A 16-year-old high school senior with nearly 150 colleges offering a total of $10 million in scholarship money is headed to Ithaca, N.Y.
“I have committed to attend Cornell University and intend to pursue computer science and to later move on to practice software development,” Louisiana wiz-kid Dennis “Maliq” Barnes announced Friday. “I look forward to working with Cornell’s College of Engineering over the course of my undergraduate education.”
The teen scholar takes with him 27 college credits he earned from Southern University of New Orleans while maintaining a 4.98 GPA at the International High School of New Orleans. He’s also considering someday attending law school. But first Barnes will accept his high school diploma on May 24.
Barnes was accepted to 186 colleges and universities and is believed to have set a record with the eight-digit tally of scholarship offers extended by 149 of those schools. Barnes said educational and financial benefits weighed in his decision to attend Cornell.
The Big Easy native recently told local station 4WWL he hadn’t ruled out staying near New Orleans, but said he “would love to see something new.”
U.S. News and World Report ranks Cornell University fifth in the nation for computer sciences, which will be Barnes’ focus. The esteemed Ivy League school was founded in 1865. Notable Cornell University alumni include former Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, “Science Guy” Bill Nye, novelist Toni Morrison and columnist S.E. Cupp.