From Poverty to the Fortune 500

Michelle Davidson's mother came to the United States from Liberia, a single mother. But she instilled in her children the idea that they would go to college.

That idea guided Davidson, now the president of Trinity Mortgage Solutions, as she grew up. She told her story to a group of East Providence High School students earlier this week as part of a celebration of Women's History Month, which was sponsored by the city's Affirmative Action Office.

During her life, Davidson traveled from poverty in Liberia, to the projects of Brooklyn, to Hope High School in Providence and to a scholarship at the University of Maryland. From there, she went on to work for Fortune 500 companies, then founded Trinity Mortgage Solutions, the first mortgage company owned by a black female in Rhode Island.

But she traced her success back to "a lot of tough decisions" she made in high school.

"Everything you see about my life today had a lot to do with decisions I made back in high school," Davidson said. "Keeping up my grades, staying out of trouble, staying focused, dreaming bigger than my circumstances. All that took place in high school."

To hear more about what Davidson had to say, check out the video in the gallery above.