- My next guest is a straight A student
from Atlanta, Georgia.
Who applied to over 40 colleges,
because she asked them to waive the application fees.
Well, she's been accepted to over 30 of those universities.
(Audience Applause)
And has been offered over
one million dollars in scholarship money.
Please welcome high school senior Kayla Willis.
(Audience Applause)
- [Kayla] Hello Mr. Harvey.
- I heard that you've accepted
a full ride scholarship already.
- Yes, I will be going to Fisk University
in Nashville, Tennessee.
(Audience Applause)
- [Kayla] I had to go an H.B.C.U. I had to.
- [Steve] You had to go to a H.B.C.U.?
- Had to, yes.
- But let's go back real fast.
Were you nervous about applying to the schools?
- Uh, yes. I feel like every high school senior
is nervous about applying to schools.
Because, you don't know where you're going to end up going.
You know, you take these tests and you take certain classes
to set yourself up for what happens after high school.
And unfortunately, I didn't make good SAT scores.
It kind of scared me, 'cause I was like,
okay, I know I have good grades, but are they just going
to let this one test determine what college I go to.
And I didn't want that for myself.
So that was my biggest fear.
This is really hard for me to take,
talking to you 'cause you're in high school.
And you're smarter than me.
(Audience Laughs)
That's throwing me off a little bit.
- Don't think I'm smarter than you.
I feel like you're a really wise man.
- Thank you for trying to make me feel better.
(Audience Laughs)
(Audience Applause)
What made you decide to ask them to waive the fee?
Nobody does that.
- Because the application fee costs so much, you know.
And I didn't want that to be the only thing that was
hindering my opportunities.
So I decided, well, what would be the easiest way
to get in contact with somebody to see if
I don't have to pay.
So I just called the Admissions Office was like,
"Hi, my name is Kayla Willis. How do I not pay
for this application?".
And they told me about the application fee waivers,
or how you do it.
And then I just started doing it.
Then I told my classmates and my schoolmates
and my friends like, "Hey, you know you don't have to
spend all this money for it.
All you have to do is just call."
(Audience Applause)
- [Steve] You went viral when you posted
this tweet right here that says,
"Someone said 'the whole world needs to know
how great you are'". Who told you that?
- [Kayla] My dad. I was going to work,
and I was like, "Do I really wanna post this
right now?"
He's like, "Post what?".
And I showed him the photo, and he's like,
"You know, the world needs to know how great you are."
So I decided to post it.
And this has lead to so many opportunities for me.
To actually tell people my story and give them
the insight on how to really gravitate and navigate
and just go through senior year.
'Cause senior year is really hard.
And worrying about colleges and college acceptances
and scholarships is a really tough pill to swallow.
But to make that pill a little bit smaller,
to go down your throat a little bit easier,
and me being the person to help you swallow that pill,
is really great.
(Audience Applause)
- [Steve] Okay. When you meet young people like this,
there has to be some great parenting going on somewhere.
Your mom is here in the audience.
Where is your mom?
Just tell me how you feel about your daughter.
- [Kayla's Mother] (Deep Sigh)
(Audience Applause)
- I am just grateful to God, for giving me
a wonderful daughter.
She has always been very humble, very determined,
very hardworking, very level-headed,
wonderful child.
I just kept telling her to keep doing your hard work.
Know where your blessings come from.
Just stay in His grace, because there's no limit
to what God can do in your life.
(Audience Applause)
- [Steve] Yeah. This young lady right here.
This is something else going on right here.
'Cause let me tell you what I heard.
They told me that you started multiple clubs
at your high school, and a lot of your messaging
is about self love and giving students
a kind of sense of community.
- [Kayla] Yes. I'm the founder of a club called
"Going Against the Grain", and we're a social club
for minority injustice within the nation
and we provide community service for all of our members.
(Audience Applause)
- [Steve] Let me ask you this.
Do you think politics could be in your future?
- Oh yes, most definitely. Um, I want to become
Mayor of Atlanta, Georgia.
(Audience Cheers and Applause)
- Yes. It doesn't stop there because hopefully,
and I really do hope,
I have a list of everything that I am going to do
to change the United States for the better.
Like, I have a whole list of what I'm going to do.
(Audience Applause)
Yes.
I even have a list for Mayor of Atlanta,
and then I have another list just in case
I become senator.
And then I have another list for president.
- [Steve] Everything you imagine, is possible.
And God puts the life he has for you
in your imagination.
I got some news for you though.
Can we roll the video? Watch that right there.
- [Keisha Lance Bottoms] Hi Kayla, and congratulations.
I'm Atlanta Mayor, Keisha Lance Bottoms.
We are so proud of your academic accomplishments,
and I know you will continue to be a great role model
during your time in college.
I too attended an H.B.C.U., and was thrilled to learn
that you've chosen Fisk University.
You've made us all so very proud.
And while the road ahead may not always be easy,
know that we are honored to be a part
of that great village, praying for you,
and cheering you on.
Best wishes and know that the best is yet to come.
(Audience Applause)
- [Steve] Now, Mayor Bottoms wants to meet you.
So while you're in Atlanta, I'm going to set it up
while you go down there and meet with the mayor.
We also heard that your siblings
got ahold of your laptop and they messed it up.
(Audience Laughs)
So, we reached out to our friends at Ting Mobile.
They're a nationwide cell carrier,
that helps you save money on your phone bill.
They were so inspired by your achievements,
that they wanted to help you write those college papers.
So they're gifting you with a brand new laptop.
- [Kayla] Oh wow.
(Audience Applause)
- That's your brand new laptop.
- Thank you. Oh, this is heavy.
- [Steve] Also, Ting Mobile shares your belief
that you can get the best in life for less.
They're also giving you a Motorola Z3 phone
and accessories.
(Audience Applause)
With that, plus four years of Ting Mobile service.
And that way you can keep in touch
with everybody at home, but that's not all.
Ting has one more surprise for you.
They know how expensive college books
and dorm decor can get, so to help you out,
they're giving you five thousand dollars.
- [Kayla] Wow.
(Audience Applause and Cheers)
- [Steve] Give you that.
Kayla, it was an absolute pleasure to meet you.
I think that every thing you see in your imagination,
will eventually come to pass.
That's an amazing thing that you've shared with
our audience today. So, thank you.
To learn about Ting Mobile and how you can start
paying for only the talk, text, and data
that you actually use, visit Stevetv.com.
We'll be right back folks.
Big hand for Kayla everybody.
(Audience Applause)