Mother and son shared the stage at Commencement
Back To School
Marisol Marrero, 51, had quit college when she started her family. She always wanted to return and complete her degree, but it was difficult when her children were young.
Gabriel Delgado, 28, took a more traditional route to college. He attended Reynolds Commmunity College after high school and earned his associate’s degree. He then transferred to Old Dominion University but dropped out after a year because he wasn’t happy with his major.
After taking off about a year and a half, Delgado decided to go back to college, which happened to coincide with Marrero’s decision to finish her degree. She had already been accepted to the School of Professional & Continuing Studies (SPCS) and shared her experience with Delgado, knowing he was looking to finish his degree, too.
“I told Gabe about my positive experience applying, registering, and meeting my advisor,” Marrero shared. “I asked him to join me at the University of Richmond.”
I told Gabe about my positive experience applying, registering, and meeting my advisor. I asked him to join me at the University of Richmond.
After a little research, Delgado decided SPCS was a great option for him. First, the degree programs allowed him to continue working full time. Second, he would be able to transfer much of his associate’s degree, which was extremely important. Third, studying IT would allow him to make a career change. Finally, his mom recommended SPCS highly.
In addition to sharing an occasional ride to campus, they also shared a photography class. “I really enjoyed it,” Marrero said. “We kept each other on track with due dates and bounced ideas off each other for our projects.”
Although the didn’t take many classes together, they had similar experiences and both appreciated the support of the staff, which Delgado noted was above and beyond any support he had experienced at other colleges.
Delgado also admired the faculty. They understood adult learners and the challenges they faced balancing school with work and home life. The way Delgado’s faculty engaged with him had an impact on his learning and confidence.
“I was never confident in school, a C-average student most of my life,” Delgado shared. “SPCS taught me to be confident in myself.”
Returning to school was a confidence builder for Marerro as well.
“I realized I could accomplish anything!” she shared.
For Marrero, earning her degree from SPCS was just the beginning. She plans to continue her education. Delgado is focusing on completing his career change and finding a job in IT or information security. Regardless of what comes next, they both treasured their time at UR, especially graduating together.
“I’m proud to say I walked [at Commencement] with my mother,” Delgado said. “I know in that moment the feeling we both had was truly an out of body experience.”
What have you learned about yourself as an SPCS student?
I was never confident in school. Mostly my whole life I was a C-average student. As I matured and understood the importance of school, what SPCS taught me was to be confident in myself. If you had told me 10 years ago when I was in high school that I would have honor roll practically every semester in college, I would have told you there is no way. I thank SPCS for building that confidence and teaching me how to learn efficiently.
What’s the greatest challenge you faced? Whom would you like to thank?
The biggest challenge was finding time. I ended up separating work from schoolwork. That helped me a lot, even though it meant working on most of my schoolwork on the weekend. I want to thank my son, of course, for joining me on this journey, my husband for always encouraging me when times were tough, and my parents for instilling in me the value of education.
What does graduating together mean to you?
As a son it was great to be able to walk across the stage with my mother. She has worked extremely hard to make me and my sister ready to tackle on the world. In a sense I feel that this degree is for her to show what her children can do in this world. I’m proud to say I walked with my mother and I know in that moment the feeling we both had was truly an out of body experience. I’m thankful for having such a strong support system throughout my life.