Skipping a grade or even two is one thing, but zooming over lots of them is a whole ’nother level.
Which is exactly where Kimora Hudson is at in life—at 13 years old, she’s the youngest student enrolled at the University of West Georgia this fall.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports that Kimora will be at UWG two days a week this fall, taking biology, biology lab and public speaking. Her mother, Fawn Hudson, will also be there and has registered for graduate classes in sociology.
When the Douglasville, Ga., teen was in ninth grade, she enrolled in UWG’s dual-enrollment program for 10th- to 12th-graders. In two years, the Young Mensa candidate will be a high school graduate and a junior in college.
“When she was three or four months, her doctors told me she would be a genius, because she started forming words very early,” said Fawn Hudson. “In pre-K, her teachers would tell me they had to bring in second-grade work specifically for Kimora. By the time first grade came around, it was just obvious that she was gifted.”
Wanting to challenge her daughter, Hudson, a mental-health specialist, signed up young Kimora for various academic enrichment programs, and by the time Kimora hit seventh grade, she was taking the ACT.
“Everybody taking the exam was in high school. I remember that we could take a snack, but nobody else had snacks. I was in the corner of the class eating my chips and everybody was looking like, ‘Who is this little girl?’” she told the AJC, laughing as she mimicked the noise of a bag opening.
Kimora’s mom tries to give her daughter some semblance of a normal teen life, and says that most Fridays, Kimora hits up local high school football games, and on the weekends, she has sleepovers and does activities with her church family. She is also a competitive swimmer.
“I’m a chill person. I’m still a normal 13-year-old. I still hang around my friends because I need a balance. I just don’t see them every day at school like before,” Kimora said.
Kimora, who has her own blog that touches on “School,” “Hair” and “Life,” says she hopes to inspire others with her unique story—especially young black girls.
“People are so afraid to go out and try new things. I want to help bring a community together for young black women,” Kimora said. “I want to be an advocate for people who step out the box and express themselves. I’m going to keep going.”
Kimora says she is considering something in the sciences as a career, looking at becoming a marine biologist, surgeon, veterinarian or psychologist.
Read more at the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.