Not a One Trick Pony: An Interview with The Scholar’s Milana

In an exclusive interview with RealityNewsOnline, The Scholar’s Milana gives us the inside scoop on the competition, the editing, and how she felt about being called a “one trick pony.”

RealityNewsOnline: Hello Milana. Thanks for speaking with us!

Milana: It's my pleasure. I love talking and reflecting about an experience that has left a lasting impact on my life.

RNO:: First question. Where did you hear about The Scholar, and how did you get involved?

Milana:School flyer. However, my school refused to endorse it once they found out I had actually made it to the semi-finals of casting.

RNO: Really? Did they offer an explanation?

Milana: The BOE [Board of Education] of NYC did not want to involve itself, or be represented on a reality show. So I had to do it independently, risking my academic standing, since my school would not sign the contract that all the other scholars' schools did.

RNO: But obviously you felt it was worth it to take the risk.

Milana: After meeting with Jaye Pace, one of the creators, I was convinced that the premise of the show was genuine and that I would regret it for the rest of my life if I didn't take that chance to seek out a once in a life time opportunity. After all, it had the potential to offer money for college, and I desperately was in need of it if I decided to go to a private school. Before the scholar, I was dead set on going to the first school that offered a full ride (specifically, Stonybrook was looking rather appealing for that reason).

RNO:: How did your school respond after you made the show? You would have to take a couple weeks off to do the filming. Is that correct?

Milana: I told the school that kids were absent all the time, and I could be in Puerto Rico with my family for all they knew.

RNO: So they never knew you were actually in the show until it was aired this past summer?

Milana: They knew. It was not made public. Also, it wasn't such a big problem anymore since I wouldn't be representing the school. I was very hurt that they would not allow my teachers to vouch for me. Teachers would have lost their jobs since it's in their contract to not talk to the media (or some clause of that sort). So I wouldn't have been able to have a teacher come surprise me if I had made it to the final three. This was known to the production company well in advance.

RNO: Did you have a load of assignments to make up from your time on the show? If so, were contestants allowed to work on those assignments over those two weeks of filming.

Milana: The administrators at the school were very helpful. I was allowed to make up all of the work I missed as if I had been absent for any other reason. We were allowed to work on any homework we needed to, however, we did not have much time... unless we chose to give up the four hours of sleep we were getting, haha… Well that's an exaggeration, we slept more, but it felt like less.

RNO: What were your impressions of the other scholars when you first met them?

Milana: I came into this whole experience eager and excited. I think that because of that, I did not associate negative impressions with any of the scholars. I love talking to people, and getting to know about what else is out there outside of my little bubble of existence. I immediately felt connected to Melissa because her mom grew up on the same block I live on. And I could tell that many of them were there to play the game, which I totally respected.

RNO: You definitely seemed to have a good rapport with the other contestants. Was it ever weird for you living in the same house as your competitors? What was life like "outside" of the competition?

Milana: I would be lying if I said we never felt the pressure of the competition impact our life "outside of the comp." However, personally I am used to going to a highly competitive high school, so I have learned how to enjoy downtime with my classmates and not let competition get in the way of friendship. More importantly, I made a promise to myself before the competition started that I would NOT compromise myself or my personality for this "contest.” I was going to make the best of whatever happened.

RNO: Did you feel the show portrayed you and your personality fairly?

Milana: Only in one instance was something dramatized for the sake of TV, and that was when they tried to make it seem like I was mad at Melissa for picking Max to go to the showdown. Notice that they never had a clip of me expressing any kind of anger or even sadness. They zoomed in on my face, and I'm sure used a still from two minutes before my reaction to her choosing Max. Nobody else was in that shot.

RNO: I was actually wondering about that. It never really appeared to me that you were angry.

Milana: My immediate reaction was to congratulate Max… He and I are friends now. I just visited his dorm yesterday at Columbia.

RNO:How is he doing? Settling in already?

Milana: Yep, as is Amari. I helped her unpack, with her aunt.

RNO: What about the others. Is there anybody you feel was given a bad shake by the editors?

Milana: No, I feel that with the exception of a few glitches, they pretty much did a good job at respecting reality.

RNO: I've made no secret of the fact that I feel you are an excellent public speaker. Have you had prior experience in public speaking?

Milana: I used to be on the debate team, and I have a lot of practice at home since blame is transferred quite easily, and if you don't speak up for yourself, you're a goner! Also, I've given speeches at graduation ceremonies.... valedictorian of both my JHS and of Bronx Science. Also, I've been asked to speak on behalf of my summer program classes at Mt. Sinai. I'll be speaking next month at the Library of Congress to accept a fellowship award.

RNO: Quite the resume! Were you disappointed that you didn't get to be involved in the debate challenge?

Milana: VERY. I really wanted to at least be able to help out one of the teams. We weren't allowed to help at all.