19-year-old about to become SMU's youngest law school grad

NORTH TEXAS (CBSDFW.COM/CNN) - Haley Taylor Schlitz has only been driving for a few years and isn't old enough to buy a beer, but she is set to become Southern Methodist University's youngest-ever law school graduate, at just 19 years old.

In 2019, Taylor Schlitz applied to nine law schools and received nine acceptance letters, eventually attending SMU's Dedman School of Law in Dallas.

The teenager, who hails from Keller, is also an author, public speaker and advocate for "the issues students of color face in navigating gifted and talented programs in public schools," according to the release.

Taylor Schlitz says her parents thought she wasn't being challenged enough as a fifth-grader, which she says was reflected in her grades. They had her privately tested and determined she was gifted and talented, then began to school her at home. The journey lead her and her mother to author and publish a book titled 'The Homeschool Alternative: Incorporating a Homeschool Mindset for the Benefit of Black Children in America'.

Homeschool proved to be a launching pad for the little girl. Once on an accelerated track, Taylor Schlitz entered Tarrant County College at age 13, then transferred to Texas Woman's University where she graduated two years later -- at age 16 -- with a major in Education.

"Many girls and students of color are left out of our nation's gifted and talented programs," Taylor Schlitz said in SMU's news release.

"Society will lose out on the potential scientist who cures a major disease, the entrepreneur who starts the next Amazon and so much more. All because of their gender and/or skin color," she said.

After graduating from SMU on May 13, Taylor Schlitz plans to work on education policy issues and increase opportunities "for gifted and talented girls and students of color," according to the release.