[MUSIC PLAYING]
This scholarship afforded our scholars a loan-free education.
Ellen and Walmart definitely changed our lives.
All the things you taught me, I'm gonna do it in college.
You're gonna see how great I am at doing it, too.
I went from high school basketball
to college basketball.
It's a lot more competition and a lot more bigger guys,
a lot more faster guys, a lot more stronger guys.
I feel like I've been here for, like, three months.
In reality, I've only been here for, like, three weeks.
You know who would look great in this?
Me.
That's my friend.
In a community where only 4% of the kids
go to college, students come from homes where
the homes sometimes have no food,
these kids have overcome all kinds of things.
And all they want to do is go to college.
And we reached out to the people at Walmart.
They want to give each one of you a four-year scholarship.
[CHEERING]
I cannot wait to see in four years what these young people
are going to do.
I can't wait to see how we helped launch their lives.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
I need study sessions tonight.
I'm gonna start going to the library.
The library helps.
Yeah, 'cause me trying to study on my own never worked.
I've been in school for a month now.
Like, the environment, it's much different from Brooklyn.
Everyone's really accepting here,
and they do stuff differently.
So it's cool fitting in.
I was thinking about how the campus is actually not
as big as I thought.
Because we can walk from all the way out here--
It's 'cause we've been walking here for mad long.
So now you got used to it.
Yeah, we're used to it now.
We're usually out here playing basketball
till, like, 10:30, 11:00.
I don't have to hear my mom calling or texting me saying,
you've been playing basketball for too long.
You've got to come home now.
Let me see that, Kojo.
There you go.
You just now.
Game motion, game motion.
Bucket.
So we found out recently that Albany
has done a lot of recruiting.
They do have a 15-man roster.
So now they're filled on the team-wise.
But I'm always in the gym, always putting up
shots on myself.
My goal was always to be on the team,
and that's still gonna be my goal at the end of the year.
If it doesn't work out, I'm still
gonna be playing basketball.
And from there on, I guess I'll see what happens.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
Hi!
Oh, my god!
Hey, guys!
Hi, my babies!
We miss you.
We miss you guys, too.
Yeah.
How's it going?
Pretty good.
Everything's been good so far.
Have you met any new Miss Campbells and Miss Swifts yet?
No.
Definitely not.
That's what we wanted to hear.
The one and only.
Yeah, I got a B-plus on my first paper.
Excellent.
Congratulations.
That's awesome.
Very nice.
So how are we gonna change that B-plus into an A?
Going to office hours.
Ah.
Excellent.
Lovely, lovely, lovely.
That's excellent.
So our scholars, class of 2017, they
are constantly texting us, calling us, FaceTiming us,
sending us lots of pictures.
They're having a really great time.
All right.
Guys, take care.
We love you.
Bye, guys.
Bye.
Take care.
Bye.
Bye, guys.
Take care.
Knowing that our scholars are not struggling in college,
it's a tremendous feeling.
They have become acclimated to an environment that's
completely different from where they grew up.
And their motivation is based on wanting
to succeed for themselves, wanting to succeed for Summit,
and then wanting to succeed for Ellen, for Walmart,
and everyone else who is invested in their future.
How do you feel?
Well, I be kind of crazy, a little bit like a proud mama.
They look like little adults.
They look more mature.
They do look a little bit more mature.
Even though they're far away from us, they're not alone.
You know what I mean?
I miss them.
Yeah.
I miss-- every group has their own energy.
Sure.
This group, their energy was powerful.
You felt them in the building.
I'm just excited that someone else saw what we see every day.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
Melick's on the 10th, and Nyasha's on the 12th.
So we're going to the 12th.
It's like a routine now.
Every time I get out of class, let me just check up on Nyasha,
and then we're doing.
We're still close.
We still talk.
We have our occasional catching up.
It's definitely nice.
It's definitely helpful because it's like--
it's not only because we make each our own friends,
and then we go and we have this group.
Right now, it's just her whole suite
and I are just a whole family.
Are you guys doing bets.
Again?
Yeah.
She lost already.
What's the bet?
I don't want to talk about it.
Every time you win, it's like, oh,
you're just some holy child that so
happened to win Uno when you be cheating.
Shuffle the cards, please.
Why you being so hostile?
Yeah, I hang out with Melick a lot.
He's in my room a lot of the times.
I'm not really in his room as much.
But my suitemates, they say he basically lives there.
I'm the best roommate they got here.
Melick.
Melick is--
I pick up four.
He takes up a lot of space.
I kind of moved into her suite because no one
wants to be in a suite that has three rooms
and open space alone.
I mean, it's been clean and untouched for a while.
Nyasha's suitemates, they're really outgoing
and really charming people.
They don't care.
Like, they-- oh, hey.
Hi, Melick.
And when I'm not there, they really
question me as if I live there.
So I said, well, why not move in?
All his stuff is here.
See the name on the door?
Mine Mine.
We were gonna start charging him rent.
But--
Charging me rent?
Back when we all first moved in, I didn't really know him.
So it was kind of like, why is he always around?
Are they--
Who's this boy that always comes in?
Who is this boy that-- why is he not knocking?
He thinks he owns the place or something.
But he's always looking out for us, though.
He's cool.
Where the rest of y'all shirts at?
My shirt covers everything.
I don't know what--
This is it.
You missing the bottom layer.
Nyasha, you're missing half of your shirt.
You ain't talking.
