12-Year-Old Georgia College Student Takes Up Aerospace Engineering
MARIETTA, Ga. (CW69 News at 10) -- Caleb Anderson knows a thing or two about Transformers toys, shows and movies. That's pretty normal for a kid, but what some may find surprising is the fact that Caleb is a college student at Chattahoochee Technical College, at just 12 years old. He was 11 years old last fall when he enrolled there.
"I wondered how they would treat me, if they would treat me worse than the schools that I went to before, and they didn't, which is something I'm really glad about," Caleb said.
His parents, Kobi and Claire Anderson knew his journey would be unique from the very beginning. "Caleb was almost four weeks old, and he started mimicking the words that were coming out of my mouth," said Claire.
Caleb's parents began teaching him sign language as an infant and said he was only 22 months old when they enrolled him in private school. He completed programs at John Hopkins and Stanford University. Then, Claire enrolled Caleb in the Atlanta Gifted Academy, where he and other children's curriculum revolved around their individual skill sets. "Seeing Caleb excel academically and use his intellectual gifts, that's been a true joy," Kobi Anderson said.
Caleb claims he's no genius, he just learns much faster than most kids. He plans to work as an aerospace engineer. "When I was like six or seven, I researched it, and I found out that being an aerospace engineer would be the quickest and the best."
To reach that career goal, Caleb plans to transfer to Georgia Tech, then later to MIT to obtain his doctorate. He said an internship with Elon Musk is also on his to-do list.
His parents hope to inspire others and that his success will remove stereotypes about little boys who look like him. Claire elaborated, "There is a way to foster a well-rounded child and let them follow their passion at the same time."
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