AFRICA | Two brilliant sisters, Shalisha and Shonda Witherspoon, have achieved an extraordinary milestone, graduating from the College of Engineering and Computing at Florida International University (FIU) with identical 3.95 grade point averages, the highest in their graduating class.
Their success not only earned them the Best Graduating Student Award but also made them the first in their family to graduate from college.
Witherspoon's Twins Story and How She Did It
The Witherspoon twins have shared nearly every academic milestone — from kindergarten to college, and now, medical-style precision in computing excellence. They are living proof that discipline, faith, and perseverance can turn uncertainty into excellence.
When they first sat down in their introductory computer science class at FIU, the twins admitted they barely knew anything about computers.
“We wondered if we had made the right choice. But we were determined to stick with it.” Despite being two of only three women in their first programming class, and two of the few Black students in the department, they outperformed expectations,” Shalisha recalled.
”I think there were only three girls in our first programming class. We were outperforming the boys,” Shonda said.
Their academic brilliance and innovative mindset soon earned them positions as software engineers at IBM’s T.J. Watson Research Center in New York, where they work on cutting-edge artificial intelligence and machine learning projects
For the Witherspoons twins, success is more than personal; it’s generational. “Our mom instilled in us a deep love for education. We were homeschooled our entire lives, and that discipline made us who we are today,” Shonda said.
After their studies, they proceeded to enrol for their master’s degree in Computer Engineering at the same Florida International University, and they graduated in 2018 with distinction.
Beyond their academic and professional achievements, the sisters are passionate about empowering young Black women in STEM.
They mentor through Black Girls CODE, an organization that teaches coding, robotics, and programming to girls in underrepresented communities, and have served as speakers for IBM’s Girls Go Techknow summer STEM camp.
“Giving back to the next generation is important to us. It can be disheartening not to see yourself represented. We want to show young girls that someone who looks like them can become an engineer too,” Shalisha said.
Walking the graduation stage together, both sisters described their journey as a dream fulfilled. “To have fulfilled those dreams — there are no words to express how grateful I am,” Shalisha said.“Same here. I’m speechless.” Shonda added.
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