UC San Diego’s commencement ceremonies are in full swing, and this Sunday one student will celebrate completing her education after nearly 50 years.
Muir College was established on the UCSD campus in 1967, and Patricia Campbell was part of its first class. She was almost finished with her degree until she got injured in an accident in 1972, which threw her off her stride.
“I got two incompletes so… you know, I just got busy with life and kind of worked on finishing the incompletes in a desultory way," the 64-year-old Campbell said.
"I actually had two papers, all I needed to do, and I had them pretty much done, but then, you know, distractions and this and that and the other thing, and then I just kind of shrugged and went on with my life."
Campbell ended up having a career in publishing, then producing commercials. She lived in Los Angeles for years, then moved home to take care of her aging and ailing mother.
She decided, since she was back in San Diego anyway, to contact her former university about finally finishing her degree.
“I just wanted to do it, and I did, and that’s it! You know, I mean it isn’t like I had monstrous plans, and I had to have a degree to go pursue these things. No, it’s something to cross off a list so it’s not kind of niggling at you anymore," she said, laughing.
It took her four classes and two quarters, since more prerequisites had been added since she had left. But 47 years later, Patricia Campbell has a degree in sociology from UC San Diego.
Campbell is one of two students from that original class. Christy Rodriguez will also be among the 7,000 students graduating over the weekend. Her degree is in political science.
