What’s better than one scholar? Two!
Carson Huey-You just became the youngest student to receive a master’s degree from Texas Christian University (TCU), Fox 4 News reports.
The 17-year-old graduated last month with a master’s degree in physics, having received his undergraduate degree at just 14-years-old. But it seems that there are two geniuses in this family. Carson’s younger brother Cannan is also enrolled at TCU, a 14-year-old electrical engineering major.
Carson says that despite his superior academic abilities, he’s just a regular kid. “Outside of just school and academia, I’m really just a normal 17-year-old kid. I like playing video games, I have a dog, I have my brother at home, so, we have fun,” he said.
The boys’ mother, Claretta Kimp said she knew her son’s were exceptional early on. “By the time [Carson] was 2 years old, he was reading chapter books,” she said.
Kimp homeschooled Carson until he started 8th grade at just 5-years-old. He started college at 10-years-old and Cannan was right behind him. Magnus Rittby, their mentor and physics and astronomy professor said she felt the two were ready to handle higher academia, even at such a young age.
“They were shorter, but they were almost equally smart as they are now, so I had to kind of equally assess if they were ready to go to college. There is no limit. Not even the sky,” Rittby said. He added that being the boys’ mentor was a career highlight for him and it makes him emotional just thinking of their unlimited potential.
Cannan hopes to one day be an astronaut but right now he’s just worried about his Lego Star Wars sets he’s working on. Carson plans to go back to TCU to pursue his PhD but is keeping his plans open for the most part and being grateful for his support system. “I had a village, and sometimes, well, all the time, that’s what it takes,” he said.
Kimp is just supporting her children, driving them both back and forth to college, and hoping that they serve as an inspiration for other young scholars. “It’s obvious they are nerds. It’s a beautiful thing to be a nerd because nerds will rule the world at some point,” she said.
Congratulations Carson and Cannan! We are all excited for your future!
Photo Courtesy of Fox 4 News