Nationwide — At the age of 12, Elijah Muhammad has become a freshman at Oklahoma City Community College (OCCC) making history as the youngest Black college student in the entire state of Oklahoma.
Elijah recalled his classmates’ reactions when he first met them in class. “A bunch of them were like, ‘how old are you?'” he told KFOR News. “Once I told them my age, they all got surprised.”
Coming from a family of achievers, Elijah’s accomplishment did not come as a complete shock. His older sister, Shania Muhammad, made history just last May as the youngest person ever to graduate from both OCCC and Langston University at the age of 14.
Their father, Elijah Muhammad Sr., said the siblings always have healthy competition amongst them.
“When he sees her accomplish certain things, he’s like I’m up next and I can do it,” said Elijah Sr. “We are the cheering section for our scholars.”
However, Elijah acknowledges that despite them being competitive with each other, his older sister is a big help to him.
“We have a bunch of competitiveness. But she really helps me out with a lot of my studying,” said Elijah, who is on track to surpass his sister’s record of the youngest to graduate in the state.
Aside from being a historic outstanding student, Elijah is also a three-time state champion wrestler and an entrepreneur with his own clothing line called Smart Boy.