Young, Gifted & Black Series
By Taki S. Raton
Carson Huey-You
Our YG&B profile this week was reading chapter books by age two – before he was toilet trained – according to statesman.com on August 27, 2013.
By age three, our prodigy could add, subtract, multiply and divide and began reading on an eighth grade level by the age of five.
He is young, gifted and Black. At the age of ten, Carson Huey-You in the spring of 2013 applied and was accepted into Texas Christian University thereby becoming the youngest student ever to enroll in the Fort Worth, Texas campus.
As cited in tcu360, Carson taught himself to play the piano using online videos, books and any additional resources he could find. His parents, Andre Huey-You, a former pilot, and his mother Claretta found a piano teacher to help him develop his musical skills.
The teacher made a deal with Carson saying that she would teach him to play the piano if he would teach her son Mandarin Chinese. As a result of such studies, he has been able to master on the keys Beethoven’s “Fur Elise” and “Ode to Joy.”
A graduate of Accommodate Learning Academy in Grapeville, Texas, Carson was co-valedictorian of his May 2013 graduating class with a 4.0 G.P.A. His cumulative SAT score as cited in tcu360 was 1770 with a 580 mark in reading, 670 in math, and 570 in writing.
“Carson was empathetic and was the kind to help others in a humble way,” reveals ALA principal and teacher Melissa McGowan in tcu360.
The posting describes the academy as catering to all students no matter the learning style. And with 16 teachers and 55 pupils, “30 to 40 percent of the students end up graduating early,” she adds.
Carson and his parents had already begun the process of looking for a college that would be a perfect fit as again noted in the Texas Christian posting. He and family visited TCU in the fall of 2013 and met with Dr. Magnus Rittby, senior dean for the College of Science and Engineering.
At the meeting’s end, Rittby is noted as concluding Carson to be “extremely gifted” and ready for college.
When questioned about his maturity level and ability to adjust to college life as accounted in a WFAA 8-TV interview, Rittby replies that there is, “Nothing to be concerned about.”
“When people worried about him going to college at this age, my response is, ‘what else would he do?’” said the department dean.
But there were unusual challenges specific this youthful Southlake, Texas native.
As reported in an August 28, 2013 NewsOne writing, Carson was “completely off the grid when it came to even the most basic of admission processes as completing an application or filling out the financial aid forms.
Because of his date of birth, these forms would not accept his applications,” says Ray Brown, TCU’s Dean of Admissions. The system just was not able to compute students born in 2002.
Brown says in statesman. com that he, “Cannot recall ever having an applicant so young.”
During the interview, it is reported that Carson spoke Mandarin Chinese and played Beethoven.
Prior to Carson says Brown, the youngest student to enroll at the university during his tenure was Sam Hong who graduated in 2011 at age 17. Carson would still be one year younger than Hong.
As of his freshman year which began in August of 2013, Carson, who then turned 11-years-old, took a 14-hour course load to include calculus, physics, history and religion.
With a major in quantum physics, he is expected to graduate at the age of 15 or 16 and plans to continue on to complete a Ph.D. by the age of 20.
“He’s definitely very talented as also he’s very serious about his work and really enjoys it,” says associate math professor Qao Zhang in International Science Times.
“And that’s the best that a professor can hope for in his students,” he adds.
His mother accompanies her son daily to classes and helps to carry his books.
As figuratively noted in NewsOne, “The hardest part of college life for Carson Huey-You is the weight of the books he must carry in his backpack.”
In every class, Carson manages to find a seat up front. When he arrives home, post tcu360, he grabs a bite to eat and then begins his homework. When he is finished, he helps his brother, Cannan, with his homework.
During down time, he and his brother love to play MineCraft, an online video game.
Both are Star Wars fans. Played by Samuel L. Jackson, Carson’s favorite Jedi is Master Windu. His favorite TV program is “MythBusters,” a highly entertaining educational show featuring science experiments with hilarious and curious results as described in International Science. Carson and Cannan also both enjoy swimming, football, and basketball.
Cannan is already himself also an advanced sibling. At the then age of 7, he attended school last year at the 8th grade level and is expected to graduate high school as early as 13.
Father Andre and Claretta in tcu360 describe their children’s intelligence as a “blessing.”
And if Carson manages to graduate Texas Christian University in four years, he will have a college degree in his hands before he even has a driver’s license.
Southlake is an affluent suburban city located in Tarrant County in the U.S state of Texas.
It is located within the Dallas-Fort Worth metropolitan area.
As of the 2010 census it had a population of 26,575.
Southlake is known for public schools, Southlake Town Square, its wealth, and Carroll High School’s 8-time state champion football team.