FLORENCE, Ky. — For the past four years, thousands of high school students across the Tri-State have been working hard to get their diplomas. For one local student, that work was doubled.
Ignite Institute senior Hajar Elayyadi is about to receive her high school diploma. But earlier this month, she obtained another diploma — a bachelor’s degree in biological sciences from Northern Kentucky University.
“So, sometimes my brain got a little dizzy, but I really enjoyed it, it was a challenge," Elayyadi said.
Learn more from Hajar Elayyadi on how she managed high school and college at the same time:
Ignite Institute, a STEAM-focused school that trains students in courses like biomedical sciences, computer science, engineering and more, honored its seniors for their hard work and achievements. Elayyadi took the stage to congratulate her classmates on their work.
“What each graduate has accomplished within this time was among the most impossible of probabilities,” Elayyadi remarked in her graduation speech.
Boone County Schools told WCPO 9 that Ignite's mission is to prepare students for college and careers. The district reported that one-third of its graduates are leaving high school with an associate's degree. Elayyadi went above and beyond that goal.
She spoke with us about what the last four years have been like, pushing through the life of a high schooler while finding herself in a classroom with adults studying at university.
"I had semesters, especially these last two, that were 21-credit-hour semesters. So they were packed ... 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. And then I would be ushered back to Ignite on the days I needed to be there and then go back for my studies after school," Elayyadi said.
Elayyadi thanked her mother for constantly driving her back and forth from a college campus to her high school, as she has yet to obtain her driver’s license.
Her parents, Abdel Jalil Elayyadi and Mariam Wang, and her older brother, Bilal, have been with her every step of the way.
"She’s just a fighter, she's just like, when she put her mind on something, she just wants to achieve it," her father said.
"I think she is her own agency and she has put in so much effort and she thinks through a lot of things," her mother added.
Even with two diplomas in hand, Hajar Elayyadi said her journey is just beginning. She intends to study for her master’s degree at the University of Cincinnati while preparing for the MCATs to become a doctor. She said her goal is to work in emergency medicine or as an OBGYN.
But she doesn't want others to simply follow in her footsteps. She hopes they exceed any accomplishment she has earned.
“I hope, I pray that there are going to be thousands, if not millions of people, that surpass me and make my goals and my achievements look so mediocre, because that’s what the world needs," Elayyadi said.
She described herself as one step through the door and is waiting for the entire "stampede" to follow.
