11-YEAR-OLD FACES LIFE AFTER COLLEGE

LOS ANGELES, JUNE 13 -- After finishing college in three years, Adragon De Mello faces the

question now before many recent graduates: Should he continue his

education? But unlike his classmates, who can choose between

professional school and a job, 11-year-old De Mello's only choice may be

junior high.

De Mello, 5 feet 1 inch and freckle-faced, received a bachelor's

degree in mathematics last week from Cowell College at the University of

California, Santa Cruz. He has been rejected by graduate programs

because of his age -- but state law requires minors 6 to 16 to be in

"I don't want to go back to junior high. I already know the

material," De Mello said today.

Roger Wolfertz, assistant general counsel to the state Department of

Education, said it may not come to that. "It sounds ludicrous, if the

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kid graduated from a university, to send him back to middle school,"

Wolfertz said. "We would try to help him out."

Barring a waiver, De Mello's father, Agustin, said he is prepared to

send his son abroad. "It's a very sad prospect," he said. ". . . Our

system is not equipped to deal with children like him." Meanwhile, he is

still "negotiating with schools in the U.S., Europe, South America, New

Zealand to get him into a graduate program."

Adragon, whose accomplishments have been the topic of several

television news stories and magazine articles, spoke his first word,

"hello," at 6 1/2 weeks, according to his father. He knew the alphabet

at 2 and could read and write when he was 3. "At 2, he was playing a

good game of chess, and by 6, he was programming his computer using two

different languages," his father said.

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If he is admitted to a graduate program, Adragon wants to study

"scientific programming with applications to particle physics. And, of

course, particle physics is contained in astrophysics and astrophysics

leads to the discovery of the creation of the universe. That's what I'm

interested in," he said.

At UC-Santa Cruz, De Mello felt "ostracized because of his age," his

father said. "It was very lonely for him."

Adragon earned an associate degree with honors in mathematics at

Cabrillo Community College in Santa Cruz and then went to UC Santa Cruz

for a year to receive his bachelor's degree.

His summer plans include swimming, badminton, bike-riding and "I want

to climb a volcano or two."

"We are just going to enjoy life this summer," his father said.

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