Isaiah Jefferson isn’t acting when it comes to being successful – although acting is one of several areas in which the Cedar Hill High School student is a success.
He is planning a future that will offer other youngsters the same chance at the life he has enjoyed, a life that seemed unlikely when he was only two years old.
Jefferson is ranked No. 9 in his senior class. He’ll earn an Associate’s Degree from Dallas College when he graduates from Cedar Hill High School next spring. And he’ll have enough college credit hours to begin his college years as a second-semester junior.
He plans to graduate with a bachelor’s degree at age 19.
“I would like to go to Johns Hopkins University or Tulane University and double major in biochemistry and biomedical engineering,” he said.
His reasoning goes back to when he suffered a traumatic brain injury at age 2, living in New York. It has no impact on him today, other than to try and prevent other youngsters from experiencing something similar.
“I want to be able to help kids recover from injuries,” Jefferson said.
Jefferson is an award-winning actor in the CHHS Theatre Department. He’s one of the top students in his class and a member of the best Longhorns tennis team in many years.
Jefferson first got into acting in the sixth grade. Little did he know it would lead him to where he is today in the field.
“I did ‘Once On This Island’ with the high schools,” he recalled, adding with a smile, “I got into drama because I needed something to do.”
Now it keeps him plenty busy, something of which he’s proud. In fact, he’s a state ambassador for theatre across the state of Texas. He serves on the Leadership Academy Committee and is a Parliamentarian for the 2024/2025 Ambassador Board for Texas Thespians.
He said that his greatest role and his favorite are not the same. The greatest, he said, was LeFou in “Beauty and the Beast,” while his favorite was Piglet in “The Addams Family.”
And his dream role? He has two.
“My dream roles are Orpheus in ‘Hadestown’ or Gleb in ‘Anastasia,'” he said.
And yes, he can play an instrument and sing. He also belongs to the community theatre organization Family Music Theatre in Dallas.
“I can semi-play the piano, and I sing. I mostly just learned enough to teach myself music,” he said.
Turning to tennis, he became a part of history this fall. He and his teammates took the Cedar Hill program to its first playoff berths in 10 years.
“I am happy that I played a role, but most of the work was put in by my captains,” he said humbly. “I cannot in good conscience take the praise when it is theirs to have.”
Like acting, he started playing tennis in the sixth grade. However, he stopped after a year and only returned to the sport this year.
“I mostly use tennis as an exercise outlet,” he said.
He also used to swim competitively.
“Isaiah is a wonderful scholar who participates in various extracurricular activities. He’s received several academic scholarship opportunities, and we know that he will excel in college and beyond,” Cedar Hill High School Principal Leroy Joffre said.
“What happened to me doesn’t have to hold you back or define you,” he said.
