9-Year-Old Boy Becomes One of the Youngest High School Graduates Ever

Nine-year-old Pennsylvania boy David Balogun has become one of the youngest ever high school graduates ever after he received a diploma from a charter school in Harrisburg, WGAL-TV reports.

Balogun recently received a diploma from Reach Cyber Charter School, which he took classes at remotely from his home in Bensalem in Bucks County. He has a special interest in science and computer programming, and hopes to be an astrophysicist so he can study black holes and supernovas. “They didn’t bog me down. They also advocated for me, saying, ‘He can do this. He can do that,'” Balogun said of the school.

“I had to get outside of the box. Playing pillow fights when you’re not supposed to, throwing the balls in the house. He’s a 9-year-old with the brain that has the capacity to understand and comprehend a lot of concepts beyond his years and sometimes beyond my understanding,” added his mother Ronya. Balogun is also training for a black belt in martial arts, and enjoys playing the piano.

Only two other individuals have graduated high school at age nine or younger, according to Oldest.org. The only person to graduate younger than Balogun is Michael Kearney, who currently holds the Guinness world record for youngest high school graduate when he graduated at just six in 1990.

Since graduating from Reach Charter, Balogun has already completed one semester at Bucks County community college. His family is currently looking into the best fit for colleges and universities. “Am I going to throw my nine-year-old into Harvard while I’m living in [Pennsylvania]?” said his father, Henry. “No.”