Schools

Camden County College Grads—'Go Out and Do'

Speakers urge students to build on the lessons and momentum they gained at the college.

In a speech that drew inspiration from the mobile game Angry Birds, Camden County College’s featured graduation speaker counseled the Class of 2011 to “not let anyone steal your eggs.”

Just as in the game, where a band of evil pigs steal eggs from a group of birds, Sharon Wedington on Saturday warned graduates that naysayers will try to bring them down and steal their dreams—their eggs.

Like the birds—who launch themselves at the pigs to reclaim their eggs—fight back, she said.  

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“Don’t let anyone without knowledge of who are you or who you have the potential to become tell you that you can’t,” said Wedington, the college’s retiring vice president of enrollment and student services. “Be careful whose voice you listen to.”

It was a message tailor-made for made the  at the college’s 43rd commencement. The Class of 2011, the largest in the college’s history, comes from all walks of life. 

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Some matriculated after high school and completed the degree program in two years; others have had a longer journey. Several are active duty military and could not attend the commencement because they were called to active duty. Some are the first in their families to attend college; others are first generation Americans.

No one in the Class of 2011 waited longer than Mary Spruill for graduation day to arrive. She began her associate’s degree program at Camden County College 23 years ago. Life interrupted several times along the way, but on Saturday, Spruill graduated with an associate’s degree in applied sciences.

The Clementon resident and grandmother credited her faith with keeping her in school.

“It was a struggle at times,” Spruill said. “There were times I felt like I had hit a wall. I put my faith in the Lord and gave it up to him. Then that feeling went away. Here I am.”

Lindenwold’s Crystal Rainey also had her share of obstacles during her education. The mother of five began classes in 2004 for an associate’s in communication, TV and radio, and during that time dealt with stressors including two pregnancies, a special needs child, surgery and working two jobs.

“She’s my firstborn and the first to graduate from college in our family,” said mother Phyllis Adams, choking up slightly. “She sets the pace. She’s an example for all of my children and grandchildren.”

Student speaker John Huhn III, of Blackwood, applauded the graduates’ wide range of experiences, telling them that their lives had each led them to this particular moment. Remember that self-fulfillment, he urged.

“We didn’t not sit at home waiting for opportunities to come our way,” he said. “We chose to do, rather than do not, and we made it happen.”

Now, the graduates will move in different directions. Many plan to enroll in four-year colleges to earn a bachelor’s degree. Others will begin new careers or advance in the career path they current follow.

The path isn’t as important as the momentum, said Dr. Robert Emmons Jr., who received the Outstanding Alumnus Award.

“Take what you’ve gained from here,” he said, “and go out and do.”

 

Notable facts about the Class of 2011

• The youngest graduate was born in 1993, the oldest in 1942

• 19 graduated with a perfect 4.0 GPA

• Two-thirds of the graduating students are women

• Students hail from countries including Brazil, Ecuador, Haiti, Mali, Zimbabwe, Indonesia, Russia and Thailand

• 211 students graduated with associate’s degrees in science while simultaneously earning nursing degrees from the Helene Fuld College of Nursing or the Our Lady of Lourdes School of Nursing

• More than 80 percent of the class held part- or full-time jobs while taking classes

• Two students—including Collingswood's Michael McLaughlin, 39—completed projects with NASA as part of the National Community College Aerospace Scholars program.

• Collingswood's Lisa Hannon began her studies in 1988 as a 19-year-old single mother. She graduates this year with an associate's degree in English, now a grandmother who helps care for her grandson.

• 64 students graduated with more than one degree

 

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