Unheard Voices: College Admissions Essays by Students of Color
Unheard Voices: College Admissions Essays by Students of Color is a social examination of a non-fiction genre enmeshed in privilege. The focus of this collection falls on individuals who have not generally had equal access to higher education, yet who, as a part of the college application process, need to write in a way which could be completely unfamiliar to them, their family members, and many adults in their lives. This casebook of 30+ college admissions essays provides insight into the social realities for young people in a pivotal moment of their development. The essays showcase poignant coming-of-age stories; and contribute to a dialogue on how higher education can better represent this version of the American Dream. The foreword by Sanjay Mitchell, introductions, and reflection pieces that accompany each essay illuminate how higher education has fallen short of supporting these underrepresented young people, and offer an original perspective of the social dynamics of this writing genre, one that has come under greater scrutiny in years.
Stephanie Harzewski
Stephanie Harzewski earned a PhD in English with a certificate in Women’s Studies from the University of Pennsylvania. She is a writer as well and published a best-selling academic book, Chick Lit and Postfeminism (University of Virginia Press, 2011). Her recent publications include “My Father’s Gift” (March 2024, Boston Globe Magazine). In 2016, she received a Teaching Excellence award from UNH’s College of Liberal Arts, where she teaches full time as a Principal Lecturer in the English department. Stephanie has a long-standing commitment to young people, education, and philanthropy. Prior to co-founding Seacoast Test Prep in 2016, she taught SAT courses in for The Knowledge Roundtable. She has been an associate for the education consulting firm Future Quest Inc. since 2009, where she specializes in college admissions essay coaching.
Kpakpundu Ezeze
Dr. Kpakpundu Ezeze, who earned his Ed. D. from Harvard University, is the founder and President of Future Quest, Inc., a consulting firm that specializes in educational planning and college placement services for, primarily, first generation college-bound students. Dr. Ezeze has developed several partnerships that have helped thousands of students achieve their higher educational aspirations. Some of those partnerships include, The Washington Post's Good Sports Program, Prudential Securities, Solomon Brothers, AT&T, Blue Cross Blue Shield, the National Association of College Admissions Counseling, the Washington Tennis and Education Foundation and the College Information Center at the Martin Luther King Memorial Library in Washington, DC., to name a few. In recent years, Dr. Ezeze has conducted college planning seminars in Shanghai, and worked with families from Shanghai and Nanjing, as well as with several students in Brazil under the aegis of the Steve Biko Institute. Dr. Ezeze is the author of the best-selling guide Dream College: How to Help Your Child Get into the Top Schools (SuperCollege, 2010, 2016 2nd ed.).