Updated Monday at 5:10 p.m.: Revised to include a tweeted apology from George Clayton.

AUSTIN — A former member of the Texas State Board of Education took a shot Friday at a biracial California teen who was accepted to Harvard University.

George Clayton of Richardson replied to a tweet posted by Drake Johnson of Marina, Calif., in which Johnson wore a Harvard sweater and announced he would be attending the Ivy League school.

"It's official, I'm Harvard bound #harvard2022," the senior tweeted.

Clayton tweeted at Johnson, "Congrats. Were you admitted on merit or on quota?"

Johnson responded, "Thank you! Valedictorian, ASB President, World Champion, good SAT, and a couple handfuls of other involvements, so I would think merit?"

Thank you! Valedictorian, ASB President, World Champion, good SAT, and a couple handfuls of other involvements, so I would think merit? — Drake Johnson (@_littledrizzy) April 20, 2018

Johnson said when he first saw Clayton's tweet, he was unsure how to interpret it. After thinking about whether to reply, he decided to list his accomplishments in a follow-up tweet.

"I wanted some subtle way to prove him wrong, but not be aggressive," Johnson said. "I thought that was the best way to civilly defuse the situation and clearly show I was accepted on merit."

Clayton declined to comment Friday, saying he has retired from public life and no longer speaks to the press. But he responded to the story Monday on Twitter, apologizing for his comments and said they were "totally wrong and hugely insensitive."

According to his Twitter bio, Clayton is running again for a spot on the state board, but there is no record of him filing for candidacy. He previously held the District 12 seat from 2010 to 2012, when he defeated conservative Geraldine "Tincy" Miller in a surprising upset. Miller took the seat back in 2012 and announced in December she would retire when her term ended.

Pam Little of Fairview ran unopposed in the Republican primary for District 12. She will face Democratic candidate Suzanne Smith in November, who avoided a runoff after Laura Malone-Miller officially withdrew her candidacy.

Jeanie Johnson, Drake's mother, said she has no idea how Clayton even found her son's tweet. The only connection they have to Dallas is her son's travel for cheerleading competitions. She said she read the tweet as racist.

"Why do you care, and why are you asking that particular question to a kid who is clearly of some type of mixed race?" she asked. "That is just so frustrating."

She added that Drake's response to Clayton fits his thoughtful personality.

"He's this kid who really thinks about what he's doing and saying," she said. "He knows how hard he works to get where he's at. He wants people to understand that that's why he's getting what he's getting, nothing's being handed to him."

Drake Johnson later tweeted, "In case anyone else thinks I just got accepted to fill a quota, I did actually get in based on merit lol."

In case anyone else thinks I just got accepted to fill a quota, I did actually get in based on merit lol https://t.co/YEfUe3J9xE — Drake Johnson (@_littledrizzy) April 20, 2018

He was accepted to 10 schools — including Cornell, Dartmouth and Brown — and said he plans on becoming president of the United States in 2044.

A Houston teen also recently made headlines after two news anchors vilified him for applying and being accepted to 20 different colleges, all with full rides. Micheal Brown, a student at Lamar High School, got into Harvard, Yale, Princeton and his dream school, Stanford.

Fox 5 D.C. contributor Sarah Fraser told anchor Holly Morris that Brown had taken away spots from other students when he was accepted to so many schools. The NowThis video that caused the anchors' commentary to go viral said the argument of students taking others' college acceptance spots away is "often used against students of color."