Interview With Kathy Harris of "College Hill: Interns"

AE: Where does your ambition or your drive come from? Do you have heroes or people you emulate?
KH: I definitely believe in God, and through the entire experience I was praying and doing a lot of soul-searching. I meditated a lot at the house when I was there. My inspiration and my drive comes from God. God gives people different gifts, and during that time I just kind of realized that. … In my work, in how I can be so aggressive and so determined, that's a gift that comes from God.

Also having two parents, my mom and my dad, I was lucky enough to have them there. We don't always agree on everything, but I do love them and they've been awesome role models for me. They've let me know that they don't care about my personal lifestyle and they accept me and they love me, which has been very awesome for me. They've just really been there for me.

So my mom and dad and God, and of course you can't leave out Oprah and Ellen, of course. They're just role models for me. Ellen in particular, because I think that even though she's gay and that's a part of her lifestyle, there's so much more to her.

AE: You have a really interesting sense of style. Can you tell me who or what has influenced your personal style?
KH: I've always been interested in fashion. I love the design aspects of it. Fashion is expressive. I don't believe that fashion has seasons; I believe fashion is what you're feeling that day. During high school I used to make my own jeans, and I was selling and making jeans for people. I would put their names on them or anything they wanted.

A lot of the clothes I wear on the show are things that I've actually made. Like I'll buy a regular shirt, then I'll cut it up or rip it up and make it something that I will wear. Because I don't like the way other people dress. I think it's boring and they look like carbon copies, and I'm not a copy person. I'm very individual, and I have to be able to put on things that make me happy and that I think are a reflection of me.

AE: It looked like you had a tattoo on the show. Can you tell me about your tattoos?
KH: I have one on my stomach and it says "la femme." That's the tattoo I got when I was in high school and I wish I hadn't got. It's there now to remind me that I don't have to always do stuff just to make a statement. Sometimes I just need to chill out.

I also have one on my back that's in the Indian language; it's in Sanskrit. Me and my partner, we have matching tattoos and they mean "promise." Instead of getting our names — because I heard that's really bad luck — we got these.

AE: On AfterEllen.com we have the Hot 100 list, a list of women who our readers think are hot. So now I'm asking you, who do you find attractive and why?
KH: I think Staceyann Chin is beautiful. She's the kind of person I would date. Of course, I think my partner is hot. She's hottie hot! Angelina Jolie. Omahyra Mota — she's a supermodel and she is just gorgeous to me.

I like people who don't look like regular people; they look different. Anybody who's not the average person is probably someone I would like. Oh, I like Carmen [Sarah Shahi], who used to be on The L Word. She is so cute; she is stunning, really. And Paula Patton — she's Robin Thicke's wife — she is really beautiful, too.

AE: Do you have a website or any presence on the web?
KH: I'm on MySpace and you can look me up. I'm glad that you asked me that. I'm going on a speaking tour and I'm going to be speaking at high schools, colleges and universities about self-awareness and self-love. I think my first stop will be in January in Detroit. I'm working on that now. I'll also be at all the Gay Prides and everything like that.

College Hill: Interns airs Tuesdays at 10:00 p.m. ET on BET. For more on Kathy, visit her MySpace page.