Nice!!! Obama Recognises, honours and commends 19-year-old Nigerian Harvard Finalist
By Kemi Mobuse - Wednesday, April 06, 2016
Nigerian genius, Saheela Ibraheem,
19, made history On Thursday, February, 26,2015 when she was honoured with an
official reception in the White House by the US President, Barack Obama and the
First Lady, Michelle.
Saheela Ibraheem got into the Ivy
League Harvard at the age of 15, where she is currently studying neurobiology —
a branch of science that studies the brain — and has been listed among the
“World’s 50 Smartest Teenagers.” She was also accepted for admission by 13
other top colleges in the United States, including the MIT, Princeton,
Columbia, and six Ivy League institutions, choosing Harvard, she became one of
the youngest students to ever attend the university. She will be graduating in
May this year.
Speaking after an introductory
speech by Ibraheem at the White House, President Obama stated that “there are a
lot of teenagers in the world. Saheela is like one of the 50 smartest ones.
That’s pretty smart. And she’s a wonderful young lady. She’s like the State
Department and the National Institute of Health all rolled into one. And we are
so proud of your accomplishments and all that lies ahead of you. And you
reflect our history. Young people like you inspire our future.”
Ibraheem, who skipped two grades in
school, said the key to success is figuring out what you love to learn as early
as possible, which she did at the young age of five.
“If you are passionate about what
you do, and I am passionate about most of these things, especially with math
and science, it will work out well,” she told CBS 2s Cindy Hsu. In addition,
Ibraheem speaks four languages that include Arabic, Spanish and Latin.
Her mother, Shakirat Ibraheem, said
her daughter has been way ahead of the academic game since kindergarten — never
cutting corners and trying to do everything on her own. “She’s like always
independent,” she said. “I never get to help with her homework because she’d
say ‘it’s my work mommy, not yours.’”
Ibraheem’s recognition and
reception was part of the “Black History Month” celebration in the US, which
comes up in February. The “Black History Month”, takes root from the activities
of the “Association for the Study of African American Life and History.” Every
year, Americans set aside the month of February to celebrate the central role
that African-Americans have played in every aspect of American life especially
the march for freedom and equality, jobs and justice, the Civil Rights Act, the
Voting Rights Act, and some profound contributions African-Americans make in
the American culture.
Present at the evening event were
members of the US Congress, including Leader Nancy Pelosi, and members of the
Congressional Black Caucus.
Top-5 things to know about Saheela:
–
1. apart
from English she is fluent in Arabic, Spanish and Latin;
2. she
decided to become a brain scientist at the age of 5;
3. the
girl plays the trombone, sings in the choir;
4. her
sports activities include playing softball and football;
5. she
has a younger brother who dreams of going to Harvard too.
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