Elizabeth "Liz" Murray was born in Bronx, New York. Both of her parents were drug addicts to cocaine. "Both my parents were hippies. By the time the early 1980s came around and I'd been born, their disco dancing thing had become a drug habit," she recalls. Although her home was filled with love and she began her life growing up with her parents, things took a turn once her parents became ill with HIV.
When Liz turned 15 her mother died due to AIDS and her father went to a homeless shelter, so she found herself homeless and having to support herself and her sister.
Liz started High School a little later than her peers, but managed to graduate within two years. Her speedy graduation awarded her a New York Times scholarship for needy students. This allowed her to pursue post-secondary education, which might not have been an option without the scholarship.
Harvard accepted her application and now this student living in poverty was on her way to Harvard, one of the most prestigious schools. Later she left Harvard to take care of her father who was still sick. The distance caused her to switch to Columbia University. During this time she started motivational speaking.
After her father died she returned to Harvard and graduated a couple years later. Liz did not stop there she is working to receive her doctorates in clinical psychology while continuing her motivational speaking to adults to encourage them to do and achieve great things in life.
What are the odds that a homeless teenager could become a Harvard graduate? Life can be surprising. Attempting to understand how some people are able to move up in social classes and others are not bring in many theories of social mobility. There are a select few who take the chance they are given to change their life and create extraordinary lives.
Check out this video to see Liz talk about going from Homeless to Harvard
