From the small town of Middleton, Idaho, Cameron Black overcame an abusive childhood environment and turned his focus towards overcoming every obstacle he would face.

Black has been announced as an official semifinalist for the Jack Kent Cooke scholarship. With a 1.6% acceptance rate, he expressed his feelings about the upcoming decision.

“I’m excited. I feel like I’ve pushed every limit I possibly could — if I receive the scholarship I won’t have to pull thousands of dollars just to go to college,” Black said. “Leading up to this point my education has been entirely dependent on some form of financial aid.”

Back in May of 2020, Black traveled over a thousand miles to what he would come to call his home in Santa Barbara with his uncle, who he calls “Dad”, and his uncle’s partner, “Soul Mama.”

Rather than give in to what Black called the “closed little world” of his hometown, the new healthier living environment inspired him to study and receive his GED.

“I studied for a month on GED.com, took the practice test then I took the real test,” Black said, “In July I passed the GED in the top percentile, then I enrolled into SBCC because I passed here in Santa Barbara and I’m on the Promise Program.”

Black said he realized that his life experiences provided him with a heightened sense of empathy and compassion. As a double-major in psychology and public policy, he said his mission is to contribute to the psychological field and create a new model of understanding the systematic ideology of inter-generational childhood abuse.

Lacking a traditional education—Black was home schooled until he turned 13, then spent a single year in public schools—he said he leaned on “Soul Mama” for guidance in his first semester, ending up with a 4.0 GPA. He has maintained that mark for all four semesters at City College.

Black said he chooses not to take things for granted and believes his education is a privilege.

“He has brought an increased leadership skill set and a dynamic approach that has motivated the entire senate to get involved and accomplish its goals,” Christopher Johnson, associate dean of educational programs and student affairs, said.

Black has applied to Stanford, Harvard, Yale and Princeton.

“I applied to these places to surround myself with people who wanna see change in the world, who are willing to do what it takes to get there,” Black said.

Now, Black makes an impact remotely from Nīnole, a community on the Big Island of Hawaii, as part of the Associated Student Government.

“Cameron is a straight-up leader and someone always available to help. He knows what he wants in life and where he wants to be in the future,” ASG President Allegra Kabukapua Kalombo said. “I admire his capacity to overcome adversity, challenges and use that as fuel to achieve greater things. Cameron is the testimony that your past doesn’t define your future.”

As he continues his journey, Black moves on by taking notes from the past and towards a new frontier of taking the shame out of seeking help.

“Experience is the teacher of all things,” Black said, quoting Julius Caesar. “For I believe we are hardwired for adversity.”