Former "Idol" Winner Heading Back to School

According to a recent interview with E! Online, the 24-year-old had explained her reason for returning back to school, after dropping out of the ninth grade more than a decade ago.

She had stated, "I have a lot of young people who look up to me, like my 15-year-old brother and 7-year-old daughter. It's something that I really need to do and that I want to do."

In 2004, Barrino had won during the third season of Idol and then, that same year, had released a successful debut album, titled Free Yourself. Afterwards, she became a Broadway star of the hit musical, The Color Purple.

On Sunday, Barrino and former Idol contestant, Jennifer Hudson, are up for a Grammy for their duet single, "I'm His Only Woman," which appears on Hudson's self-titled album.