Dennis Barnes, NOLA High Schooler Who Received Millions In Scholarship Money Chooses Cornell
Dennis "Maliq" Barnes, the superstar student from New Orleans who was awarded millions in scholarship money has decided to attend Cornell University this fall, CBS News reports.
Accompanied by his family at a press conference on Friday, Barnes announced that he was taking his talents to the Ivy League to pursue a degree in computer science.
"I have committed to attend Cornell University and intend to pursue computer science and to later move on to practice software development,” Barnes said as he donned a red Cornell sweatshirt during the announcement. “Today is an exciting day for me and my family and I look forward to working with Cornell's College of Engineering over the course of my undergraduate education."
“Once I received the admission, I knew that's where I was going," the 16-year-old added.
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Barnes said that he chose Cornell because of the school’s renowned engineering program and his desire to live in New York.
"I love my city, but I do want to venture out and experience new things and see different things that I haven't seen before," he said.
After being accepted by Cornell, Barnes said he was "very happy with the offer” but declined to disclose the scholarship amount he was awarded.
In April, Barnes received national recognition for his impeccable record as a student. As a student at International High School in New Orleans, he was accepted into at least 188 colleges and universities and so far has received more than $10 million in scholarships (up from $9 million). With a cumulative grade point average of 4.98, Barnes is also enrolled at Southern University of New Orleans where he’s earning college credit while still in high school.
Along with pulling straight A’s, his proficiency in Spanish earned him an official qualification from the Institute Cervantes on behalf of Spain's Ministry of Education, Culture, and Sports and he holds a leadership position in the National Honor Society.
In an interview with BET.com, Barnes stated that his faith in God and having a clear vision of his goals catapulted him into academic success.
“ I would just say to keep God first and be determined to accomplish whatever you set your mind to do,” he said. “We're not all going to have the same goals, the same dreams, and aspirations. But whatever you decide to do, put your mind to it and make it a priority."
