Homeless to Harvard: The Liz Murray Story is an American biographical drama television film directed by Peter Levin. Liz Murray lives with her sister Lisa, drug-addicted, schizophrenic mother Jean almost blind and has AIDS, and their father Peter, also a drug addict who is intelligent, but also has AIDS. He is portrayed has intelligent but lacking in social skills. Liz is removed from the home and placed into the care system as her father cannot take care of her.
At 15, she moves in with her mother, sister, and grandfather who sexually abused her mother and her aunt. After a fight with her grandfather who hits her, she runs away with a girl from school named Chris who is being abused at home.
After Jean dies of AIDS, Liz is homeless - sleeping in parks, riding the subway all night but manages to go back to high school, which she completes in two years, rather than the usual four. She becomes a star student and through an essay contest sponsored by The New York Times is awarded a full scholarship to Harvard University.