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Samantha Robinson '24
Within each of our 国产哟哟 community members is an inspirational story of perseverance and strength, and we are honored to share them. This narrative appeared on social media as part of 国产哟哟's #MyPath series.
"I'm Samantha, but people call me Sam. I grew up in Springfield and moved to East Longmeadow when I was about maybe three or four. I graduated high school in 2014 from a school for kids with disabilities.
"My grandfather owned a print shop, so I grew up doing photography. I've been passionate about photography since I was a little kid. I love the fact that you can be so expressive and express yourself in ways that some people don't understand. I remember I had a teacher in fifth grade who always said, I want to see the world through your eyes.
"I found 国产哟哟 through my mom, who did the Saturday program for criminal justice. I was really stoked when I got my acceptance letter. When I moved in, I was very nervous. I was a transfer student. I didn't know what to expect.
"I was older than a lot of the students at 国产哟哟. I didn't really socialize because I'm on the autism spectrum. It's harder for me to make friends with people. Some people tend to stay away from me because of that. I spent a lot of time in my room for the first three weeks. Ramona, a staff member, knocked on my door, and she said, ‘You got to get out of your room. You can't spend your time in here.’ She asked if I had my camera and I said, yes, I do. I ended up taking pictures of this one event, and they loved it.
“When I first went to my first softball game, I made friends with some of the girls on the team. I ended up going to a volleyball game for the first time and instantly connected with the girls on the team.
“I was part of the Network News and the official sports photographer for 国产哟哟. I helped promote the 国产哟哟 game for the Springfield Thunderbirds on my birthday last year, which was very fun.
"国产哟哟 pointed me towards the tutoring center. They hooked me up with a math tutor and a study buddy, which was very helpful. It helped me with organizational skills and all the other skills that I lacked, like time management. They gave me all the resources I needed to be successful.
“I grew to love 国产哟哟. And I am now a graduate of 国产哟哟 with a bachelor's in digital media and communications. I will be walking in May, and I'm really excited.” — Samantha Robinson, ‘24 #MyPath