Douglas Ramirez’s youngest daughter, Emely, has left the nest, bidding farewell to her dog, her siblings, San Francisco, and most poignantly, her father, as she embarks on a new chapter at Yale University.

Douglas, who became a father at eighteen, sacrificed his own educational dreams to provide for his children, always putting their futures ahead of his own.

“I only finished high school and well, I started to work at eight years old,” said Douglas. Despite this, Douglas has always wanted his three children to be educated “where they choose,” saying that “I want them to be independent.”

Douglas’s mixed emotions are palpable: “Deep in my heart 
 I feel awful because she’s not here. But my mind tells me it’s for a better future for her.”

Douglas has been Emely’s biggest supporter, especially when it comes to her education. Since the pandemic, they have “grown an incredibly strong bond,” said Emely. “He knows how hard I worked throughout high school just to take advantage of the opportunities that were there.”

Emely Ramirez sits in her bedroom in San Francisco, Calif., as she prepares to become a Yale University student on a full-ride scholarship. June 23, 2024. Photo: Karem Rodriguez

Receiving a full-ride scholarship to Yale, Emely is set to start the new school year outside San Francisco as she also enters adulthood. She attended Thurgood Marshall High School in the Silver Terrace neighborhood and is now moving on to the preeminent Connecticut university. She is grateful for the Thurgood Marshall counselors, JCYC Upward Bound, and SEO Scholars, as well as friends, supporters, and mentors.

Being on the East Coast, she has begun to miss San Francisco. “You will not find any duplicate of San Francisco,” said Emely. Being so far away from her pet and her father is difficult. “He’s excited, but 
 it’s just been the two of us for a while.”

As Emely finishes a summer program at her new university, she is eager for this new stage of life, to make new friends and explore her education.

A multifaceted student with a love of learning, Emely was drawn to Yale for its “environment where I could explore my different interests,” and its “dense FGLI [first-generation, low-income] community.”

Emely is excited to study either biomedical engineering or ethnicity, race, and migration, and to take part in the array of clubs Yale offers, like dance, the Latin cultural club, and crochet.

“The truth is, there isn’t a single word that could capture all that she represents and who she is,” Douglas said proudly. “What’s extraordinary about her is that when she sets her mind to something, she achieves it.”