Nicholas Johnson is the first black valedictorian in the 274-year history of Princeton University and he is of Caribbean heritage!
At just 22 years old, Nicholas Johnson is officially the private Ivy League’s research university’s first black valedictorian in their 274-year-old history, Princeton University announced on their website.
Nicholas is the son of Dr. Dexter Johnson, a Bahamian now practicing medicine in Montreal, Canada and his Jamaican mother, Anita.
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Johnson told ABC News that he was “really surprised” to learn about the achievement, which he first discovered while being interviewed for a podcast for the university based in Princeton, New Jersey.
He added that the achievement is especially significant “particularly because of Princeton’s past historical ties to the institution of slavery.”
According to Princeton & Slavery Project, this includes nine previous Princeton University presidents having owned slaves at some point in their lives.
“It is very empowering and I hope the achievement can serve as an inspiration and motivation for black students,” he added.
Johnson, a Montreal, Canada, native and operations research and financial engineering student, is a former software engineer at Google’s California headquarters who is passionate about advocating for diversity in STEM.
Johnson is a graduate of Selwyn House School and attended Marianopolis College, both of which are located in Westmount, Quebec. He is the youngest son of a mother who derives from the Bahamas and father from Jamaica. He said that he’s drawn inspiration both from his older sister growing up, who is currently pursing her Master’s Degree at The New School in New York City.
When he’s not mentoring other students on campus, he enjoys playing basketball, chess and music. Among his favorite artists is Grammy-winning artist Drake, who’s hometown is Toronto.
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