The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
High school freshman in spring, she’s now a senior
Teen is first to skip two high school grades in Miami-Dade Schools.
While other students spent the start of the new school year meeting their new teachers and reuniting with friends, Janiya Baker was making history.
This year, the 16-year-old became the first student to skip two grades at the high school level in Miami-Dade County Public Schools, third-largest school district in the U.S., said Gabby Acosta, a district spokeswoman.
Janiya finished her freshman year at Homestead Senior High School in the spring and started her senior year in August.
“I feel good. I’m thankful for my support system,” she said, mentioning her parents and teachers.
Her mother, Jasmine Gary, said her daughter shrugged when she first heard the news.
“She’s so humble,” Gary said, smiling and shaking her head. “She’s like that. She’s quiet. She never tells us when she gets awards. She’s just focused on accomplishing her goals.”
Gary found out when she visited the school to speak with staff over the summer. After looking at Janiya’s credits, they all realized she could graduate sooner than expected.
“We were all like, ‘If she’s got this many credits, how is she going to stay in high school? It wouldn’t make sense.’ I was like, ‘God, she’s so young, but she’s been doing the work, so I think she can go for it,’” said Gary, recalling the meeting.
Gary then went home and told her daughter, who replied: “OK. ... What am I going to wear on the first day of school?”
Gary said she doesn’t worry about her daughter advancing so much at a young age because she’s mature. Similarly, Shaundrea Dixon, who’s been a college adviser at Homestead Senior High for three years, believes Janiya will succeed.
“Her work ethic speaks volumes. My biggest concern would be time management, but she’s already mastered that, so I have no doubt in my mind that she’ll do great in college. She’s already taking advanced classes and getting A’s,” Dixon said. “She’s constantly impressing me.”
Janiya started taking upper level classes in seventh grade: She did classwork quickly, then finished homework during school hours. At home, she studied for upcoming tests but soon found she had too much free time.
“I felt like I was ready to challenge myself,” she said. “I wasn’t exactly bored in class; it just wasn’t challenging enough for me.”
In seventh grade at South Dade Middle School, she took her first high school class: physical science. Then in eighth grade, she took two more: biology and geometry. After that, she took more during ninth grade at Homestead Senior High and even more in between via Florida Virtual School.
“I think the skipping grades just happened,” Baker said. “At one point, I thought I could skip a grade, but I didn’t realize I could be a senior so fast.”