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The progress towards my degree has had many starts and stops. In 1971, I began as a freshman at the University of Illinois at Chicago. I attended classes for four years, but I eventually got frustrated with trying to navigate this difficult bureaucracy. I decided to enroll at DePaul nearly six years later in 1981. In 1984, I left to take a sales position and the hours were not conducive to taking classes.
I started working for Motorola in 1989. My first 9 years were pretty steady. However, in 1998, the company underwent constant change and at the end of March 2003, I was one of the last groups of individuals who were released. The questions about what would I do since I did not have my degree and whether I should return to the workforce was a full-time job were numerous. After nine weeks, I was called back to Motorola for a full-time position in another sector and this was the opportunity for me to finally complete my degree.
After the employee orientation in June 2003, I returned to the company’s Elgin facility and worked a non-traditional 3rd shift. My supervisor and manager encouraged me to return to DePaul with the assistance of the Motorola Educational Benefits fund. I returned and took one class per quarter. I was on my way to finally completing this long journey. Once again the decision was made for the betterment of the business that this facility was to be sold to another company. I was one of many who were not offered a position with the new company.
December 30, 2005 was my last day with Motorola but it was also the beginning of my goal to finish my remaining classes. I was able to take classes during the day versus the afternoon and it was interesting. Some of my classmates thought that because of my gray hair I was the instructor for the class. During the first class of each quarter, when we introduced ourselves I would say that “I am the geriatric student working to complete my Marketing degree.” It was most interesting to see the facial expressions of my classmates. After a few class meetings, I was no longer viewed as a threat or competition and I became friends with many of them.
As the number of my remaining classes decreased my friendships increased and it was always a pleasure to interact with these individuals both on a friendly and academic basis. I became a member of the Adult Student Association (ASA) and joined Katrina Caldwell and her staff in the Adult Student Center for daily lunch discussions. One of the staff members, Auvergene Larry, asked I would help out with the Health Fair. As a result, our friendship helped me become more active within ASA.
I also interacted more with the staff of University Ministry and I attended numerous events they sponsored. This was a totally new experience for me because of the diversity of their programs. I became friends with a number of students and they educated me about their respective cultures and religions. It was always a pleasure to see and talk with these individuals on a daily basis.
In August 2006, Katrina offered me a position as a student worker in the Center. I have had the opportunity to interact with many departments and better understand the services they provide to adult students. I have worked at some of the Career Center’s Career Changers Forums. Our office receives calls from students with a wide variety of issues. With the friendships and contacts I have made, it has been a pleasure to be service to other students in need. I was asked to facilitate the 2007 Health Fair and its success was in large part due to relationships that I had developed with other DePaul staff, the participating organizations and student volunteers.
I graduated this past June and as we waited for the ceremony to begin it was a pleasure to be congratulated by my friends and former classmates. Some of the memories that I take with me are the friendships, the laughter, the time spent assisting a classmate in understanding course material, and the exposure to new cultures and religions. More importantly is that I leave with a sense of being involved in activities and making a difference the lives of others for DePaul.
Barry Deron
B.S. in Marketing
Class of ‘07
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