A whole family of geniuses!
A 14-year-old teen is following in his older sister’s footsteps, being just one year away from graduating college early, TCC News reports.
Ian Taylor Schlitz is just like any other 14-year-old, playing video games, spending time with friends and family, except for the fact that Taylor Schlitz is now just one year away from graduating college with a bachelor’s degree. While impressive, Ian is not the first in his family to travel this path, his sister Haley having also enrolled in college early, graduating at 16 years old and getting accepted into nine different law schools.
Both Ian and Haley tested as highly gifted at a young age. The Taylor Schlitz children were then homeschooled early, after their parents pulled them from public school, finding more value in an at home individualized rapid advancement plan. By age 10, Ian was ready to begin taking college level courses, enrolling in Tarrant County College (TCC), the same school Haley attended a few years before. William Schlitz and his wife Dr. Myiesha Taylor said they felt the community college provided their children an affordable avenue to obtain their degrees while also allowing them the full college experience.
Haley went from TCC to Texas Woman’s University before deciding on law school at Southern Methodist University Dedman where she is currently in her second year. Ian also attended TCC, continuing his studies currently at the University of North Texas. He said his sister helped prepare him for college and to manage his full course load over the years which included 60 credit hours complete with courses like digital art and animation, art appreciation, algebra and English composition.
“I learned a lot from watching Haley with her own education. When I started to take classes at TCC, Haley would help me organize my schedule at the start of the semester. She showed me how to manage my time,” Ian said.
William Schlitz said one of the most important lessons he had to learn as a father was to “get out of the way” and allow his children to forge their own path. “Once we got them into a homeschool environment, where we could build and tool their education just for them, they both made rapid advancement…I had to learn to stop trying to put them in the boxes we have created, based on age, in society. Once I learned that, I think I became a better, more supportive parent for their journeys,” he said.
Ian says he is different from his sister who he felt was more outgoing in college whereas he just likes to focus on his studies and connect with friends here and there. He hasn’t yet decided on a career path but the teen prodigy has found his solace in gaming, turning his hobby into a business, Kidlamity Gaming, where he focuses on hosting video game tournaments for youth. He’s exploring various opportunities from animation to medicine but is resting on the fact that he has time given his age.
“I’m not sure exactly what I want to do right now. I enjoy running my business…I think I may decide to get my MBA next. My mom is a physician, and I think I may want to be a physician someday. Luckily for me, I have time to pursue the MBA and still go to medical school if I want. That’s one of the best things about early college,” Ian said.
Haley said she is “immensely proud” of her younger brother and is “excited to see him graduate soon and continue to pursue his dreams.”
Whatever he decides, we know it will be amazing! We also know this isn’t the last of the Taylor Schlitz clan, since Ian and Haley’s younger sister, 12-year-old Hana, just started taking classes at TCC this summer.
Congratulations Ian! May you all go where there is no path and blaze a trail!
Photo Courtesy of TCC News