Nationwide — RuQuan “Ru” Brown, a 17-year old high school senior from Seattle who has excelled in his classes and sports, has been recently accepted into 24 colleges including Harvard, Yale, and Princeton.

At school, Brown earned a 3.9 GPA and 1320 on his SATs, served as the SGA president and was also a track and football champion.

I wanted to beat gun violence to the punch so that our families don’t have to continuously fall victim to tragic losses,” Brown told Because of Them We Can.

Brown dedicates his successes in school and business to his fallen friend and step-dad.

Brown has yet to decide which school to attend for college, but he said he plans to pursue a degree in business with a minor in African American studies.