One UNM student has achieved more than a majority of the student body, and he’s only 14 years old.
Noah Rodney, a dual credit student, said age should not be an obstacle for anyone when it comes to achieving their dreams.
“If you set your mind to it, you can do whatever you want,” he said.
Rodney was born in California and lived in Hawaii before moving to New Mexico. He had been homeschooled since first grade. Not one to wait around for traditional advancement, Rodney took the ACT at 13, earning a score of 26.
This semester, Rodney is enrolled as a non-degree status student while taking Arabic 111. His interest in the language was piqued over the summer, when he attended STARTALK, a language program sponsored by the NSA.
“I like to be able to take the language course and advanced language courses that I wouldn’t normally be able to take,” he said.
He was one of the top students in the summer course, and by far the youngest. Rodney plans to continue Arabic next semester in addition to other fields of study, including his favorite subjects: math and science. But he is just as accomplished outside of the classroom.
An avid outdoorsman and Boy Scout, Rodney earned the Eagle Scout rank — the highest rank given in Boy Scouts — at age 13.
His other hobbies include biking, tennis, rock climbing and mountaineering.
“Mountaineering is my favorite,” Rodney said. “The fun of the climb, the challenge. I like the summit; the summit’s one of the best parts.”
At age 12 he summited Mt. Kilimanjaro, which was a eight-day hike in the snow. He said that it was fun, but also very difficult, and that he often fell asleep while standing up. At one point during the descent, he vomited from dehydration.
Rodney has also summited Mt. Elbrus in Russia. He described it as much more technical than Kilimanjaro, partly due to the necessity of clipping into fixed ropes as he climbed.
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Rodney plans to climb 22,840-foot Mt. Aconcagua in Argentina in January, and said he is not daunted by the task.
“It’s (going to take) 18 days, and a lot of people die on that mountain,” he said.
Rodney said he is afraid of nothing and wants to reach all seven summits — the highest mountains in each of the seven continents -- before age 18. He admits, however, that, due to the required qualifications and expense, summiting Everest will more realistically happen for him by age 30.
Rodney said he is taking his time and wants to be physically ready for Everest.
“I wouldn’t want to have people just helping me to the top, kind of dragging me to the top,” he said.
He is thankful for the opportunities he’s had from a young age, and plans to take full advantage of it all.
“It’s fun to be able to do stuff when you’re young and have that experience,” he said. “That way I can just continue it when I’m older and be very experienced when I’m older so I can do other expeditions”
Rodney already has career plans in mind: he wants to attend West Point and be an officer in the U.S. Army, “to serve my country.”
Beyond that goal, Rodney wants to be a mechanical engineer, specifically a pyrotechnics engineer — but that’s not set in stone.
“If I get bored with that, if it’s a boring desk job, (I’ll) possibly become a mountain guide,” he said.
Rodney said he doesn’t think age has to be a limiting factor, and he certainly is not the exception.
“Do what you want to do, accomplish your goals. Don’t worry about your age,” he said. “If you learn the skills and set your mind to it you can do whatever you want.”
Matthew Reisen is a staff reporter for the Daily Lobo. He can be reached at news@dailylobo.com or on Twitter @DailyLobo.
