Khadijah Williams has her picture taken with friend Brigida Leon, right, after they signed each other’s yearbooks. (Brian Vander Brug/Los Angeles Times)
Khadijah Williams hugs teacher Susan Ferguson, right, a few days before graduating from Jefferson High. (Brian Vander Brug/Los Angeles Times)
On a street near USC, Khadijah Williams waits for the first of two buses she rides on her way home. (Brian Vander Brug/Los Angeles Times)
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Khadijah Williams sleeps on a bus to San Pedro after spending the day gathering signatures required for her graduation. (Brian Vander Brug/Los Angeles Times)
Khadijah Williams gathers belongings from her mother’s storage locker while her sister Jeanine Williams, 11, waits. (Brian Vander Brug/Los Angeles Times)
During a stop at her mother’s storage locker, Khadijah Williams, right, watches her sister Jeanine throw her graduation cap into the air. (Brian Vander Brug/Los Angeles Times)
Khadijah looks out toward the crowd at East Los Angeles College stadium Friday night at her graduation. (Brian Vander Brug / Los Angeles Times)
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Graduating fourth in her class, Khadijah Williams stands at the podium during her graduation ceremony on Friday night. (Brian Vander Brug / Los Angeles Times)