Plaudits roll in for Princeton valedictorian
Michelle Obama tweeted her congratulations, as did senator Kamala Harris. New Jersey senator Cory Booker called. And a major U.S. talk show has been in touch.
“It has been very, very overwhelming,” said Montrealer Nicholas Johnson, 22, who is the first black student to be named valedictorian since Princeton’s inception, 274 years ago.
“It has been difficult to stay grounded. I’m in the middle of exam period now, and still have a lot of deliverables to get done before I graduate.”
Princeton alumna Obama congratulated Johnson for “making history.”
“It feels very empowering,” he said, Tuesday, reached at home in Montreal. “I hope it serves as inspiration, particularly to black students in STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) fields.”
Johnson is graduating in operations research and financial engineering, with certificates in statistics and machine learning, applied and computational mathematics, and applications of computing.
Being named valedictorian is particularly meaningful to him in light of Princeton’s past connections to slavery.
“Princeton’s first nine presidents were slave owners,” he said, “and many professors who worked at Princeton during those early years were also slave owners. Slaves were previously auctioned on Princeton’s property.”
The school has taken a critical look at its ties to slavery in recent years with the Princeton & Slavery Project, Johnson noted. He sees his honour as a testament to how much progress has been made.
“That being said, I think it’s important we strive for a world where being the first black person to do anything isn’t an incredible accomplishment. We should work toward normalizing black individuals who achieve these types of accomplishments.”
He hopes to serve as a role model to students with similar interests, “students who look like me, and students who want to strive in environments like Princeton.”
Finding his place at the Ivy League institution had its challenges. He was often one of the few black students in his classes, particularly at the more advanced levels.
“Thankfully, there are a few professors and other faculty members at Princeton who are themselves people of colour, who are very passionate about empowering undergraduate students from minority backgrounds to excel.”
Being top of the class is nothing new for Johnson, who was also valedictorian in his final year at Selwyn House. He attributes his drive to his upbringing, the example set by his older sister Anastasia, and the many teachers and professors who pushed him to strive for excellence along the way. Also, chess.
Johnson joined the Selwyn House chess club in kindergarten, and was Quebec chess champion for his grade level from age 13 to 18.
“I really love the strategy of chess,” he said. “I felt like it was a very deep, analytical mental challenge to tackle. There’s incredible nuance in the game. As I learned more about it, I was better able to appreciate the beauty of the problems I was trying to solve and the goals I was trying to accomplish. It did a lot for my personal development.”
Reached Tuesday afternoon, Johnson’s parents were delighted by their son’s success.
“Obviously, it’s a monumental achievement,” said his father, Dr. Dexter Gregory Johnson, a dental surgeon who studied at Mcgill, New York Medical College and Harvard.
“We’re very proud of him. It’s a good story ... and Nicholas is of Bahamian and Jamaican descent, so its good for Bahamians and Jamaicans as well.”
“We’re very grateful to have Nicholas for our son,” said his mom, Dr. Anita Brown-johnson, a geriatrician in long-term care at the Montreal General Hospital. “He has always been committed to his studies, and disciplined about his work ethic. At the same time, he has always had very strong ties with and a positive impact on his peers.”
They led by example, but when asked where their son gets his smarts and passion from, they also pointed to their family histories.
“We have the genetics handed down from one generation to the other,” Dr. Brown-johnson said. “That’s another reason it’s so meaningful. This moment is a reflection not just of our immediate impact on our son’s life, but also our forefathers and all they have done to pave the way for us.”