What Happened After a 16-year-old Chose FAMU Over Harvard

Ralph Jones’ unconventional story didn’t end with him choosing an HBCU over an Ivy League university.

ATLANTA, Georgia  -- There has been a swarm of media reports celebrating young African-American teenagers who have been killing it in college admissions. There are the DC-area triplets deciding between Columbia and University of Pennsylvania, the North Carolina young man who got into seven Ivy League schools and the New York teen who got accepted into all eight prestigious universities.

But what happens when an Ivy League school comes calling and you take a less expected path? What happens when you choose a different school, with less prestige, over the Ivy? What happens when a black kid decides that he would rather take his talents to Florida A&M University over Harvard University.

Ralph Jones Jr., a prodigious young man, who entered college at the age of 16 can tell you a little bit about that.

Jones first drew media attention back in 2010, when he shocked those who knew his story by choosing Florida A&M University over Harvard. At that time his path seemed clear. The then-16-year-old navigated through overwhelmingly intense social media criticism for his unexpected choice.

Does he regret it?

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