7 minute read
Demand Your Education
By Michelle Elizabeth (michelleelizabetho cial@gmail.com) Photographer: Greg Collins (@greg.collins.photo
“Demand your education, whether in or outside of school!” Those words spoken by his high school principal made quite an impression on Curtis Lawrence, III. He’s an average 16 year old boy who has accomplished some extraordinary things and wants to help other kids follow his lead. Many stories have been written about him and he’s even been on The Steve Harvey Show. Currently, Curtis is dually enrolled as a high school senior at School Without Walls and attending college full-time at George Washington University. Currently a Liberal Arts sophomore, in the fall Curtis will declare a major in Biology with a double minor in Computer Science and Mandarin. Why Mandarin? Since he wants to be a Paleontologist and with the recent major discoveries made in China, continuing his fluency in Mandarin will give Curtis an advantage in the geosciences.
Interested in fossils and animals since he was a toddler, Curtis’ parents encouraged his interest through numerous trips to museums and national parks. Curtis became certain of his career choice at 10 when he volunteered with the Dinosaur George Travelling Museum in San Antonio, TX. After spending hours with fossils, he knew that he wanted to be in paleontology for life. He jokes, “people used to say, ‘he likes dinosaurs, that's so nice... but he'll probably grow out of it,’ however since my parents immersed me in my passion, that passion became my career goal.” In fact, his lifetime goal is to become the 4th Black Paleontologist. For the immediate future, he plans to continue his studies straight through college and earn his PhD in Paleontology by 22 or 23. He also hopes to inspire other youth from underserved communities to follow their STEM dreams. He’s already inspired his younger brother, Corey to shoot for the stars, literally. Corey has a passion for astronomy and as a high school sophomore with a 4.0 GPA, is similarly on the path for early college success. He speaks Spanish, practices Capoeira, and plays the djembe drums and guitar… and as a career goal, wants to be an astrophysicist at NASA.
For the Lawrences, education is a family affair. Both parents have taught for over 20 years: Mom, a K-8th Grade literacy specialist and Dad taught middle school history and is now a Secondary School Principal. Since they are adept at identifying and nurturing a child’s natural gifts, they applied the same process with their own children. Both parents read to their children every day since utero, and although Curtis was a preemie (born 4lbs 3oz at 33 weeks), he didn't show any delays and was actually quite advanced. When Corey was born 16 months later the Lawrences replicated everything they did with Curtis to ensure Corey’s academic trajectory. Making learning the center of their lives, they played jazz and classical music and immersed the boys in books, educational DVD’s, puzzles, and strategy games. Mom taught both sons how to read by age two and the family cars even became "mobile class, rooms" stocked with books, flashcards on rings, puzzles, and workbooks. Frequenting local bookstores STEM fields provided extra enrichment to further nurture Curtis’ paleo passion and Corey’s love of astronomy.
Succeeding in college has been easy for Curtis since his previous education prepared him for the rigors and challenges. He started off at Kiddie College, a small home-based pre-school where he learned penmanship, math, and critical thinking. Next was elementary school at TAG Young Scholars, one of New York City's top public Gifted schools. Eventually, he joined the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE) Jr where he participated in the national MathCounts Competition. When he was in 7th Grade (at 10 years old) he took the
SAT, and upon receiving State recognition and a merit scholarship was accepted into Duke TIP (Talent Identification Program) giving him the opportunity to take a summer class and live on campus at Trinity University. Being homeschooled for 8th Grade then gave Curtis the opportunity to take his second college class at the University of Texas San Antonio when he was just 11 years old.
When his father’s career relocated the family to Washington, DC, 12-year-old Curtis started high school at School Without Walls, a public magnet school located on the campus of George Washington University. The rigorous liberal arts curriculum combined with the college-prep STEM programs in NSBE challenged him. Participating in extracurricular activities such as Capoeira, Math Competitions, FIRST and VEX Robotics and playing piano prepared Curtis for adjusting to the demands of college life. His favorite part of college so far has been working in the geology lab researching and identifying fossils of a new dinosaur found by his paleontology professor, Dr. Catherine Forster. Using time management tools like Google calendar and a giant 60-day wall planner helps Curtis stay organized through it all. At the end of 10th grade, Curtis and 14 other students were accepted into the highly selective Early College Program with George Washington University which led him to become the youngest ever full-time GWU Freshman at 14 years old. Currently, Curtis is two years younger than his high school peers with most of his friends being about three years older. His best friend however is his brother Corey. He says, “Not only is Corey smart and compassionate of others, he’s also quite witty. It's great having a brother who equally enjoys learning and thinks math, robotics, and watching the Sci Fi or National Geographic Channel are cool.” They even give each other moral support with late night talks or gaming together for hours to decompress from the rigors of school.
Inspired by his family’s commitment to education, Curtis enjoys promoting STEM in underserved communities, and seeing grassroots initiatives that help solve social problems. Curtis recently participated in a few "Get Out the Vote" projects that got him excited. He says, “There are so many positive teens and smart young adults out there being change agents in their communities.”
His biggest role model is his father because of his great With a belief that education opens the doors to a morals, integrity, and character. “My father is the most lifetime of opportunities, Curtis shared that there are respectful, kind and loving man I know who is commit- many teens who don’t take their education seriously. ted to academic excellence and always puts God first.” “Just like putting effort into getting the top gaming Growing up Curtis saw his Dad encourage and mentor scores,” Curtis explains, “kids can use that same effort his own students. He set high expectations for them and to excel as a student athlete, playing an instrument or always held them accountable for their greatness. being a social entrepreneur.” He advises that no matter Many of those former middle school students have how young you are or what obstacles you face, you become successful professionals, yet they still look to should always set high expectations for yourself and be him for advice. accountable. Through volunteering and his STEM
outreach, Curtis has observed that some parents have good intentions but lack the knowledge, access to resources, or finances to best support or advocate for their children. The Lawrence brothers have always attended public schools and their parents have consistently reinforced their education with enrichment activities. It should instead say this: Dad shares that there are plenty of enrichment programs that support every child's passion and parents should "look into college prep programs like Dr. Cynthia Colon's Dream College Academy and community-based mentoring programs, through religious and civic organizations, or those like NSBE, KEL Alpha Academy, Upward Bound, AKA #CAP and Delta Gems through national fraternities or sororities.”
In the end, every child has gifts and talents and the capability of achieving academic excellence, like Curtis and Corey have done! With dedicated parents advocating for a high-quality education and seeking out enrichment activities, everything is possible. There are great opportunities everywhere, so get out there and Demand Your Education!
Follow Curtis on IG: @curtis_aegyptiacus
