by Zahara Hall via huffpost.com
As a kid, high school junior Jahmir Smith never had a dream college. But for a number of universities, he’s their dream student. The 17-year-old North Carolina native has already been accepted into all eight Ivy League schools and has received 33 full-ride scholarship offers, according to ABC 11 Eyewitness News.
While Smith has a 4.43 GPA at Lee County High School and an impressive ACT score, as well as enough credits to graduate a year early, The News & Observer reported that he’s also constantly being contacted by college football recruiters for his athleticism, receiving hundreds of texts from Division I coaches. Smith, who started playing football in middle school, has a composite three-star rating out of five on the sports website 247sports.com.
Additionally, he was chosen as 2016’s News & Observer’s Metro Football pick after scoring 41 touchdowns and running 2,130 yards in one season. Smith told HuffPost that while he doesn’t plan on making a career out of football, he’s certainly willing to give the NFL a shot. “It’s fast money,” he said. “But I don’t want it as a career because it would take a toll on my body.”
He added that if he doesn’t make the NFL, he wants to explore the medical field, specifically anesthesiology. In whatever he pursues, Smith is aware he’ll face challenges because of his race. But that’s not stopping him in the least bit. “I know the odds are against me because of my skin tone and all, but I don’t really let it get to me,” he said. “I just stay to myself and try to help those around me. I’ve always understood since I was little that people would see me different.”
To read more, go to: Outstanding High School Junior Already Offered 33 Full-Ride Scholarships | HuffPost
Posts tagged as “ACT”
article by Robin White Goode via blackenterprise.com
At 9, Harold Gregory Branch IV—whom everyone knows as Quatro—took the ACT and scored a 21. Yes, that ACT. He ranks in the top 10% in math in the nation. As far as giftedness, he is in the 99th percentile of the 99th percentile.
Now 10, Quatro is blessed in that he attends a private school for gifted kids on a college campus. Every day he tells his parents that he loves school. His first reading assignment? The Tipping Point by Malcolm Gladwell.
Quatro’s parents have been strategic about his education. One of the first things his mother said to me is that she and her former husband co-parent. Here are some ways Harold Branch and Rayco Branch work together to develop their son’s potential.
- Lay the foundation. They agreed to invest in their children’s (the Branches also have a gifted daughter) early education, rather than saving for college. “At 5 he started the Abacus rogram and piano.”
- Sacrifice. They prioritize spending on their children’s education. “We may sacrifice new shoes or a new car or a stylish purse, but Quatro’s in the Abacus program that everyone else said they couldn’t afford.”
- Take responsibility. “In this country the education system is broken,” says Harold, “but for people of color it’s devastating. Our state is 47th in education in the nation, so we expected the school to provide the skeleton, and we provide the rest. Rayco is an award-winning educator. She always had the kids doing worksheets that had them two years ahead.”