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Before I became a student at the University of Washington, I went to prison.
At the age of 16, I was enticed by the idea of a life of luxury and began my involvement in bank fraud. I got money, fancy cars, and up until the age of 21, a taste of a life I never thought was possible while growing up in crack houses, foster homes and homeless shelters throughout the Pacific Northwest.
It was my first offense, but the prosecutor wanted to give me decades in prison, charging me with 30 felonies with no plea agreements. I ended up being incarcerated for nearly two years, but the collateral consequences of my felony convictions would stick with me a lot longer. People warned me there would be no opportunities waiting for me on the other side, that a criminal record is something you canât come back from. But when I got out of prison, I flipped my GED into a masterâs degree, earning four degrees in all, including three from UW Tacoma. I have since become an educator, a public speak