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| EDUCATING LEADERS OF FAITH & CHARACTER |
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Kahlil Peterson
Mathematics (major)
Philosophy (minor)
Cleveland, Ohio
Kahlil Peterson wants to fix what’s broken in inner city education. Specifically, he wants to ensure brighter futures for underprivileged youth.
He plans to do this by founding his own private secondary school. His goal is to provide an opportunity for disadvantaged students to become “great thinkers and doers,” he says. “I want to ensure that people with potential impact the world and advance to powerful positions in every area—politics, medicine, academia, religion—by getting them into the best colleges and universities in the world,” he explains.
Kahlil knows a thing or two about education. He was home-schooled and is “practically self-taught.” He says he was motivated by an “intense desire” to attend a prestigious college or university.
“UST provides an environment ideal for students to truly flourish. It’s been a long journey for me, but I’ve finally found an institution where I’m challenged intellectually, given the opportunity to build lasting friendships, and motivated to commit my time and energy to being of service by volunteering in the community,” he says.
“My horizons are being broadened by doing things I’ve never done before and learning things I didn’t know before—both in and out of the classroom. I’ve finally found everything I’ve wanted in a college,” he adds.
After graduating from UST, Kahlil plans to join Teach for America and earn certification to teach at the secondary grade level. He may also pursue a master’s degree in mathematics.
“There are kids like me who dream of attending one of the best colleges or universities in the world, and who yearn to truly make a difference in the world,” he says. “I hope to provide them with the opportunity to become truly educated and competitive, give them breadth and depth in knowing things about the world and themselves, and consequently enable them to set out to live their dreams, dreams they will come to know can be realized if they but do what is necessary to bring them to fruition. And in no way do I deem my goal unattainable.”
He’s learning through example—observing as his UST professors engage students in class discussions. He’s enjoyed history with Dr. Lee Williames. The professor’s passion for his subject comes through in every class, says Kahlil.
“Of all the teachers I’ve had in my life, Dr. Williames is absolutely one of the best. He makes the study of history relevant to his students and enlightens them not only to the impact of various events have on the course of history, but also on the important details of those events,” Kahlil explains. “He’s also very humorous and keeps his students engaged by lecturing in an intense, almost entertaining manner. Moreover, he’s very approachable outside of class and has given me very valuable advice pertaining to my future professional life.”
His favorite class so far has been ancient philosophy with Dr. Houser. He liked the way Dr. Houser explained the subject, got students involved, and forced them to think and come up with well thought-out responses.
“He’s entertaining, intense, and makes the material interesting, and the difficulty of comprehending the material also forced me to think at a higher level,” he says.
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