Striding down the hallways and striving for a faster start in the world, Danube Shudic makes a mark on clubs, classes, and her peers. 

Shudic is part of the class of 2027 cohort but will be graduating along with the class of 2025 seniors.

“I’m really excited to graduate early honestly,” Shudic said. “I did a lot of my credits online during middle school, and I’ve thought about graduating early for a long time so it’s always been this goal to reach for.” 

Shudic who will be turning 16 this year has been surrounded by older kids since elementary school when she skipped a grade. But navigating high school relationships being two years younger at points, is somewhat different.

“I don’t usually tell people I’m young when I first meet them,” Shudic said. “I try to let them get to know me and make friends and then drop the fact that I’m young, it’s odd to look around in my classes and see people who are two to three years older than me.” 

Sophomore Madeline Davis and Shudic met at the beginning of Davis’ freshman year through mutual friends. 

“We ended up sitting in the same group at lunch because of some mutual friends and have stuck with that group since then,” Davis said. “We are also in Key Club and Acts of Kindness together.” 

Davis believes Shudic’s work ethic is an important part of her success. 

“I think Danube is motivated by her goal to be the best she can be,” Davis said. “ She doesn’t want to settle for mediocre, which I really admire.”

Balancing an older peer group, strenuous classes, and a multitude of extracurriculars Shudic strives to set herself apart from her peers and this year’s graduating class.

“I’m taking seven AP classes this year alone so it’s kind of stressful,” Shudic said. “A lot of colleges now want to see you do something crazy amazing. I don’t have the means to create a non-profit so I’m trying my best to set myself apart academically.” 

Shudic has found her place on Bowie’s campus, but navigating an older peer group and maintaining friends her age is something of priority to her.

“When it comes to my friends from middle school, I just make a point to see them during lunch or before school and hang out outside of school,” Shudic said. 

Outside of academics when Shudic isn’t making time to see long time friends she’s participating in a number of extracurriculars. 

“I really like to do taekwondo,” Shudic said. “I’m a third degree black belt, so I’ve doing it for a while, and I’m in taekwondo club here at school, it’s something I just really enjoy doing in my free time. I’m also taking around nine club photos for clubs like Society of Women’s Engineers, Spanish Honor Society, and Choir.” 

Being 15 and only being in high school for two years, Shudic has accumulated over 27 course credits, in those two years. Thus exceeding Bowie’s credit graduation requirement.

“The workload is definitely a lot. Because I’m in like, two years, I’m trying to fit them all in,” Shudic said. “I get to school really early, and so I just do all my work then, and then I try to work as much as I can during fit. And so it’s only, like maybe an hour, an hour and a half after school every day when it comes to homework, which is really nice.”

Between the extracirrculars and the seven AP courses Shudic is taking this year alone, she has set herself up for early success. 

“I’m going to MIT. I got a full ride scholarship,” Shudic said. “My parents aren’t going with me so it’s all a little scary but its the top school for my major.”

When applying to schools Shudic knew she wanted to attend a school on the east coast, and the fact that MIT has the number one undergraduate engineering program according to the U.S. News and World report, it ended up being the perfect fit.

“I’m gonna double major in Mechanical Engineering and Applied Math, and so I really want to go into research in mechanical engineering,” Shudic Said. “I would probably do research with waves and how they affect building structures. We were doing like earthquake unit in engineering, and I thought it was really cool how buildings have to adapt to those waves. And so I would research just how to make earthquakes less devastating to infrastructure.”

Throughout Shudic’s short time on campus, teachers have taken notice to her drive and work ethic.

“I believe Danube’s drive to work so hard comes from the expectations she has set for herself,” English teacher Lillian Glasscroder said. “She knows she can excel and achieve amazing things, so she does. I have never known her to doubt her own intelligence and this shows clearly in what she is able to accomplish.”

Outside of just her work ethic according the Glasscroder, Shudic’s personality and happy go lucky attitude shine just as bright.

“Her kind and understanding nature are the first things that stand out to me,” Glasscroder said. “She is incredibly sweet and respectful to every teacher and student I have seen her interact with. She is also incredibly funny.”

While Shudic has a good head on her shoulders and has already learned valuable skills like, time management, stress management, and has soon she is capable academically of moving on to a college setting, she is still only 15.

“I think my parents are excited to have a kid who’s 15 and graduating, for sure. I mean, they want the bragging rights, but they are very scared for me,” Shudic said. “It’s just because they’re they can’t really keep an eye out for me all that often. And so you see parents that they’re like, Oh, we don’t want you to go out with your friends today, and here I am just being in a whole different state.” 

While Shudic’s parents have their own worries so does she, not only is she headed toward facing the adjustments that any incoming college student would have to make, shes doing it at a younger age with less experience in a setting like high school thats prepares you for change.

“Specific worries I have are just doing random things, like booking a doctor’s appointment, I’ve never really done that before, and just changing insurance, like, random things that you don’t really think about,” Shudic said. “Even getting paid, because I’ve never had a job. I’m too young to do that, so once I do work study, that’s kind of scary.” 

Shudic’s nerves haven’t stopped her from looking forward to her new life in the upcoming school year. 

“I am really excited just for like, a new type of city, like, I know the transport, transportation is, really different. It’s a lot of public transport, and I really like that,” Shudic said. “ It’s walkable, and there’s just a lot to do in one area. There’s so many cities there that are close to each other. So if you want to get a job, I think it’d be really easy. Once I visited the campus I knew its where I wanted to go, it’s beautiful.”

With her strong personality and drive to succeed Shudic is ready for success.

“Danube’s quiet intelligence, yet wonderfully loud and bubbly personality are what makes Danube, Danube,” Glasscroder said. “She deserves every wonderful thing that comes her way.”