There’s Always Another Goal (And, That’s a Wonderful Thing)

Literacy Graduate Program - Class of 2025!

Yesterday was graduation. This was the largest cohort I have had in the Literacy Program since it started. The students have worked so hard the past two years. They all had teaching positions during the day and came back to school two nights a week for the past two years. It’s a lot. It’s a lot of time and it’s a lot of work outside of school and class.

For the past two years, they have all had the goal of earning their Master’s Degree and their Literacy certifications. The end goal has been graduation and the certification.

Yesterday, before the ceremony began, I was chatting with the students and asking about how interviews were going and asking about summer plans. As I was listening, I learned about many new goals that my students were setting. They were telling me about additional certifications that they were looking to earn or other advanced degrees that they were considering applying for in the near future. I did not think anything of this until the graduation ceremony ended and I was sitting in traffic on my way home.

It hit me. They all reached their goal of graduating and now they had a new goal. It’s a great cycle. Once we reach one mountain top, we are striving towards the next.

For the last class session that I had with this group, I read them my very favorite ending of a book. I love Kate Bowler’s ending to her book, No Cure for Being Human (and other truths I needed to hear). She ends the book detailing a trip she took with her father to see the Batalha Monastery in Portugal. It was never finished. And, as Kate learned from another visitor, it represents the human experience - that we are never finished.

I thought that her ending tied in well to what my students were sharing. Their goals continue. They reached their goal of graduating and now they continue. And, what a wonderful thing that is!

Congratulations to all the 2025 graduates!