17-Year-Old Black UNC-Pembroke Student Could Earn Her Teaching Degree By Age 19

Hannah Pearson, a 17-year-old college student from Robeson County, North Carolina, is on track to become a licensed teacher before turning 19. She finished high school early and has already graduated from Robeson Community College with an associate of arts. She is now majoring in Elementary Education at the University of North Carolina, Pembroke.

With an early start and a strong drive, Hannah is making remarkable progress in her education journey. “Because I just love to learn new information and just explore, learning many things,” She told WRAL. Her mother Miranda McNair, who has been a teacher at Fairmont High School for 28 years, proudly watched her daughter as she achieved her goals.

“She is self-driven. Even into foreign languages. She [says], oh, I want to learn a new language, so she’ll learn Korean, learn Spanish, and learn Portuguese,” she said.

Hannah started taking advantage of North Carolina’s Career and College Promise Program when she was in the 10th grade. This program offers free education, making it really affordable for students like her. With this program, she managed to pile up an impressive 60 college credits.

“I believe you can do anything you put your mind to,” Pearson said. “It doesn’t matter how well the next person does it. The only thing that matters is you and your drive.”

Her dad, Brian McNair, couldn’t be prouder. Inspired by his daughter’s drive, he made a big decision – to go back to school himself. He recently earned his bachelor’s degree from UNC Pembroke.

“I can’t tell her to do something, to go after something that I haven’t achieved myself… so I got back into school at UNC Pembroke,” he said. “God has given her a platform to show other kids that this is achievable.”

This article first appeared in BlackNews.com