Douglasville high school senior achieves rare perfect SAT score
Georgia high school senior achieves rare perfect SAT score
Korry Sessoms, 17, scored a perfect 1600 on the SAT college entrance exam, placing him in the top 99+ percentile group. Fewer than 0.05% of all test takers reach that score. Sessoms said he was not explicitly aiming for a perfect score, but wanted to see where his skills stood.
DOUGLASVILLE, Ga. - A New Manchester High School student athlete is heading back to class with a rare academic achievement under his belt: a perfect 1600 score on the SAT.
High score on SAT
What we know:
Korry Sessoms, 17, scored a perfect 1600 on the SAT college entrance exam, placing him in the top 99+ percentile group. Fewer than 0.05% of all test takers reach that score. Sessoms said he was not explicitly aiming for a perfect score, but wanted to see where his skills stood.
Just as school was ending last school year, the New Manchester High student recalled getting a practice SAT score of around 1570.
New Manchester High student athlete
The backstory:
Sessoms balances his academic success with playing football as a wide receiver for the New Manchester High School Jaguars. He credits his academic accomplishment to discipline, comparing it to the effort required to play football and return to the field after tearing his ACL last year.
"My team, they just congratulated me. They were only really say, oh yeah, you're nerdy. Nothing like that," Sessoms said. "Football teaches you accountability, consistency and discipline. And that just correlates with studying academics."
His parents expressed pride in his achievements and support system. "There is a world where individuals are celebrated and they're not just tolerated. And to us, that is so important. For him, being a young black male," said his mother, Walisa Sessoms. "I mean, in a world where it can go a different way, is, you know, refreshing to know that, you know, he has that support from his team, and he also has that support from us."
His father, Torry Sessoms, added, "It says to me that anything's possible as long as you put the work in. And I always tell my kids that."
The 17-year-old loves math and history. He offered advice for other students working through their studies. "Don't worry about everyone else. Don't try to fit in where everyone else just stay locked in. What are you saying? When you're in a class, don't be discouraged about a score. Keep trying. It will get better."
Sessoms’ parents want him to attend Georgia Tech. He has his heart set on Yale University. He wants to study engineering and then go to law school.
SAT score details
What we don't know:
Officials have not shared which college or university Sessoms plans to attend following his senior year.
The Source: The information in this story was gathered from video footage and interviews provided by news staff, who spoke directly with student Korry Sessoms and his parents, Walisa Sessoms and Torry Sessoms.