- In 1998, my mom signed away her parental rights to a boarding school for me.
- It allowed me to escape a cycle of poverty I don't think I would've been able to escape otherwise.
My single mom raised me and my sister in a trailer on $15,000 a year. That money didn't go far, even in rural Pennsylvania. By the time I was in eighth grade I hadn't seen a dentist in years, we had little to no access to doctors, utilities were shut off and turned on depending on whichever bill my mom could cover, and we ate whatever we could pick up at food pantries.
In 1998, I enrolled in the Milton Hershey School in Hershey, Pennsylvania, for financially and socially needy children. Going there was hard, but it helped shape my life for the better. My mother and I even got closer over the years I attended. I was able to escape a cycle of poverty that I doubt I'd have left otherwise.
I went from living with my mother to living with 11 other teenage girls and two houseparents. It was a tough transition that pushed me to the verge of depression for almost a year. I persevered, signing myself up for counseling services; working hard to keep up with schoolwork, chores, and school activities; and working through all the hard moments that can arise when one has that many roommates.
My mom had to sign parental rights over to the school. It was a legal formality in case of an emergency with a student, such as if they need a medical procedure. While I didn't pay that much attention to this detail on orientation day, later my mom talked about how hard that was, as it made the decision to send me to school concrete.
Living at school is not an easy experience. Still, I had many opportunities and resources — scholarships, internships, mentoring, chances to travel abroad and participate in summits and conferences, and more — at no cost to my family.
It wasn't easy
Attending the school was my decision. During a tour I heard it had a great drama program, and I was in. But my desire to escape the increasingly difficult environment of the public schools where I lived — knives and guns were starting to show up regularly — and protect my family's finances hardly prepared me for the transition.
Learning to live with so many other people and personalities and waking up at 5:30 every morning to do chores was daunting. At the student home I lived in, we had a lot of chores, drama, and homework. It was like living inside your high school all day long. It was hard, but I felt supported by teachers, residential staffers, and administrators.
I saw my mom only when she visited and on holidays. We talked on the phone weekly. Seeing my mom's determination to drive an hour and a half during the weekends just to see me for the day brought us much closer together. Some students, unfortunately, didn't see their parents again. Sometimes it was just too expensive for families to travel to pick up their kids for Christmas. I took my friends home with me when they couldn't go home themselves — one at a time, since there wasn't much room in the trailer.
I remain in contact with many Milts, as we call each other. Homecoming is open to all alumni, and this year was my class' 20th reunion. I love visiting the campus with my husband and children, seeing my co-valedictorian, and sharing stories with other alumni every year. When I introduced them to my husband at another Milt's wedding, they teased him about being kind to me, their sister. While he seemed confused, the Milts are indeed my family.
My life changed
Beyond academics, I learned life skills like how to balance a checkbook, how credit cards work, and how to manage my time. My education was paid for, as well as my healthcare, my braces, and even most of my college costs at Emerson.
My mother lived in the trailer until I went to college. Then she finally purchased a small home with my sister that she lived in until she died in 2012. She never made more than $21,000 a year.
I'm not sure where I'd be now or what my life would look like without those years as a Milt. I'm married, live in a comfortable house, work full time for a nonprofit, and run my own business.
The school isn't perfect, but I'm proud to be a Milt. Since college I've spent my career raising money to support nonprofit organizations, including advocacy to advance economic justice. I'm working every day to eradicate the poverty I was born into.
Rachel Mannino is the director of development at Family Values at Work.