According to US News, “Stanford University has an acceptance rate of 4%.” Senior, Zaria Queen, is an ambitious student whose motivation and determination got her into Stanford University. For many, these odds might hint that attending Stanford may only remain a dream, but for ambitious and multi-talented senior Zaria Queen, this dream has become a reality.
Queen spent most of her life living in Moanalua. She shares that she’s very close to her siblings and cherishes long-term friendships and relationships as well as building roots and making a name for herself. Outside of school, Queen enjoys crocheting, reading Percy Jackson books from time to time, and going to the beach. She keeps school and volleyball “strictly professional”.
She shares that the biggest supporters in her life have been her parents. “They’ve always supported me and everything I’ve done…Sometimes I tend to be hard on myself, and they would always reassure me that however big my goal was, it was achievable.” Queen shares. She says she tends to aim for big goals; even if she felt like they might have been out of reach, she was always reassured that she could do them.
Originally, Queen’s sport of choice was tennis. She had played tennis for a long time, and she thought she was going to be “the next Serena Williams”. She tried basketball, but admitted it felt like too much work. One day, she was playing tennis and told her dad at a match that she wasn’t very good. Her dad thought that she was going to be taller, so he took Queen and her younger sister to a volleyball clinic. Her coaches were tough on her and her sister, but over time she fell in love with volleyball and has been playing it ever since.
Queen said, “There have been a lot of failures and setbacks for me, but I switched my mindset to, ‘Nothing is a failure if you can take something away from it.” Queen didn’t make the varsity team, and she didn’t want to play on JV (Junior Varsity) again. She added, “People might consider it a failure, but I saw it as an opportunity to grow, and from there I was able to get better.” The following year, Queen was able to play on varsity, and soon after, she got an offer to her dream school. It wouldn’t have been possible for Queen if she didn’t have that failure and motivation from not making the Girls Varsity Volleyball team.
Queen’s reaction to getting accepted to Stanford University was a relief for her. Queen expressed, “To this day I still can’t believe it. I’m pretty sure I had tears of joy because it was such a long journey for me. I was the type of person to fake it till you make it. I would tell people, ‘I’m going to Stanford,’ and they would tell me I’m a bit crazy.”
It was exciting for Queen when she saw everything finally coming together. She understands that now she has a new responsibility when stepping into a bigger volleyball and academic field. For her, it’s going to be a whole new set of challenges, but she’s excited.
Queen was consistently focused. She spent a lot of time playing volleyball and made sure that whatever she was putting on her application, she really cared about. In her sophomore year, Queen founded the African-American Culture with club advisor, Mrs. Mitchell. She has also started 3 different businesses and understandably has spent most of her time with volleyball. Recently, she has been able to “turn volleyball into a business” which is something new and exciting for her.
When asked about teachers who made an impact on Queen, she mentions her homeroom teachers, Ms. Cheng and Mrs. Lane. Queen shares that they’ve always given her and her classmates the blunt truth about high school and told them not to slack off, especially during junior year.
Queen also cites newly retired teacher Mrs. Voss as someone who has helped her a lot in school. Queen acknowledged, “She was super supportive, and even though I wasn’t the best in AP English Language and Composition or writing in general, she really helped me. Even when I would go in multiple times [for help], she never got annoyed by me.”
If Queen were to redo one part of her high school journey, it would have been not to have so many doubts and not to question whether or not she was making the right decisions–even if her strategies weren’t “normal”. While many high school students might be relaxing or going out with friends on weekends, Queen would spend her weekends practicing volleyball, working out, or starting a business. She admitted that sometimes she questioned if all of this was a waste of time until the day where she received a call from Stanford. After telling herself to push through and that it’s all part of the process, Queen can now proudly say, “I’m going to Stanford.”
Zaria Queen’s advice to someone who wants to get into Stanford one day would be to be as ambitious as possible. She pointed out, “Sometimes people will say things like, ‘I don’t know if I should do that” or ‘It might be embarrassing.” She tells herself that embarrassment is a mindset; it’s going to be a lot, but it’ll pay off.
Queen stated, “Even if you’re at your dream school or even if it doesn’t happen, it’s not the end of the world. Don’t cut yourself short by not striving for something you really want.” She is proud of her younger self and continues to push through to her goals. Queen concluded, “Do stuff you’re passionate about, but keep your end goal in mind, and don’t waver on that.”
References
“Everything You Need to Know about Applying to Stanford University.” @USNews, 2014, www.usnews.com/best-colleges/stanford-university-1305/applying.
