University recognizes remarkable students

After studying all night with her tutor, Marie F. Elias-Nieves gets a ride home at 7 a.m. to her four teen-age children. Working all night long is not unusual for most college students, but it is especially common for Elias-Nieves as she tries to fit her education into the busy life of a single mother.

Classes, papers, exams and tuition are just some of the headaches any college student faces, but adding the responsibility of family, household and job to the list makes an adult student's life a little more hectic.

Ten statewide award recipients were honored yesterday at the Hershey Convention Center for outstanding academic achievement as adult students who overcame great obstacles. From the University, Beverly Hmel, Holly Bradford, Elias-Nieves and Joyce Cannone earned the distinction of "Outstanding Adult Students in Higher Education." Cannone attends Penn State's Shenango Campus and the others attend the University Park campus.

These students are part of the 9 percent of University students who are more than 24 years old. Judged on academic achievement, the type of obstacles that stood in their way, ability to act as a role model, involvement on campus and in the community and long-term and short-term goals, the award recognizes outstanding accomplishments within a unique situation, said Charlene Harrison, director of the Center for Adult Learner Services.

"Each (of the recipients) are outstanding in her own way. There are responsibilities not only for oneself but for others," Harrison said.

Hmel was a high school dropout and drug addict who even surprised herself by returning to school, she said. At 33 she balances two children, a household and a full load of courses as a psychology major and University Scholar. She attributes her success to hard work and the help and support of the University and her friends and family.

"It's chaos," Hmel said. "You prioritize. No one's going to die if the dishes don't get done, so you study."

Elias-Nieves is a 40-year-old single mother who escaped an abusive marriage to fulfill a dream to earn a degree in education, she said. She giggles with excitement as she talks about her accomplishments, education and her dream to open a school in Haiti, her native country.

"When I am learning something happens within me," Elias-Nieves said. "I want everyone to experience that."

She was also concerned with creating an atmosphere for her children where she could be a positive role model.

"I know what I want and I want my children to be encouraged by what I do." Elias-Nieves said.

The lives of adult learners like Hmel, Bradford and Elias-Nieves may be unique, but in education everyone is equal, Harrison said.

"We're all learners together no matter our age when we're grappling with material we've never seen."