A Young American Janitor at Harvard Law School... When He Saw Cleaning Workers at School

Surprised by No Response After Greeting
Turns Out It's Due to Habit of 'Ignoring'
"Establishment of Nonprofit Organization for Campus Workers"

"I'm sorry. When students talked to me, they often spoke while looking at the wall (not my face), so I didn't realize they were greeting me."

Lehan Stanton (27), who became a topic of conversation after working as a janitor and then entering Harvard Law School, was shocked by this remark from a cleaning worker. The Washington Post (WP) reported on the 15th (local time) that he is establishing a nonprofit organization for campus workers.

Stanton, who will graduate from law school this May, said, "I remembered what it was like to work as a janitor. I thought about how to improve their lives on campus."

Lehan Stanton, who entered Harvard Law School in 2020, founded an NPO for university workers two years later.
[Photo by Stanton Twitter capture]

WP reported, "Stanton saw his past self in the university cleaning workers," and "he founded a nonprofit organization (NPO) representing and supporting Harvard's cleaning, security, and technical workers."

Afterward, Stanton spent the money he earned working at a law firm during the vacation to buy 100 Amazon (e-commerce company) prepaid cards. He delivered the cards to the workers along with handwritten notes of gratitude and listened to their hardships. The workers all said they were "treated as if they did not exist."

Eventually, he established an organization called the 'Reciprocity Effect.' Brent Bates, a friend of Stanton and former deputy manager of the garbage collection company where Stanton once worked, joined him. They received a $50,000 (about 65.05 million KRW) donation from Bates's father.

In November last year, they carried out their first project, the 'Thank You Card Campaign.' It was a project that collected thank-you messages from 250 Harvard students and delivered them along with Amazon cards to the workers. Later, students voluntarily raised funds, collecting a total of $70,000 (about 92 million KRW) in donations. WP reported, "The funds are planned to be provided as subsidies to workers in difficult circumstances."

He is known as a person who nurtured his dreams in harsh conditions. After his parents divorced when he was eight, his mother returned to her homeland, Sri Lanka. His father worked three jobs a day to raise Stanton and his older brother. Despite this, there was often not enough food at home, and the electricity was frequently cut off.

Staten (left) and his older brother when they worked at a garbage collection company.
[Photo by Staten Twitter capture]

In an interview with the Harvard student newspaper, Stanton said, "There was visible breath inside the house, and even wearing a thick jacket, it was so cold that I couldn't sleep." It was an environment where it was difficult to properly attend school.

His elementary school teacher told Stanton, "It seems like you have a mental disability." When he entered middle school, he dreamed of becoming a boxer but gave up after injuring his shoulder. Stanton told WP, "I couldn't see a doctor because I didn't have health insurance." After graduation, he got a job at a garbage collection company to make a living.

At that place, Stanton dreamed a new dream. Other colleagues who recognized his intelligence encouraged him, saying, "You need to study." Bates's father helped him enter Bowie State University. Eventually, he transferred to the University of Maryland with top grades.

There were difficulties as well. When his father suffered a stroke, Stanton had to return to garbage collection work but never stopped studying. After graduation, he worked at a consulting firm and took the law school exam. In 2020, he attracted great attention by being accepted to Harvard, Columbia, and the University of Pennsylvania.

Stanton plans to join a law firm in New York after graduating this May but said he will continue his activities with the 'Reciprocity Effect.' He stated, "If others had not stood up for me, I would not be here today," and "I will pay forward the kindness I have received to others."