A Genius Among Us – Young Scholars on Campus

By Ericka Foster

Polite Stewart Jr. is a 14-year-old freshman – college freshman.  In fact, he is believed to be the youngest full-time student to enroll at Southern University.  After scoring a 30 on his ACT exams, Polite turned down offers from schools all over the country, including Harvard and Yale. The young man chose to follow in his parents' footsteps by becoming part of the Jaguar nation as a pre-med student.    

Polite was home schooled until the age of 10, when his parents decided that they were going to need some outside help.   It was then that the family decided to enroll Polite in Southern's Timbuktu Academy, a recruitment, holistic mentoring, and research participation program for students from middle school to graduate school. 

It was there that he was adopted into the Southern University family. "I learned so much in the Timbuktu Academy. They challenged me and pushed me to excel," says Polite.  With the support and encouragement of his family, Polite participated in various academic enrichment programs and got the opportunity to familiarize himself with the campus and professors at Southern University.  The young genius admits to being an avid reader, making good use of his library card and reading anything he can get his hands on – from magazines to medical journals. 

Last year, Brittney Exline entered the University of Pennsylvania.  At age 15, Exline is the youngest African-American female ever to be accepted into an Ivy League school.  The Colorado Springs native scored a 1400 on her SAT exams.  The young woman has been three grades ahead since the sixth grade and graduated from public high school at the age of 15. She even spent a summer studying at Harvard preparing herself and her family to be away from home. Brittney is enrolled in the UPenn's engineering school in a dual-degree program focusing on liberal arts and technology.  In addition to being a child genius, she is fluent in German and has won several beauty pageant crowns.

Whiz-kid Vincent Gibson Jr. began taking college classes at North Carolina Central University at the age of 11.  In 2001, he graduated from the university with a bachelor's in biology around the same time that most students were entering college.   These students join an elite group of special students, including Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, who were smart enough to get into college before the age of 16.

Although the priority is getting the best education, college is equally a social experience as it is an academic one.  For many students, this is the first time that they have the opportunity to be on their own. Students of any age can have trouble adjusting to their new independence, but it is a special challenge for students who already stand out from their peers for being both younger and smarter.  Mary Baldwin College in Staunton, Va., has a program for young students, the Program for the Exceptionally Gifted, that allows young women to be challenged intellectually while at the same time interact with their peers. 

"The PEG Center staff is available to help students with any and all types of transition issues such as, homesickness, roommate disputes, medical appointments, coping skills, and student advocacy. The PEG Center staff also provides transportation as many of the PEG students are too young to drive! PEG-specific activities are planned most week nights and every weekend," says Stephanie Ferguson, Director of the Program for the Exceptionally Gifted at Mary Baldwin College.  Each student is required to live in PEG housing at least until the age of 16. 

Similarly, California State – Los Angeles Campus has an Early Entrance Program which is an educational program that is specifically designed to permit young, highly gifted students to enroll in college as full-time students.

Some haters will try to paint young scholars as "nerds" who lack social skills and stick out like a sore thumb in their classroom environment, but according to a recent University of Washington study, that's not the case, "In reality they are extremely versatile, interested, interesting and sociable," said Kathleen Noble, lead author of the study and director of the UW's Halbert and Nancy Robinson Center for Young Scholars.  When Exline began her study at UPenn, many students had no idea that she was only 15.  And Polite is a normal kid, playing video games, riding his bike, and taking voice and piano lessons in his spare time.  He is involved in his church as well.

What is very important however is the role that family plays in the success of these young students. "During the PEG admissions process, the prospective student participates in a two-part interview. Part one involves the family as a whole: one or both parents/guardians, any siblings who are present, and sometimes even grandparents," says Dr. Ferguson.  In fact, family plays a monumental role in Polite's success.  Both of Polite's parents are school teachers who were committed to providing him with the best educational opportunities.  Furthermore, they take a team approach to nurturing a well-rounded young man.  When asked how they keep their son Polite grounded, Polite Stewart, Sr. answers matter-of-factly, "Christian values and discipline, the rest of it just falls into place."

These students have a gift, just as any other gift which needs to be honed and nurtured. These students have the discipline and support that they need to do great things now and in the future.