Who is Saige Valella?
Saige Valella grew up in Battle Creek and currently attends Michigan State University. She is an only child and her family has recently moved from the more affluent suburb of Lakeview to downtown Battle Creek.
Excerpt from interview with Saige Valella by Whitney Dow, 2017
Valella: [00:10:38:17] I do not think it was an equal playing field whenever I graduated from high school and was applying to schools. I think that schools want more diverse student bodies. So obviously, being in America, a white college student, being a white person in America is just like your basic college student. They want people from all over the world. So, I do feel like it was harder for me, actually, to get into school. I mean, I didn’t have a problem getting into any of the schools I wanted to, but I did feel like that was a factor. And that people, I did have teachers and mentors telling me that I should not put my race on my application, because it could have an effect on my acceptance.
Q: And did you feel like that was fair or unfair?
Valella: [00:11:01:15] I mean, life’s—do I feel if it was fair or unfair? Really, everything’s unfair. You kind of just have to make do with what you got. But I guess it was unfair, yes, because it wasn’t equal. I didn’t feel equal. But nobody feels equal, so.
Interview Transcript