Pa. student takes on a challenge

Annie Iodice started her collegiate career at age 13, and since then, she's been on an academic tear.

The 15-year-old Radnor girl is ripping through high school and college simultaneously, aiming to have her diploma in hand by 2009 and a bachelor's degree in teaching by 2010.

Then she hopes to go off at age 17 to Columbia Law School in New York City.

So this summer will be no splash in the pool for the self-determined Iodice, who likes to start her days with a Wawa coffee, heavy on the sugar and cream.

She is taking classes in Shakespeare, 19th century literature, math and developmental psychology at Cabrini College, where she has already amassed the credits of a junior.

Last spring, she split her days between Radnor High School and Cabrini.

There was German, algebra, a senior-level history course and English in the morning at Radnor - where she has already achieved the credit status of a senior - and 18 credits at Cabrini in the afternoon. British literature, psychology and the spirituality of Mother Cabrini were among her courses.

The weight of her book bag alone was daunting.

She wrote for Radnor's high school newspaper and played violin for its orchestra, while singing in Cabrini's choir and working on and acting in its theater productions.

So why the rush?

"If I can do college work right now, why not do it?" Iodice said.

Otherwise, "it would just feel like I would be wasting my time."

Iodice would not be the youngest student to earn a bachelor's degree, but "it is by far an anomaly," said Barmak Nassirian, a spokesman for the American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admission Officers.

Typically, early graduates exhibit genius in areas such as math, science or music, he said. Secondary education, Iodice's major, is an unusual choice, he said.

While Iodice's pace is remarkable, other local students take college courses while in high school. Pennsylvania has been encouraging the practice. Ninety percent of public schools in Philadelphia and the Pennsylvania suburbs offered dual enrollment in 2006-07, up from 38 percent in 2002-03. In the Philadelphia region, including New Jersey, the numbers have also gone up from 50 percent to 86 percent.

Radnor High Principal Mark Schellenger said the 1,200-student school, among the top academically in the region, is committed to accommodating students with extraordinary abilities.

"We try to do whatever we can to not get in the way of them pursuing their passion but to try to make it better for them," he said.

At age 10, Iodice decided she wanted to become an arbitrage lawyer because she found out that they make lots of money and can retire early. Now, she can't imagine spending so much time on desk work and sees a law degree as more of a passport.

"A law degree will help me get whatever job I'm interested in," she said.

Her latest dream is becoming a "guitar tech" for her favorite British band, Muse. Guitar techs keep the instruments primed for the musicians and hand them over on stage, a vocation she's eyed enviously on MTV.

"That's like the perfect job," said Iodice, who one recent school day looked like a typical teen in a striped shirt, blue jeans and sneakers, her straight shoulder-length brown hair falling well below her shoulders. "I can't imagine what more I would want."

That's the broad range of Iodice, a teen who marvels her teachers with her maturity and intelligence, nurtures her creative side in music, writing and art and indulges in her youthful dreams.

She has maintained a 3.8 grade-point average at Cabrini and even higher at Radnor. She scored a 1240 on her Scholastic Assessment Test as an eighth grader.

Iodice said it's not getting the "A" that motivates her.

"All I care about is what the A can do for me," she said.

Iodice's fast-paced track raised eyebrows and even protests from some teachers and professors, but their doubts quickly faded when they saw Iodice's work and maturity.

"I told her 'you can't take this class,' " recalled teacher Ken Sklar, who had Iodice at Radnor in a history course on contemporary issues for seniors. "I didn't want her around seniors. I didn't think it was good for her academically or socially."

He even raised his objection with the school administration, but he soon became convinced she belonged.

"The school ended up doing the right thing. She's remarkable, really, really special," he said.

Bob Iodice, her father, said she was bright as a toddler and qualified for the elementary gifted program but it didn't challenge her enough.

"Every year after first grade, she would get to October and come home and say 'I'm bored,' " he recalled.

Later in her elementary years, the school allowed her to skip grades in math. Soon she wanted a greater challenge and took a political science course at Cabrini. Iodice, who is the college's chief engineer, joined her.

Because Bob Iodice works there, tuition is free for both. Both got A's.

In fall 2007, she took an adolescent literature class with students ages 20 to 35.

"It was interesting to have an adolescent's view of the material," said professor Tom Stretton. "She was very thoughtful and perceptive."

Iodice says she has what it takes to be successful.

"Most college classes are about writing. If you can pay attention and you can write, you can pass," she said.

She sometimes skips or skims readings if she's pinched for time: "I can't do an hour for every single class every night."

Bob Iodice says he and wife, Carolyn, who has a bachelor's in theater design and secondary English education and two graduate degrees, periodically ask their daughter if she wants to continue on the fast track. Her brother, Robert, now a political science major at Drexel University, had also taken a few college courses while in high school.

"Neither my wife nor I thought she was going to keep going. But she just hasn't stopped and in fact has accelerated," he said.

Iodice continues to get more ambitious. Last November, she entered an international contest to write a 50,000-word novel in a month. She only got to 24,000 words, "further than people thought I would," she said.

Determined to stay well-rounded, she has played soccer goalie for the last 10 years, undeterred by broken fingers 11 times.

She hopes to student teach at age 17, probably in a middle school so she's older than her students.

If she doesn't become a guitar tech, she hopes her career will include music. Perhaps a record company CEO, or agent.

"I love music. It's like religion these days for kids," said Iodice, who also plays the guitar and bassoon. "Fifty thousand people screaming the exact same song. It's inspiring and powerful."

Her friends at Radnor say they wouldn't choose Iodice's fast pace, but they can't imagine her doing anything else.

"Even though people might be like 'oh, she's wasting her high school career. She should enjoy her youth.' She wouldn't enjoy it as much as regular people like us," said Vivian Chan, 15, a freshman.

Her friends revealed that Iodice's Achilles' heel is math, to which Iodice objected.

"See, by comparison, I'm not as good as they are, so they treat it as a weakness," Iodice said.

They also kidded her for revealing that as a child she thought the heart was more important than the brain.

"I didn't know the brain existed," Iodice explained.

She knows now.

To check for dual enrollment at area high schools, go to http://go.philly.com/reportcardEndText

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