No matter the length of time, students earn UWM degrees

By Brad Stratton

Margaret Silkey (left) and Temitope Thompson

When Margaret Silkey started classes at UW-Milwaukee in 1979, Temitope Thompson had yet to be born. Despite that difference, both were among the 1,967 students who graduated from Wisconsin’s second-largest university on Dec. 18.

Margaret, who at 72 was the oldest person to earn a degree this semester, received a bachelor of science degree in community education from the School of Education, with a certificate in urban planning. The 19-year-old Temitope was the semester’s youngest degree recipient. Born and raised in Nigeria, Temitope earned a bachelor’s degree from the College of Letters and Science, majoring in biology.

Margaret completed a majority of her credit work during the 1980s. By 1991, in fact, she was just one class away from completing her degree. What stopped her from finishing? “I was petrified of the math requirement,” she said. Her apprehension is understandable: she last took a math class in 1951.

The intervening years had not been without plenty of activity. She lists among her many accomplishments the roles of wife, mother, grandmother and Realtor. What got her interested in finally completing her degree was watching a grandson accept his college degree last year. Margaret decided it was time she should, too.

With a guiding hand from Lecturer Aaria Troiano from the Department of Educational Policy and Community Studies, Margaret enrolled in that math class during the summer 2005 session and was then eligible to be among the 1,263 students receiving bachelor’s degrees in December.

Margaret has many warm memories of her time at UWM, especially considering her childhood was spent in rural Wisconsin at a time when residents had minimal tolerance for those with a different skin color. “My father emigrated from Wales and he was far more tolerant of the differences among people,” she said. That upbringing helped her adjust to the diverse student body and faculty at UWM.

Her UWM professors and classmates expressed a similar acceptance, she said. Even though she was consistently the oldest person in her classes, neither educators nor students ever made an issue of her age. The students, in fact, went even further. “I knew I was accepted,” she said, “when they asked me to join them out for drinks.”

Margaret said completing a degree gives her a special satisfaction. “My father always told my brother and me that ‘Education is something they can't take away from you.’ I am sure he was smiling down at us as we gathered for my graduation.”

Her degree isn’t the end of her educational path. Margaret said she is both looking for a part-time job here in Milwaukee to make use of her education, plus she has enrolled in the Commissioned Lay Pastor distance learning program through the University of Dubuque.

Comparing Margaret’s academic path to Temitope’s is a study in contrasts.

Thompson said her father came to the United States a decade ago, with the family joining him about four years ago. By the time she arrived in Milwaukee, Thompson had already graduated from a high school in Abuja. There was talk of enrolling her in college immediately, but her parents decided instead on a Milwaukee public school. During her only semester at John Marshall High School, she was recommended for transfer to Riverside University High School. After another semester, teachers and administrators there redirected her to college.

Just 16, Temitope’s parents required her to enroll at a local college, and Temitope selected UW-Milwaukee. With an outstanding academic record, she was eligible for enrollment in the UWM Honors College. She made an impression on those who came to know her.

“Though only 16 or 17 at the time, she had an extraordinary vocabulary and was better read than many seniors I've taught,” said David Southward, an Honors College lecturer. He remembers her as one of his best students in his Honors 200: Romantic Comedy seminar. “Even more impressive was her mature understanding of human emotion and psychology (a great asset when reading literature) and her gentle demeanor. She was argumentative without being the least bit irritable; she simply spoke up for herself fearlessly.”

Because Temitope was a College of Letters & Science scholarship recipient, Jennifer McKenzie-Flynn, Director of Advancement & Public Affairs for the college, became very familiar with Temitope. Jennifer described her as not only a gifted student, but also an outstanding ambassador for the university who was gracious with her time. “We've called on her for help and participation in a number of functions, and she always comes through and is so pleased to be helpful,” said Jennifer.

Temitope speaks very positively of her time at UWM, and of the relationships she established with individuals in the Honors College, College of Health Sciences and University Christian Ministries. Of the latter, she says, “My relationships with many there have had a huge positive impact on my life. In addition, my community volunteer experiences with them have given me an active appreciation of what it means to ‘give back to the community.’ I'm surely going to take that with me wherever I go.”

Temitope, who refers to many of her university relations in a family context, is not the only member of her family to be involved at UWM. Her older sister Oluwaseun graduated from UWM in May 2005 and just completed her first semester at the Marquette School of Dentistry. Younger brother Oluwatosin was among the record 4,300-member UWM freshman class that started in Fall 2005.

Her insights for anyone following her at UWM are simple: “There are always opportunities everywhere,” she said. “You just have to look for them.”

One opportunity she took advantage of last summer, and will repeat in the summer of 2006, is an internship at the Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore. Temitope had been identified as a candidate for the internships through her involvement in UWM’s Certificate Program in Pre-medical Studies, which is within the College of Letters & Science Pre-professional Programs.

This fall, she will be enrolling at the Medical College of Wisconsin. Temitope says she has an interest in cardiology, but isn’t quite ready to say she aspires to be a cardiologist. Knowing her perspective on life, it’s clear she is leaving herself open to the next opportunity.