TAMPA - When it comes to getting things done, Saefallah Mohamed is ahead of the game.
At age 14, he was the youngest student in the spring graduating class at Hillsborough Community College, having worked on his associate of arts degree while enrolled at Blake High School. He'll enjoy his second commencement ceremony in three weeks on Saturday (May 19).
At age 12, he became an Eagle Scout. At age 15, he will start his public health studies at University of South Florida, hoping to complete medical school and his residency as a doctor by age 23.
"He was always motivated,'' said his mother, Hanan Ahmed.
"He always tried to copy his older brother,'' six years his senior. "He thought he could do exactly the same thing ... in sports, in academics, in everything.''
His three older brothers - all high school graduates at 15 - are impressive, too. Ahmed Mohamed, 20, graduates from Stetson law school in the summer and will start medical school at USF in the fall. Youssef Mohamed, 19, is working on a doctoral degree in biomedical science at USF and plans to go to medical school. Adam Mohamed, 17, graduates from USF with a biomedical science degree this summer and plans to go to medical school, too.
RELATED: TBT's Anita Morgan rises above abuse to thrive
For the past two years, Saef, as his friends call him, has played piano and drums with the Tampa Metropolitan Youth Orchestra Symphonic Band at USF. He was a national finalist and third-place winner in debate last year and comedy improv this year at the Muslim InterScholastic Tournament - an event open to all students - held this year and last at the University of Florida in Gainesville. He likes playing sports, too, especially soccer.
He founded the robotics club in high school and plans to join the robotics club at USF. Though he likes to tinker with robots, an engineering career is not for him.
"I think I have a bigger calling, I guess, in public health,'' he said. "It's helping the community in multiple different ways.''
Saef is poised and well-spoken, and he's as tall as many of the students attending USF. He said he has never felt out of place among older students. He thinks the skills he developed in Scouts, such as leadership, helped him mature.
"I don't think it's really hard to blend in.''
Saef and his next older brother, Adam, were born in Charleston, S.C., where Ahmed's ex-husband was a surgeon. The family, originally from Egypt, settled in the United States in 1999. Ahmed was a pediatrician in Egypt but quit work to raise her boys. Now that they are almost grown, she said, she's working on a master's degree and planning a new career in health and informatics.
Ahmed said she's proud of her boys, not only for their academic accomplishments, but also because they are social; they have lots of friends.
"She made sure to instill that in us, all four of us, that we can't just devote our life to academics,'' Saef said. "It's important, yes, but everything else is, too - our hobbies, having fun ... having a good social life and just making sure that we balance everything out.''
Contact Philip Morgan at pmorgan@tampabay.com.