The Atlanta high school valedictorian who was barred from Georgia Tech because of his immigration status says he is thriving at college in Tennessee.
Marlon Portillo graduated this spring as valedictorian of Atlanta’s Carver School of Health Sciences and Research.
He had hoped to study engineering at Georgia Tech.
But because Portillo entered this country illegally as a 10-year-old, he couldn’t attend Georgia’s top public universities or receive federal financial aid or in-state tuition rates. And he lost out on the scholarships Georgia schools offer valedictorians.
His situation earlier this year sparked an outpouring of support. People donated more than $7,500 through his GoFundMe crowdfunding page to help fund tuition at a private school.
Portillo now attends Fisk University, a historically black school in Nashville.
He earned straight A’s his first semester and says he felt well-prepared for his classes.
The main thing he’s had to adjust to is studying alone, without the study groups he relied on in Atlanta.
“That was kind of hard, not having people to rely on,” he says.
Portillo still plans to double-major in computer science and math.
He says staff and Fisk have been welcoming.
“They tell me, ‘You’re here now, we support you,” he says.
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