Ehly's love of the band Little Mix has inspired her in many ways.Gabriella Wong

Rachel Ehly’s favorite song, “Little Me,” comes from the British pop group Little Mix.

The lyrics — “I’d tell her to speak up, tell her to shout out, talk a bit louder, be a bit prouder” — remind the 16-year-old of her younger self.

“It makes me feel proud of myself, just thinking about everything I’ve been able to accomplish,” Rachel said.

A sophomore at Forest Grove High School, Rachel draws inspiration from Little Mix because of their strong work ethic and success in overcoming barriers.

The band — now made up of three female vocalists — started on “X Factor” more than a decade ago and rose to fame in Britain, but has been slow to gain popularity worldwide.

“Little Mix faced a lot of sexism at the beginning of their career,” Rachel said. “They’ve been told many times they couldn’t (make it) and that their songs weren’t good enough.”

Sometimes Rachel feels like she isn’t good enough either. Being a girl makes it harder, she said.

“I feel like I have to work harder even though that may not be the case, but that is one of the reasons I put so much pressure on myself,” Rachel said.

Another source of inspiration for Rachel is her father. The oldest of five in a low-income household, he dropped out of high school as a senior to support his siblings.

Her father’s struggles have shaped her worldview.

“I don’t judge people as easily, I guess,” Rachel said. “Because it seems like right now he has the perfect life, but he didn’t always. He worked hard to get the life that he does have.”

Rachel strives for the best grades possible. Recently, she had an algebra quiz and an AP test in the span of two days, during which she slept six hours a night.

Rachel’s father also challenges her to get outside her comfort zone, encouraging her to travel to Italy for a school trip last spring break.

Rachel’s parents’ only expectation of her is that she does what brings her joy.

“I think that’s why I want to go into journalism, because I know it makes me happy,” Rachel said. “I feel like if their expectations of me were any different, then I may go into something that I will hate for the rest of my life, and I will be just miserable.”

For now, Rachel is confident about her future.

She wants to graduate high school, attend college, get an internship, make friends, become a journalist and live in New York. New York University is her dream school.

“I feel excited about it,” Rachel said. “I feel like I have it all kind of planned out, so it’s just like, can we just get it going, please? Hurry up!”

– Gabriella Wong, Cleveland High School

This story was produced by student reporters as part of the High School Journalism Institute, an annual collaboration among The Oregonian/OregonLive, Oregon State University and other Oregon media organizations. For more information or to support the program, go to oregonlive.com/hsji.

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