When Avneet Nagra accepts her high school diploma in May, she will also be awarded an associate’s degree, making the 17 year old the first member of her family to graduate from college.

The Tabor City resident is a senior at Columbus Career and College Academy, the early college high school located at Southeastern Community College.

A leader on campus, she is vice president of the National Honor Society and an ambassador for the high school. With a 3.9 grade point average, Nagra excels in the classroom, where she learns alongside college students old enough to be her parents.

“It is interesting to hear their viewpoints in class discussions because they have more experience in the outside world,” she said, adding that the older students also learn from the younger ones – especially when computers are involved.

Science courses are her favorites, and she believes that her strength in that area makes her well suited for a medical career.

Nagra, who has already been accepted to one university, plans to attend a four-year school to major in biology and minor in chemistry. 

She enjoys working with children and says she would like to work in pediatrics.