A single mom and student at Harvard law school, Briana Williams wasn’t sure she would be able to get through to her degree. Going to Harvard and becoming a lawyer was her dream, but there were many challenges. How would she be able to juggle the needs of her child in her final year of school while working plus taking part in all the activities, classes, homework, and exams?
Imagine being in labor and successfully completing a tough exam at one of the top law schools in the country. Astonishingly, that’s just what she did! She went on to become the first in her family to graduate from college.
Although she isn’t a huge fan of social media, which she sees as creating a false overly glamorous version of life for many people, she shared a post on Instagram that connected with and inspired over 22,600 people at the time of this writing:
“I went into labor in April- during final exam period. I immediately requested an epidural so that my contractions wouldn’t interfere with my Family Law grade. And, with tears in my eyes, I finished it. This ‘biting the bullet’ experience is quite quintessential of my time at Harvard.”
Briana explained that although we can all celebrate with her today, it was extremely tough as a single mom. For example, she was worried that if people knew she had a child, they would perceive it negatively.
“I didn’t tell anyone that I had a baby,” she said. “I never missed any activity because I didn’t want anyone to think that me having a baby was holding me back.”
Somehow, she had to do it all. It was difficult finding childcare. Sometimes she had to bring Evelyn to class. Sometimes, she asked for help at the university with watching Evelyn until class was over. When it came to going to the doctor, she would try to squeeze in over her lunch break.
“To say that my last year of law school, with a newborn, and as a single mom was a challenge would be an understatement.”
“Some days I was so mentally and emotionally fatigued that I did not leave my bed. I struggled with reliable childcare.”
In the end, she did it all to ensure a better future for her child:
“Evelyn — they said that because of you I wouldn’t be able to do this. Just know that I did this BECAUSE OF YOU,” Williams wrote.
Now, she hopes to go on to be an advocate for others like her who have to beat the odds to achieve their goals in higher education. She’s joining a top law firm in Los Angeles, and her future is bright indeed.
And here is a video from Briana on Twitter, showing what it looked like to be in labor and taking a Harvard exam:
“If I become a teacher, I’m going to tell my students, ‘You guys have no reason not to freaking get this done, get your schoolwork done because I did it in labor. But you know what, I’m going to be really easy-going,” said Briana.
— Briana D. Williams, Esq. (@BrianaESQ) June 4, 2018
This woman is clearly a force to be reckoned with. Her example reminds us that with determination, we can overcome the odds but also that those odds are stacked very high against single women with children in higher education today.
As a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, this site may earn from qualifying purchases. We may also earn commissions on purchases from other retail websites.
