Imagine going to college for twenty years? Thats about how long Ive been alive ! Well one Ohio State student named Marohane Hawkins did just that. iI was sitting in my political science class when my profesor asked Ms. Hawkins to give her opinion on a topic we were discussing. I knew she was older than most of the students in class, however when she announced she was 85 years old you could hear gasp from everyone in the course. It was as if a story had flown right into my lap. I knew I had to find out more about Ms. Hawkins, and tell her story to the world, or at least to the OSU Community.
I found out that at 85 years old Ms. Hawkins was vibrant , and as eager as ever to learn. She explained the journey that her life entailed, and why education was so important to her, and her family. I also learned that through an OSU program called Program 60 she had been coming to classes for twenty years. Program 60 is a program where senior citizens can attend classes , but not for credit, depending on avaliable seats and approval from a professor. She was not ashamed to show her OSU pride either. Several interviews you could find Ms. hawkins decked out in buckeye necklaces, with an OSU hate, swaetshirt, and lunch box to match.
Spending time with Ms. Hawkins made me realize how valueable getting an education was. She spoke about how when she was young African Americans were not encouraged to go to college and further their education, which is one of the reasons she did not attend college immediately.
Howevre, seeing how interested she was in the subject matter, and learning more made me realize that education is something that I should take a lot more seriously. I was honored to get to speak with her and hear her story, she was very pleasant to converse with. I do not know if I could attend school for 20 years so I commend Ms. Hawkins on her abilty to do so! This story should be an interesting read.