If you ask Keziah Scott’s friends and family to describe her, you’ll likely hear some of thefollowing words: Funny. Self-confident. Encouraging. Joyful. Helpful. Social. “I’m always looking to cheer and build other people up. And oh — I’m a morning person. If it’s 7:30 in the morning, I am the brightest thing in the room!”
Keziah graduated in June 2020 from An Achievable Dream Middle and High School. “Sometimes I can’t believe I graduated, I don’t feel any different. But I wake up in the morning and see my cap and gown hanging on my door and realize… I really did it.” Although graduation looked different for the Class of 2020, Keziah describes it as a great ending, regardless of what’s happening with COVID–19. “At the end of the day, even though we had to go on stage individually, I still saw my friends and got to celebrate with them. It was a great happy ending.”
In the fall, Keziah will head to Virginia State University where she will be studying music and visual arts with a future goal of becoming a music producer and eventually owning her own record company. Her plan is long-range. Her main goal after getting her bachelor’s is to go back to school for a business degree and begin building her client base in the recording industry. “I tell my friends, this journey is going to take a while and it doesn’t come free, so I’m going to work hard and slowly build the equipment and everything I need to succeed.” Keziah’s love for music and writing is the backdrop for her career goals, and she grew up with a musical family. Her father’s best friend has an in-home recording studio where she’s spent time laying down tracks.
Her journey with An Achievable Dream began in the first grade. “Everything motivated me, from the morning program to my teachers and the whole environment. I wasn’t super talkative. I kept to myself a lot. AAD brought me out of my comfort zone and helped me realize that I couldn’t keep to myself all the time because then how would I realize all the opportunities out there for me?” She gained confidence, making friends who are now more like brothers and sisters.
She speaks fondly of two staff members whose impact will always stay with her. “Ms. Gofney was my trigonometry teacher. She helped me bring out my true potential. I didn’t really consider myself a math person, but I’m actually good at it. Ms. Gofney helped me take it seriously. She helped motivate me and made me realize that it mattered. And Coach Overbey. She has been with me since day one. If I needed help, she was there. If my family needed help, she was there. She has been a great mentor, there every step of the way, always worrying about me, always keeping track of me. And she continues to worry about me and keep track of me!”
Although Keziah’s high school journey had plenty of obstacles — including helping support her family when her father was injured and out of work for a year — she continued to work hard, and received the Clif Hannah Memorial Scholarship her senior year. “This scholarship means a lot to me because it shows the faith that people have in me and it will allow me to attend college.”
“If I had to describe my time at An Achievable Dream in just a few words, I would say… phenomenal journey.”
And an important thing you should know about her? “I’m going to be great one day.”
Keziah’s story appears in our 2019/2020 annual report.