LI Teen Featured On Cover Of Time Magazine This Week

ISLIP, NY — Some local residents might see a familiar face on the cover of Time magazine this week.

Islip Terrace teen, Twyla Joseph was featured in the article titled "Applying to College Was Never Easy for Most Students. The Pandemic Made It Nearly Impossible."

In the story, the 17-year-old highlighted her past year as she navigated high school and the process of applying to college after the coronavirus pandemic hit Long Island in March 2020.

In the report, the Central Islip High School senior mentions how COVID-19 resulted in the cancelation of her SAT exam as well as her being furloughed from her job, making it difficult to save for college

"I literally just thought, What if I took a year off, maybe a year or two, and tried to wait till things were back to normal?," she told Time.

In addition to being a part of the article, Joseph was photographed by Mohamed Sadek for the cover.

Her mother, Catherine Phillips, told Newsday how proud she is of her daughter.

"She has a lot of potential," she said, according to Newsday. "She'll be able to do whatever she sets her mind to do."

Her story is one that resonates with many of the teens who underwent similar experiences this past year.

"A lot of people in my community, and in communities similar to mine, are on a confused path right now, because they don’t have the resources that other students would have to go to college and to afford it," Joseph told CBS2.