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- Natalia Bryant, the eldest daughter of the late Kobe Bryant, graduated cum laude from the University of Southern California on May 16
- The model, who was a member of the Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority, marked the occasion with a social media post
- Natalia’s mom, Vanessa Bryant, also celebrated the milestone occasion with social media posts of her own
Natalia Bryant graduated cum laude from the University of Southern California.
The professional model, 22, marked the occasion with an Instagram post shared on Friday, May 16.
“25’❤️🎓,” Natalia wrote alongside a portrait of herself wearing a white dress with a red and gold stole that read “cum laude” and included the Greek letters of her sorority, Kappa Kappa Gamma.
Mom Vanessa Bryant also celebrated the milestone moment with social media posts of her own.
“We’re so proud of you @nataliabryant ! ❤️🎓🎉#USC ✌️#GRAD,” Vanessa, 43, wrote, sharing more photos on Instagram in one post. “4 ever 🫶🏽❤️👑🐍 @nataliabryant ❤️🎉 #USCGRAD #CumLaude,” she added in another.
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Natalia opened up to PEOPLE exclusively in 2024 about how she balances her professional and educational life.
“If someone says [being a full-time student] is not difficult, they’re lying, because it is,” she said at the time. “That in itself is a full-time job.”
Natalia continued, “But I do think that having a great support team, family and friends, has been the most important thing.”
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Natalia made her runway debut with Versace at Milan Fashion Week in 2024. At the time, she expressed interest in entering the fashion world full-time post-grad.
Citing her younger sister Bianka, 8, as one of her fashion inspirations, Natalia told PEOPLE, “She is such a strong personality and she knows what she wants. She wakes up, she knows what she wants to wear, she knows how to style, she’ll know how to style me.”
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Natalia, Vanessa and the rest of their family faced tragedy when Kobe Bryant and Gianna Bryant died in a helicopter crash in 2020.
Vanessa previously praised her daughter’s strength amid the loss of her father and sister, and how she looked out for her little sisters while navigating her own future, in a March 2021 interview with PEOPLE.
“On top of her own grief, she has balanced her senior year of high school, applying to colleges, nurturing her sisters, and just recently signing her own modeling contract with IMG,” she said, then calling Natalia her “right-hand woman.”
