Fourteen degrees and 11 certificates were awarded Friday to students of the University of Alaska Fairbanks, Kuskokwim University Campus. For some, the road through higher education hasn’t been the easiest to travel, but now KUC graduates efforts have finally paid off.
“Another word for graduation is commencement, which means to begin,” said Linda Curda, Associate Professor of Community Health at UAF'sKuskokwim Campus. “Each of you are ready, ready to take the next steps of your own journey.”
Curda was the Keynote Speaker for KUC’s Commencement at the Bethel Cultural Center on Friday. For many students graduating, the path to Curda’s “beginning” has indeed been long.
Lucy Lupie, 62, of Tuntutuliak, graduates with an Associate's Degree in Native Language Education. Lupie says, though it took 30 years, she got this degree for her grandchildren.
“So I can tell them, if I can do it, they can do it too,” said Lupie.
Zoya Ayapan, of Kwethluk, graduated with her Bachelor of Arts in Elementary Education. Ayapan started college 16 years ago, then quit, went back to the village, and had a family. Ten years later, she started taking part-time classes, semester by semester.
“It’s never too late,” said Ayapan. “There were many days that I felt I wouldn’t be able to finish, but then you just keep pushing and take it day by day.”
Gerald Anvil, graduating Summa Cum Laude with an Associate's Degree in General Studies, delivered the Student Address for the KUC Class of 2017. He, too, is no stranger to taking it day by day. Before starting college, Gerald struggled with the death of his father at an early age and later battled alcoholism for several years. When he started school at KUC, he had only been sober for about a year.
“It has been two years, six months, and 24 days, since I made the decision to live a sober lifestyle,” Anvil told his graduating class as applause filled the room.
Following graduation, Anvil will transfer to the Fairbanks Campus, to finish his Bachelor's in Secondary Education and Mathematics. He hopes to return to Bethel as a teacher at the Lower Kuskokwim School District.
“I believe I would qualify as a prime example that, regardless of the hardships that we endure in our lives, we do have the ability to turn ourselves around and come out on top in the end,” said Anvil. “We are built Alaska strong. Without further ado, to the graduating class of 2017, through all that hard work, we did it.”
The commencement ended with the KUC drumming group singing a song for sobriety.
In all, 11 Associate degrees, two Baccalaureate and one Master's degree were awarded, along with 10 Community Health and one Ethnobotany certificate.
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