Upcoming Bridgeport High Freshman Emily Aman Wise Beyond Her Years Academically and Musically
By Julie Perine on June 04, 2016
It’s been a big year for Emily Aman. Not only did the 14-year-old make the transition from middle school to high school, but she also just finished her first semester at Fairmont State University.
While she was taking English, science and math at Bridgeport Middle School, she was also enrolled in FSU’s World Literature 1. Each Tuesday and Thursday, either her mom or Grandpa Tom Aman dropped her off on campus for the three-hour credit course - which she ultimately aced.
As indicated in a note sent to her parents from Professor Matt Hokom, Emily was one of only five students in the class of 32 to receive an A in the class.
Though she said she was a little intimidated the first day, she settled in quickly and loved everything about her college debut.
“I loved my college professor. He didn’t treat me different because I was younger. He treated me just the same as everyone else and graded me just the same, making me feel comfortable in the class,” Emily said. “The only thing I have to complain about are the all-nighters I had to pull a couple of times – staying up all night reading.”
She did enjoy the reading list, though. Her favorite book was “The Odyssey,” followed by “Oedipus Rex” and “Antigone,” both by Sophocles. The only literary work she had a little trouble with was one that had originally been penned in Sanskrit – one of the official languages of India and the liturgical language of Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism.
“Sanskrit really isn’t spoken anymore and it’s difficult to comprehend,” Emily said. “But the professor kind of broke it down during class.”
Emily’s mom Rebecca Devono said the campus experience was an incredible one for Emily because it challenged her academically. The 14-year-old also excels in various other areas, including math, language arts and music. She is a longtime student of Carla Engle’s and she currently takes piano lessons from Kym Scott at West Virginia University. Emily also writes songs and stories. She wrote the song “Done,” with which she tied for first place at the recent BMS Idol talent show. She has also composed some intricate classical pieces which she has performed on piano at recitals and church services.
A gifted student since the first grade, Emily took the ACT college readiness assessment at age 12 when she took part in a talent search for gifted students, sponsored by Johns Hopkins Center for Talented Youth. Based on scores of above grade level tests - such as the ACT - students are eligible to earn scholarships.
At the time, her incentive was to take an online course in Mandarin Chinese. With absolutely no preparation, she took the ACT at the beginning of her seventh grade year.
The family received a letter from Johns Hopkins Center for Talented Youth notifying them that among students taking above grade-level tests internationally, Emily had scored in the top 10 percent. Among her exceptional scores was a 29 in English.
“When I got her results back, I just looked at them, wondering if they had changed the scoring method,” Devono said.
Because of her high ACT scores, she was awarded a scholarship to a local participating college.
Devono said she knew Emily had a special talent when she was just a toddler.
“When she was 18 months old, she could sing her ABCs – and at the time I didn’t even realize that was unusual,” she said. “When she was two or two-and-a-half, I read ‘The Giving Tree’ to her. I didn’t even think she would pay attention to the whole thing, but when I was done, she took the book and read it back to me. I couldn't believe it.”
That was perhaps the defining moment.
“At that point, I thought this kid has some skills here,” Devono said.
It was Emily's kindergarten teacher, Maria Bailey, who first suggested she be tested for gifted the following year.
"First grade is the minimum age that gifted testing is recommended," Devono said. "We did have her tested and she identified in every area."
Emily was never very interested in toys when she was little, but she did take a liking to computers. For her fifth birthday, she asked for her own laptop – a pink one.
In the first grade, Emily grasped the concept of algebra, her mom said.
“She could substitute numbers for letters,” she said. “We would write down an equation and she would solve it. It was crazy.”
As she progressed through elementary school and middle school, Emily’s grades were excellent and beginning-of-the-year assessments consistently produced end-of-the-year results. She often found herself serving as a student tutor, helping other kids in class. She really liked that, she said, but she also wanted to be challenged.
Last summer, Emily attended the Governor’s School for Math and Science. Again, her instructors recognized her academic talent. This year seemed to be the right time for her to try an on-campus class.
“This was really good for her. It was the first time she’s been mentally challenged and had to work. This class was hard and she had a lot of very difficult literature to read,” Devono said.
The process of registering for class was also a little challenging.
“They had the hardest time getting her into the system because of her age,” Devono said. “It kept kicking it out with her birthdate.
In addition to the on-campus World Literature course, Emily also recently completed an online college course in math. She said her next college class might be criminal justice. She has her eye on a pretty impressive career field.
“I’ve always been interested in helping people and I want to work with the CIA as a counter-terrorism analyst,” she said. “I could help people not just in our country, but internationally.”
But for now, Emily and her mom have made a deal.
“My compromise is that I will take her to Fairmont State classes, but that I want her to go through high school and enjoy things like homecoming and prom,” Devono said. “These are the fun years when she makes friends and learns the inner workings of people – and that is valuable. I told her she has the rest of her life to set the world on fire.”
Emily said she is OK with that. She looks forward to attending BHS, being around her classmates and friends and getting involved in activities. She wants to join the Key Club, play in the jazz band and try out for cross country. She will also keep up her private music lessons with Scott at WVU.
She was humble about her accomplishments and thanked all of her teachers for their instruction, support – and a structured environment. This year, she made an A in a college world literature class, wrote an exceptional thesis paper and played Mozart’s “Rondo Ala Turka” at her spring piano recital – by memory.
Yet one of her best memories of academic achievement is when she was in preschool.
“I remember bragging to my dad that I was the only one who could draw an ‘E’ correctly – with three sticks instead of like 15,” she said.
BMS Principal Carole Crawford said Emily has been a role model student and a memorable one. Not only is she bright, but she is also very personable, she said. Emily is the only student Crawford remembers taking on-campus college classes. She left every Tuesday and Thursday at the conclusion of her AA class to go to Fairmont, Crawford said. While at BMS, Emily was active in jazz band (piano) and show choir. She played soccer her sixth and seventh grade years.
Emily is also the daughter of Tom Aman Jr. and the step-daughter of Frank Devono Jr. Her step-grandfather Frank Devono is a former principal of BMS.
Editor's Note: Emily is pictured (middle) on her first day at the Fairmont State campus and just above during the recent BMS Idol show. A video of her performance of "Done" can be seen and heard HERE.
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