitlow grew up with his grandparents in another state before he moved to Georgia to live in a single-parent household with his mother.
Growing up, some kids may go after popularity, others may choose to get caught up with the wrong crowd, but Whitlow chose the path of academic success and mentorship to his peers.
“It’s so important that you overcome challenges to reach your goal. An obstacle should not be something between you and what you desire the most. The promise I made to myself and my mom pushed me and propelled me forward,” Whitlow told Channel 2 Cobb County Bureau Chief Michele Newell.
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Whitlow has a long list of accomplishments, which includes being the school president. He is biliterate in Spanish and a member of numerous clubs and organizations, including Habitat for Humanity.
Whitlow was a drum major for three years and has played the saxophone since he was in the sixth grade.
For a school project, Whitlow chose to create something that could help the homeless population.
“It’s sort of a wagon that can transform into a temporary shelter for the homeless population. It’s reversible. It’s so important to me because I hate it when you see homeless people,” Whitlow said.
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Whitlow credits his success to his family and the mentor who has believed in him since he was in middle school.
“He believed in me. He’s like you’re going to actually be great as long as you keep putting in the work. We manifested a lot of things too, just like words of wisdom on the wall,” Whitlow said.
With a 4.68 GPA, Whitlow is headed to his dream school, Georgia Tech, with numerous scholarships to help with tuition.
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