An exceptional 89-year-old woman, Ella Washington has fulfilled her lifelong dream after earning a degree from Liberty University in the United States.
Ella, from North Carolina earned an associate degree in Interdisciplinary studies at Liberty University, United States. She set a record as the university’s oldest graduate in the Class of 2018.
She stated that she grew up during the 1930s when education came second to working on the family farm according to the university’s website. Ella said she dropped out of school in the sixth grade.
But when she got married and had children of her own, she wanted more for them. ”She has always been a lifelong learner. Her desire to learn and for pursuing an education became a family tradition,” Washington’s daughter, Ellen Mitchell said.
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”She taught all of her children how to read, write, and do math prior to their beginning school, just as her grandmother taught her and her siblings,” she added.
With her faith in God and her perseverance, Ella enrolled in an adult education program and earned her GED diploma in 1978 at the age of 49.
Going to college has always been Ella’s dream which made her enroll in Liberty University’s online program after a recommendation from her daughter. Ella mentioned that she would not be stopping at just the associate’s degree.
Ella has also enrolled for a bachelor’s degree in History at the same Liberty University. “To me, history is a great subject,” she said. “Everybody should know their history and learn more about it. A lot of people don’t know much about history. There’s nothing wrong with learning more,” she said.
She mentioned that when she moved from North Carolina, she was a young mother and had a variety of jobs, ranging from a custodian at the Pentagon to an office assistant to a certified nursing assistant at an adult daycare, and worked until she was 83 years old.
“Coming to D.C., there weren’t many opportunities for a poorly educated black woman. But she worked hard doing whatever she could to make sure we were taken care of,” Mitchell said.
Mitchell stated that her mother desired to better herself which has always inspired her children, who also worked to make education a priority in their lives. “My mother is a remarkable woman. I learned how to be strong because of her example. Now, she has set the bar for her grandchildren and great-grandchildren,” she added.
Advising her fellow graduates, Ella encouraged them to keep their sights set on using their education to the fullest. “Education will help you make the best life for yourselves and those who come after you,” she said.
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