Ep 36: The Path to Ivy League College Isn’t Always a Straight Line with Christopher St-Hilaire 

 June 25, 2020

In this week’s episode, I am delighted to welcome Christopher St-Hilaire to the podcast. Christopher is an extraordinary young man and he is proof that bumpy roads lead to beautiful destinations. At the young age of fifteen, Christopher was feeling uninspired and uninterested in what he was learning in high school, so he made the difficult decision to take a “leave of absence” from high school in search of the path that was best for him. As you’ll hear during this episode, it turned out to be the right decision. Christopher’s authenticity, kindness, and passion for making the world a better place will leave you believing that teens will in fact change the world.

About Christopher St-Hilaire

Christopher St-Hilaire was born in New York City but raised in Charlotte, North Carolina. His life began the day he dropped out of high school. He is a community college graduate and current student at Princeton University. He is radically interested in philosophy, mythology, and psychology and the manner these disciplines can help us find meaning, understand ourselves, and facilitate our transformation.

Christopher is an artist and loves art, particularly the works by Casper David Friedrich and Peter Paul Reubens. He loves escaping to mountains at all times of the day and watching films such as Limitless, Inception, and Midnight in Paris. 

Episode Highlights

  • Christopher’s leave of absence from high school
  • Seeking more autonomy in learning and life
  • Christopher’s parents’ reaction to him leaving high school
  • Discovering his own path
  • Pursuing his GED and getting his first real job
  • Finding inspiration at the top of a mountain
  • Christopher meets his mentor
  • The best college acceptance story ever
  • When trying to stand out, authenticity matters
  • Christopher’s plans for the future
  • Christopher’s advice for teens struggling in high school

Resources

Christopher on Instagram

Christopher on LinkedIn

Article in The Charlotte Observer

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