Beating The System
February 27, 2025
As Black History Month concludes, our commitment to celebrating and uplifting our Black scholars and their contributions to our city and nation continues—today and every day.
One alumnus whose success inspires many is Marquis Williams, a graduate of Alliance Judy Ivie Burton Technology High School. Having navigated the challenges of the foster care system, Marquis overcame incredible odds to become a first-generation college graduate, a published author, and a Program Manager, where he supports foster youth in achieving their academic and career aspirations.
In the following interview, Marquis shares his remarkable journey of transformation and the role community support played in his success:
A Lifelong Foundation: How did your Alliance experience impact your plans for the future?
Alliance played such a pivotal role in shaping who I am today—it was the very foundation upon which I began to dream. It was where I learned perseverance, empathy, and the transformative power of education. That foundation helped me discover who I was and what I was capable of, setting me on a journey of personal and academic growth.
Looking Back: What’s one thing you know now that you wish you’d understood as a teen?
I wish I had understood the power of mentorship. I didn’t fully understand at the time what college required or how to navigate that path. If I could go back, I would have actively sought out more mentors within the Alliance community. Mentorship is such a powerful tool in breaking the cycle that prevents so many foster youth, like myself, from pursuing higher education and long-term success. The right guidance can make all the difference.
The Turning Point: Was there a specific moment or event that shifted your mindset about graduating from high school and going to college?
I arrived at Alliance Judy Burton Tech as a junior, after moving through multiple high schools and multiple foster care homes. By my senior year, I had a 1.9 GPA—graduation, let alone college, seemed uncertain. But the people around me saw something in me that I couldn’t yet see in myself. My teachers and mentors never gave up on me. They recognized my potential, pushed me to focus on my strengths, and guided me on my path to college as a first-generation scholar.
Growth and Legacy: How has Alliance changed since you graduated, and what has stayed the same?
When I first started, my Alliance school was just a small office building on the corner, known as Heritage College-Ready Academy. Then we moved down the street and became Alliance Burton Tech, but we were split between two locations. Now, seeing how much Burton Tech has expanded, how many more scholars they can serve under one roof—it’s amazing. What has stayed the same is Alliance’s commitment to scholars. No matter how much they’ve grown, they continue to provide a place where scholars like me are seen, supported, and given the chance to succeed.
Looking Forward: Where do you see yourself in ten years?
In ten years, I see myself transforming the foster care system and improving outcomes for foster youth. On any given day in this country, there are over 400,000 children who were just like me in foster care, yet statistically, only 3% of us go on to graduate from higher education. Upon learning this, I pledged to dedicate myself to efforts that open the door for the next generation. That is why I wrote my book, Beating the System: My Life in Foster Care—not as a testament to my own achievements, but to serve as a beacon of hope for those who feel trapped by their circumstances.
Marquis exemplifies the very purpose of Alliance schools across Los Angeles. As our most recent Alumni of the Year, he reminds us that “there is collective resilience and strength in serving others”—a principle we can all carry forward as we work together to support scholars in living choice-filled, purposeful lives.
