FROM POVERTY TO PROFESSORSHIP - Jamaican rises from the gutters

Dr Karlene Richardson has risen from the gutters to glory. In fact, that is the name of her 2014 autobiography, which details her struggles and successes after she left Jamaica to live in the United States (US) with family members. Today, she has managed to overcome the extreme hardships that life threw at her and is currently the principal at Bunker Hill Academy in Connecticut and a professor at Alfred University in New York.

"I lived with my grandparents from I was eight years old. My mother left my sister and I with them, but they gave us the best life possible. We lived in Franklyn Town, Kingston 16, and they basically gave us the childhood that every child desired," she said.

She told The STAR that although her grandparents treated her well, she had a longing to be with her mother, so at age 13, she made a very daring step.

"I was attending Camperdown High School, and one morning, I remember putting on my uniform, but instead of going to school, I went to the American embassy and I was granted a one-month visa. I had help from other Jamaicans who were also sorting visas, so obtaining it was no problem. Two years later, my mother had already migrated to the United States, and at age 15, in 1986, I again went to the embassy, and they gave me a 10-year visa. I then migrated to the States on a visitor's visa and stayed. I wanted to know what it felt like to be raised by my mother," she said.

Richardson said that at 17, she got pregnant and her mother threw her out of her home.

"I was raped, but not in a way where I was held at gunpoint or had a knife to my head, but because something was done to me against my will. I had said no. It was very traumatic, and it sometimes affects my marriage today because of the remnants of what happened to me. Anyway, my mother eventually took me back because she wanted me to be her babysitter for my little brother, which I didn't mind. When my daughter was eight months old, I wanted to go to school and really didn't want to babysit anymore. My mother and I got in frequent arguments, and she told me I had to leave again. I didn't have a green card or a job, so my options were very limited. I didn't understand the system in the US, so my daughter and I headed to the train station, and we stayed there for about a month," she said.

She was later assisted by her daughter's godmother, who offered her shelter for a while before introducing her to one of her father's cousins, who offered her one of his apartments. Richardson said that life was difficult for her and that at times, she was unable to feed herself and her daughter, Taisha, and had to resort to begging for quarters on the streets of Brooklyn.

'EAT AND LEF'

"In defence of some of my family, a lot of them didn't know how bad my situation was. They knew my mom and I were having problems, but I didn't let anyone know I was eating people's 'eat and lef'," she said.

Richardson said that not being able to provide for her daughter weighed heavily on her shoulders, and she knew she had to do something with her life.

"I remember one day I was at a pharmacy with my daughter, and she was bothering me for a Barbie doll. It was just about US$7, but to me, that was like a million dollars, and I couldn't afford it. She then said to me, 'Mommy, I just want one, and the little girl in front of me, her mommy got her two', and then and there, I just realised how inadequate I was as a mother because I couldn't even provide food and clothes. I felt so low, but I remember making her a promise that one day I will be able to provide her with all the dolls she wanted and a whole lot more," she said.

"I began working at a restaurant in Queens, New York, and saved up my pay and lived off my tips. Every night, I would bring food home for my daughter for the next day. I threw a partner at the restaurant and got enough to go to college. I had to stop attending, and it took me another 10 years before I could continue with my education," she added.

Richardson received an associate degree in 2003 from Nassau Community College. She then earned a bachelor's degree in 2006 and a master's degree in 2007 from St Joseph's College of Maine. She completed her PhD in 2013 at the University of Phoenix.