Lea Michele credits her parents with keeping her grounded early in her career
Lea Michele has been incredibly successful at such a young age, and she credits two people with keeping her grounded as she made a name for herself in Hollywood.
The "Glee" icon, 31, was recently in Dallas, Texas, to speak to the graduating class of Uplift Peak Preparatory on behalf of Whirlpool's "Congrats, parents" campaign.
"Obviously I'm making a commencement speech for all of the graduates, but we are here today to focus on the parents and everything they have done to help the students get to where they are today," Michele told ABC News late last week.
The actress said 100 percent of the graduates from the preparatory school were accepted into college and "that's pretty impressive!"
She said she remembered the support her parents gave her while she was growing up in New York.
"My parents helped me so much, in both high school and also in my career," she explained. "I started working when I was 8 years old, while still going to school. All the way from third grade through to senior year, I was working on Broadway and going to school at the same time."
Michele, who announced her engagement to Zandy Reich last month, was also very proud of the fact she was in three Broadway shows by the time she finished high school, while also earning a high grade point average and being accepted into New York University.
"I truly could not have done that without my parents helping me to get to all my after-school activities and driving me to the theater every night in the city," she added.
She said they also helped her "stay true to who I am" and not let outside voices seep in or affect her goals.
"I'm very proud at how I handled myself as young adult," she said, again thanking her family.
In addition to the commencement speech, Michele is set to go on tour with former "Glee" co-star Darren Criss.
"We put together a really fantastic show and I'm so excited to hit the road and get to meet some of our fans," she said.
