By Thalya Samuels
High school junior Michaela Etienne is an optimistic student that aspires to succeed and do well. She believes that the key to perseverance is to find the joy in things. Etienne wants to emit positive energy and make everyone happy, even if it is really difficult. Despite her positive aura, she does not always want to be perceived as such because she wants people to see her as a firm and assertive person. She also has a predilection for soulful music. One of her favorite artists is singer and songwriter Julia Michaels.
Why do you think education is important?
Education opens doors to a bunch of opportunities for you. Because my parents were from a third-world country, but through education, they managed to come here and get a job and basically help improve my brother’s life.
School isn’t always easy. How do you find the motivation to continue and do well?
I have friends that just take the pressure off of me. I like to find motivation through finding sports or extracurricular activities. You just have to find the joy in some things.
How do you think having Haitian heritage influences your perception of the world and life, in general?
Being Haitian just makes me feel grateful for what I have, while a lot of people are struggling. Sometimes, being Haitian is a little bit of pressure because I just want to make it so that the people, specifically Haitian people can feel inspired and be like, “Oh, she did it from nothing.”
Where are you today and what do you think has contributed to that? Socially? Emotionally? Academically?
I am happy, really. My parents have contributed to that, they’ve supported me. My friends, they’ve encouraged me and they’ve kind of made fun of me which has made me want to be better.
What is your ultimate goal in life? (What do you want more than anything else? Not career-wise.)
My ultimate goal in life is to stay happy, stay stress-free, even though that may not be realistic. I also want to have an amazing family–I already have one–but I want to add more people to my amazing family.