Sitting at a table at the University of Arizona's Environment and Natural Resources 2 building during finals week, Marcelino A. Perez III seemed unbothered by the three essays and two exams that stood between him and his college degree.

That's probably because Perez, from the age of 4, has maintained the sort of academic load that makes finals looks like a breeze. 

Perez is 17 years old. He's due to graduate on Thursday with a Bachelor of Science in criminal justice studies, which he completed in just a year and a half.

Striving to "be the best"

A lifelong Tucsonan and first-generation college student, Perez was raised in South Tucson. His parents, Marcelino Jr. and Arleth, met working construction. Perez was their middle child, born seven years after his older sister, Alejandra, and seven years before his younger sister, Elizabeth.

Perez picked up reading skills quickly. By 2, he could read his children's books aloud to his parents. His parents and grandparents encouraged his growth, and his family learned quickly that he could likely skip preschool.

"My parents used to tell me as a kid to do my best at everything that I try," he said. 

He took that advice to heart.

Perez started kindergarten at age 4, attending a private elementary school on a scholarship for low-income families. He was drawn to math early. By second grade, he was solving long division, before quickly grasping fractions and flying through multiplication tables. He recalls finishing worksheets much faster than his peers, leaving his teachers struggling to keep him busy.

Perez also excelled outside the classroom. Between the ages of 5 and 12, he built a small business selling toys on weekends at the Tanque Verde Swap Meet on Tucson's east side. Over the years, he saved enough money to buy himself a car.

In sixth grade, Perez began attending Sonoran Science Academy Tucson, a charter school focused on college preparation and education in science, technology, engineering and math. Perez, then 10, continued to breeze through assignments, but a few of his fellow students – all a year older – had slightly higher GPAs.

"It was a more difficult setting, and I didn't want to fall off. I wanted to be the best," he said. "I was near the top of the class, but I wasn't the best anymore, so that motivated me to want to be better."

"As early as possible"

In middle school, Perez's writing, research and computer-based skills flourished. He says most of his success was the result of observing his older peers and mimicking their behaviors without copying their work.

"My ability to observe something and copy it – that's pretty much how I've done everything so easily," he said. "I might have a question or two, but then I get it."

Perez transferred to the private Family Life Academy for seventh grade, then Nosotros Academy for eighth grade. At age 13, he started at Pueblo High School in the Tucson Unified School District, the same school where his dad had graduated ninth in his class. Perez had a new goal to beat.

On his first day at Pueblo, he walked into his counselor's office and asked how he could become valedictorian. 

As a sophomore, he packed his schedule, taking more classes than his teachers advised. At his busiest, he was juggling 14 classes at once – twice as many as most students.

As he was breezing through high school and making straight As, Perez missed an opportunity to get into advanced placement and honors courses at Pueblo. Even with his 4.0 GPA, a handful of other classmates who did take advanced courses had slightly higher GPAs, putting Perez in the top 10 of his class but not at the very top.

So, he set a new goal: Graduate as early as possible. Perez graduated high school with a 4.0 GPA in May 2023 at age 15 – just two years after he started at Pueblo.

Piling up credits

College wasn't originally part of the plan for Perez. After school, he figured he'd just work whatever odd jobs he could find and support his family.

But a teacher at Pueblo urged him to apply to the U of A and helped him find financial aid. 

With longstanding aspirations to become a police officer, Perez chose a major related to the law. He enrolled in the criminal justice studies program in the School of Government and Public Policy in the College of Social and Behavioral Sciences. He would later add a minor in agricultural technology management and education.

Through the university's New Start Summer Program, Perez got a head start on general education courses. When he started his first fall semester at the university, Perez approached academics like he did before: by taking as many classes as possible. 

He loaded up his schedule to reach the semester maximum of 19 credits. But that was "too boring," Perez said, so, he asked for more. An adviser, seeing Perez's high school records, allowed him to max out at 21 credits his first semester. Perez added even more classes at Pima Community College and transferred those credits to the U of A.

During spring 2023, his busiest semester, Perez took 48 credits across 16 courses between the U of A and Pima. 

He also found time to do an internship this fall, working in the office at the Southern Arizona Children's Advocacy Center, which provides support to children who have been victims or witnesses to crimes.

An urge to give back

After he graduates this week, Perez will have no academic commitments for the first time since he was 4. 

He's still a bit young to start a career in law enforcement, but he's looking for other work and hopes he can start making an income that can help his parents retire early. His mother works as a secretary. His father still works physically demanding construction jobs.

"I just want to support my family, then have money for myself to buy cool things," he said. "They spent a lot of time and money on me, so I just have to give it back."