Brooke Mackenzie Ellison was struck by a car on her first day in seventh grade and given little chance of survival.

With her determination and strength Ellison chose not to hold a grudge, but, instead, with the help of her family, used her energy to pursue a positive future.

It is with this attitude that she scored 1510 out of a possible 1600 on her College Board entrance exam, which made her a very attractive candidate to recruiters at Harvard University.