COMMENCEMENT
a Family Affair for mother and daughter graduates
You can’t miss the sense of family at the University of Saint Francis. It’s everywhere, from the professor who takes the extra time to help, to the president’s smile of encouragement, to the friendly “hello” exchanged across the spacious, green campus.
The support she received as a working student seemed—well, like family. “I felt the family closeness at USF right away, and after six years, it just gets stronger and stronger,” she said. “My professors are as excited as my family about my graduation.”
Sometimes the USF family affair crosses generational lines, as it did for mother and daughter graduates Angie Springer and Amy Guest when both earned degrees May 7.
Daughter Amy developed a passion for human rights through her courses and exposure to the Franciscan values driving everything at USF. A dedicated professor helped her engage and focus. “Dr. Jason Jividen was great in political science class, and he wanted to know us as people outside of class, too,” she said.
Springer, an assistant in the School of Arts and Sciences (SOAS), in many ways typifies the life of an adult student seeking opportunity through USF. She began an education degree straight out of high school, but did not finish. A 25-year career in manufacturing followed before her journey brought her to USF. She found immediate support. “When my boss found out I hadn’t finished my degree, he said, ‘You’re finishing,’” Springer said. “So I say it took me 35 years to get a bachelor’s degree.” At USF, her education credits transferred into the bachelor’s degree in liberal studies, which gave her the scope of knowledge she wanted. “I studied lots of different things, which I love. I enjoy learning and will probably take more classes.” 34
saint francis magazine | fall 2011
Although her bachelor’s degree in political science and history prepares her for planned graduate work in international law and human rights, she has also applied to the Peace Corps. “If the Peace Corps comes through first, that’s what I’ll do,” she said. “Focusing on one Franciscan value each year and taking a comparative genocide class opened my eyes to the inhumanity in the world and made me want to do something about it.” That’s the way the USF family works. It’s catching. Like a pebble tossed in a pond, the loving support ripples outward in ever-widening circles, eventually clasping everyone in a world embrace.