Born to Kimberley Knight and Letha Lofton on January 23, 1997, T’Angela Knight entered this world more magnificently than usual: when she was due to be born, the doctors found her umbilical tied in a knot. With extreme caution, T’Angela was born a healthy baby. This moment set the trajectory of her life: regardless of any challenge she faced, she would never back down, make the most of the resources available, and defy every statistic aimed towards her defeat.

The beginning years of T’Angela’s life established foundation: her parents knew her intelligence would lead her to success in the future. T’Angela developed love for education and caught on to concepts at initial exposure. By the age of three, she could write, read small children’s books, and play basic tunes on a keyboard by ear. But then something happened that gave her more motivation than one usually possesses.

Her father died from a massive heart attack when she was only five. Burying him a week before beginning kindergarten, T’Angela knew she had to remain strong for her family, who were devastated by this tragedy. After attending her neighborhood elementary school for two years, she was so much more prepared than her classmates that her teachers insisted she transfer to John P. Freeman Optional School (the only 100% advanced school in Tennessee), where she spent her elementary and middle school career excelling in every subject: she was a straight A student enrolled in honors courses, won several essay-writing competitions and academic awards, and was awarded the position of concert master for her middle school orchestra.

High school functioned as a conduit for T’Angela’s ambition. Using the learning foundation typifying her life, T’Angela has maintained a 4.7 GPA, is an AP Scholar enrolled in three AP classes this year, and was ultimately honored for her academic excellence by being class Valedictorian out of 437 students. She also strove in extracurricular involvements by being State President of Tennessee DECA (a marketing organization), Class Vice President, Concert Master of Performing Orchestra, and holding leadership positions in three honor societies.

By attending the University of Tennessee, T’Angela aspires to change the field of advertising by becoming a consumer psychologist. Her experiences have shown T’Angela that she wants to hone in on her creative strengths and make a difference in the world. She is a natural born leader, and she believes she can lead her generation to the peaks of its abilities by taking advantage of the knowledge endowed upon her.