Congratulations are in order for Janiya Baker, a 15-year-old student from Homestead Senior High School who made history in Miami-Dade County after she became the first student to be bumped up from ninth grade to 12th grade.
Baker is on track to graduate high school in the spring of 2024, according to WSVN.
Now, that’s Black Girl Magic at its finest!
It wasn’t easy an feat.
The 15-year-old high school senior ground through “a lot of work” to accomplish her historic feat. Juggling her homework with cheerleading and her responsibilities as class president, Baker never broke a sweat as she ground her way through ninth grade. Thanks to hard work and determination, the young Miami-Dade County teen now holds the current highest GPA in her class.
“I was ready to finish school,” the beautiful teen told WSVN during the interview.
Baker’s tenacity did not go unnoticed. Her mother, who identifies as Jasmine Gary on TikTok, also saw her unwavering drive to complete high school.
“I noticed she was very accelerated, and I’m like, ‘OK, she don’t make B’s,” so then I’m like, let’s put her in higher classes, and then she started accelerating, accelerating, and she went higher, and she never dropped the ball so I was, ‘OK, let’s go for it,’” Gary shared. “Me and her dad Travis, we raised her to be the intelligent young woman that she is, and we’re proud of her,” the proud momma added.
Gary has been celebrating her daughter’s big jump to the 12th grade on TikTok. In a video posted Aug. 22, the happy matriarch shared a behind-the-scenes video of Baker’s WSVN interview with a caption that read, “So proud of my baby. She made history, now it’s time to take off!”
Homestead Senior High School also showed love to the historic student on X, formerly known as Twitter.
Reflecting on Baker’s success, Homestead’s principal, Samuel J. Lewis, applauded the young pupil for showing “grit” and “perseverance” during her remarkable jump up to the 12th grade. “It shows a young lady with tenacity and the vision to accomplish her future goals sooner rather than later,” Lewis told WSVN.
Looking ahead to the future, the Miami native hopes to attend Florida International University in her freshman year, where she has big plans to study business and continue cheerleading. She also shared a few words of advice to other students determined to fast-track their high school journey. “Never give up and keep going even if it gets hard, and just have a great support system around you,” the 15-year-old star said.
Baker’s historic accomplishment will be celebrated at the Homestead City Hall.
Congratulations to Janiya Baker! We can’t wait to see where you go next.
RELATED CONTENT: Jordan Chiles Excited For This Month’s U.S. Gymnastics Championships: ‘Y’all Ready For Another Party?’
