People Question Parents Of 10-Year-Old Girl About To Graduate From College — ‘Let Kids Be Kids’
Should gifted children be permitted to fast-track their childhoods?
EZ-Stock Studio | Shutterstock Most people graduate from college in their twenties, but every now and then, a prodigy comes along who turns the system upside down. That’s exactly what one 10-year-old girl did when she attended her local community college.
Soon, she will graduate with two associate's degrees. While many are thrilled for her, others are questioning her parents for allowing their child to grow up so fast.
Alisa Perales, a 10-year-old girl, is on track to graduate from community college this semester.
The little girl from San Bernardino is set to make history at her local community college. Alisa Perales, who will turn 11 right before the ceremony, will graduate from Crafton Hills College in Yucaipa, California, this May. She is the youngest student to ever graduate from Crafton, according to Inland Empire Community News.
Perales will graduate with two associate degrees, one in multiple sciences and one in mathematics. If she had stayed at the college one more semester, she would have qualified for another two degrees in computer science and physics. Perales reported that her GPA was "close" to 4.0.
Perales has certainly not had a conventional childhood.
ABC 7 Sarasota reported that the little girl was reading by the time she was two and solving algebra problems by five. She began attending Crafton at eight.
“She has been a little different her whole life, but I have always taught her that there’s nothing out there that you’re not capable of understanding,” her father, Rafael Perales, said.
Perales views her dad's perspective as the secret to her success. “I credit my dad for pushing me to do well in school and try my best to work hard,” she said.
Perales’s goal after college is to find a job in the artificial intelligence industry. She is even open to establishing a tech startup with her father. There’s no word on what the timeline for this job will look like, given how young she still is.
Despite Perales’ amazing accomplishment, some people online were concerned about her.
For her part, Perales insisted that she enjoyed her education. “It’s very fun to me,” she said. “It’s almost as fun as playing outside or riding a bike or doing whatever. I just enjoy learning. There’s so many interesting things out there.”
Even though she insisted it was fun, commenters on Facebook, where ABC 7 Sarasota shared the story, questioned her parents’ judgment in letting her grow up so quickly.
“I wish her the best … However, I hope this was her own choice and not her parents forcing her to grow up too fast,” one user wrote. “Kids like this can sometimes wind up so damaged. I hope she’s happy!” Another commenter added, “I hope she enjoyed her childhood time because that is something you can’t get back.”
On the other hand, some commenters seemed to understand how Perales felt. “She is a child prodigy,” one Facebook user argued. “Work will be her life. Her parents didn’t push her, actually, they couldn’t stop her. Learning, researching, and delving will be her best friend. Congrats on the accomplishment.”
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While these commenters have valid concerns, you also have to take Perales’ mental well-being into account. Davidson Institute for Talent Development, an organization dedicated to supporting gifted children, discussed what parents can do to best help their gifted kids. One of the most important steps, they said, was to “help your child find the right academic environment.” They noted that traditional schools are not well-equipped to handle gifted children, which leads to frustration for them.
It’s very likely that Perales would have been frustrated in a traditional school setting, and that allowing her to attend college early was the only way to meet her needs as a prodigy. Perhaps these parents really are on the right track.
Mary-Faith Martinez is a writer with a bachelor’s degree in English and Journalism who covers news, psychology, lifestyle, and human interest topics.
