18-year-old Drake Johnson took to social media to celebrate his acceptance into Harvard University but was immediately questioned by a former member of the Texas State Board of Education about his admission.
The high school student from California and cheerleader of the Cali Black Ops at Marina High School, posted on Twitter Wednesday (April 18) to announce his admission into an Ivy League college, where he was holding his acceptance letter.
“It’s official, I’m Harvard bound #harvard2022,” Johnson wrote.
Out of nowhere, George Clayton a former Republican Texas official, tweeted the 18-year-old on Friday, asking how Johnson was admitted into Harvard.
“Congrats. Were you admitted on merit or quota?” Clayton asked.
The high school senior replied with a list of his achievements letting the GOP know, his acceptance was warranted.
“Thank you!,” Johnson responded. ” Valedictorian, ASB President, World Champion, good SAT, and a couple handfuls of other involvements, so I would think merit?”
Thank you! Valedictorian, ASB President, World Champion, good SAT, and a couple handfuls of other involvements, so I would think merit?
— Drake Johnson (@DrakeJohnson) April 20, 2018
The student told Dallas news, he was a little unsure how to respond back to Clayton’s question, but wanted to let him know that his hard work is what led to his admission at the University.
“I wanted some subtle way to prove him wrong, but not be aggressive… I thought that was the best way to civilly defuse the situation and clearly show I was accepted on merit,” Johnson told the newspaper.
Jeanine Johnson, the Harvard bound student’s mother, said the tweet came across as racist.
“Why do you care, and why are you asking that particular question to a kid who is clearly of some type of mixed race? That is just so frustrating,” she expressed.
However, Jeanine said she’s very proud of how her son’s soon-to-be journey to the Ivy League school and how he responded to Clayton’s biased question.
“He’s this kid who really thinks about what he’s doing and saying… He knows how hard he works to get where he’s at. He wants people to understand that that’s why he’s getting what he’s getting, nothing’s being handed to him,” she told the news outlet.
Clayton refused to comment according to Dallas News, saying that “he has retired from public life and no longer speaks to the press.” His Twitter bio states he’s running for a spot on the board education again.
The 18-year-old senior later tweeted, “In case anyone else thinks I just got accepted to fill a quota, I did actually get in based on merit lol.”
In case anyone else thinks I just got accepted to fill a quota, I did actually get in based on merit lol https://t.co/YEfUe3J9xE
— Drake Johnson (@DrakeJohnson) April 20, 2018
He was accepted into 10 different colleges including Cornell, Dartmouth and Brown University.