You pulling up your pants not gonna make your shirt
get any lower.
Well, my stomach is not showing as much as--
I can see your belly button.
Listen--
Oh, exactly!
Where you sleeves at?
Yeah.
Hmm.
Oh, my sleeves.
And I wear the rest of my shirt.
My shirt is not all the way up here.
All right.
But it's all the way up there.
It's hot.
It's 90 degrees outside.
It's hot.
90 degrees outside.
We're not dating.
There's no update.
No, we're not dating.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
Ooh, this is our nursing building.
I'll get to take a lot of classes here next year.
I want to be a nurse practitioner in the cancer
department, with cancer kids.
I like to help people.
And cancer patients go through a lot.
So I want to be the person there that make them happy.
Oh, look at this.
Oh, look at the baby.
This is so cute!
I've never even been here before.
This is my first time really being here.
This is really nice.
I can't wait.
Look.
This is a needle.
OK, so look.
I know how to do this to him.
I'm gonna show you.
You take this, right?
And you take the needle.
You put it in his arm.
So this is where the IV go.
So you know-- you saw the things I just showed you in your room?
You twist it onto this.
And then this stands on top of the thing.
And then you have it up, and then it drips in.
And he has oxygen. Stethoscopes.
Best things ever.
It makes me excited to get to work because now, I'm
gonna really be doing it.
Like To even be a nurse, it makes me excited.
Yeah, I have a lot to learn.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
What's up, Ruddy?
Hey, bro.
What you doing right now.
I'm walking back to my dorm.
I want a bacon cheeseburger.
Ruddy, are you gaining weight?
No.
You want to see my body?
I'm not gaining.
Yeah, it looks like you're losing weight.
No one can replace Melick.
Not one person can replace him.
Melick has a special part in my life.
What's up, bro.
How's Purchase?
How's college?
Purchase is doing really well.
I'm having a good time.
Oh, you should come to culture shock.
Oh, you scared me.
Melick, drop that beat.
Hi.
Say hi to Sharinel.
Who's that?
Quincy.
Quincy!
Hi, Quincy!
In Summit, everybody knows everybody.
I feel like I still have a little connection of home here.
Guess who?
I'm recording for everybody.
Ruddy?
Yeah, sure.
Nyasha!
Hey, Quince!
I was like, wait.
Guess who.
Hey, what's up?
Hey!
Best friend.
What you doing?
Nyasha.
I do miss her a lot.
It's like she was my right-hand woman when
I was feeling low and stuff.
Quincy, I don't want you to go.
Please don't cry.
I don't want you to go.
I really do miss her.
My best friend.
Hey, girl!
Hey!
How you doing?
Hey, Kea.
Oh, Keanna!
I miss you, stink.
I miss you, Kea.
I miss you, Keanna.
I like how your head just took over the camera.
Who was that?
That's Nyasha.
Hey, it's me.
And that's Sharinel.
Hi.
Melick's like a brother to me.
He's gonna be great.
He's gonna be the best at everything he does.
He's gonna be the best 'cause I love him.
OK, Keanna, go take your nap.
Love you.
Say I love you too.
Love you!
I love you more.
I've spoken to almost the entire senior class.
I feel like they're still here.
They still call.
They still text, still have the same jokes.
And I feel like it's an easy transition having them
there with me.
So I was on the phone with my niece the other day.
And they're missing me and stuff back home.
And I do miss them, too.
But I know they're going to be next.
They're gonna make it out of the Hook next, which is--
it should be everyone's goal, you know?
I'm so glad I left an impact on their life
to have the same mindset and mentality as I do,
which makes me truly happy, you know?
I think I have become more independent
now that I'm in college.
I don't depend on my mom for everything.
I get things by myself now because I have to.
I'm not really sure if I've changed.
But I've felt like I'm becoming more mature because I
have responsibilities.
And all these responsibilities are
getting done because of me and not because of anybody else.
Growing up with both my parents, they've
always been on top of me.
And they're always like, oh, did you
do the homework for that night?
Here, they're just hoping I have that nice outcome.
And they're just expecting a lot from me.
And the onus is on me.
My mom pushed me so hard to finish school.
School is the only thing that Mom wanted me to do,
just do good in school for me.
Ellen made it possible for me to make my mom proud.
That's all I want to do, is make my mom and my family proud.
Being that Ellen and Walmart gave us such a good gift,
I'm really here.
I'm in college.
And I was thinking without that, where would I really be?
Probably taking out a lot of loans.
But I've put myself to a higher standard,
that if I got lower than a 3.5 GPA,
that I would feel like I'm letting everybody down.
Having this scholarship, it's definitely a motivation.
I'm here for a reason.
I'm gonna get what I have to get done.
I can't let my family down.
I can't let Ellen down.
Can't let Walmart down because these are the people that
invested in my time.
And they believed in me.
I have to work hard.
And I have to show them that this wasn't a mistake.
[MUSIC - COLDPLAY, "FIX YOU"]
Tears streaming down your face when you lose something
you could not replace.
Tears streaming down your face.
And I--
Tears streaming down your face.
I promise you I will learn from my mistakes.
Tears streaming down your face.
And I--
Lights will guide you home.
Ellen gave us a blessing.
We get to start something new.
It still doesn't feel real.
It changed my life.
I don't have to worry about how I'm gonna pay for school.
It's crazy.
[MUSIC - COLDPLAY, "FIX YOU"]