‘Immaculate vibes’ make for a memorable evening celebrating adult students and their families
Adult students Parker Wall and Lisette Lurker, who participated in Badger Ready and are now graduates of UW-Madison.
Every spring, the Outstanding Adult Student Reception is an opportunity to recognize the hard-won accomplishments of adult students who’ve achieved their academic goals not despite their struggles, but because of them.
Jessi Kendall, former adult student who earned a bachelor’s of science in nursing.
That was the message shared by this year’s reception keynote speaker, Jessi Kendall, a former adult student who graduated with a bachelor’s of science in nursing and had attended the same reception just a few years prior.
Now a nurse clinician at UW Health, she encouraged the adult students in the audience to take pride in their accomplishments without caveats.
Consider that someone sees you as a real-life version of their dream. You’re showing them that it’s possible not despite the challenges, but because of them.
Jessi Kendall
former adult student who earned a bachelor’s of science in nursing
“I had a habit of minimizing what I have done,” Kendall said. “But consider that someone sees you as a real-life version of their dream. You’re showing them that it’s possible not despite the challenges, but because of them.”
Reflecting on her journey as an adult student who struggled with mental health, she said it’s important to be open about the messy, complicated parts of our lives, so others can see that it’s possible to struggle and succeed.
“Don’t hide the ugly parts of your story — show them, so the people who need you the most can recognize you,” Kendall said.
Later in the evening, award recipients had the opportunity to share their stories and express gratitude to friends, family, instructors and donors who helped make their academic goals a reality.
Lisette Lurker, a former Badger Ready student who graduated with a bachelor’s degree in computer science in May 2026.
In an emotional moment, Badger Ready graduate Lisette Lurker tearfully addressed the crowd, sharing the story of how she went from growing up in a place without running water to completing her bachelor’s degree in information science.
Despite having some college education and a passion for robotics, Lisette struggled to break into the technology sector without a degree.
Lisette expressed her gratitude for the Badger Ready program, where she said her classmates and instructors made her feel like she belonged.
“My last class was today,” Lisette said, and the crowd immediately erupted with loud, boisterous cheering.
Continuing, she shared plans for her next chapter, “I’m happy to share with you that I’m going to continue my studies in the Master’s of Information Science program at UW–Madison.”
The evening also had some lighter moments, like when Bobby Adamo, an adult student earning a bachelor’s of business administration, recalled a conversation he had with his wife when he first decided to go back to school.
“I said, ‘Honey, I want to finish school. I want to go to Wisconsin. It’s going to take three years. It’s going to eat up most of my free time and most of my attention,’” Bobby recalled. “She said, ‘How do you get started?’ And that was everything to me.”
Michael Rozier, an adult student who recently graduated with a bachelor’s degree in gender and women’s studies, sitting with his wife.
Closing out the evening was Michael Rozier, one of the two Outstanding Adult Student Award winners this year, who graduated in May with a bachelor’s degree in gender and women’s studies and is planning to pursue a master’s degree in industrial and organizational psychology.
He recalled feeling a little nervous as a 33-year-old going into the classroom with younger students, or as he said, “folks who were born in 2006.”
He was expecting to feel like the odd one out, but turns out he had more in common with his fellow learners than he thought.
“I was thinking they probably don’t want me here, I’m too old,” he said. “But then you meet beautiful, talented people who want to change the world.”
Getting to be the anime kid who plays video games and guitar and can still excel academically is a very humbling and very cool thing to experience.
Michael Rozier
adult student studying gender and women’s studies
His advice for fellow adult students is to lead with authenticity and question your assumptions about what it means to be a student and what success looks like.
“Getting to be the anime kid who plays video games and guitar and can still excel academically is a very humbling and very cool thing to experience,” he said.
Closing out the night, he reflected on the evening’s celebration and the inspiring stories of fellow adult students, saying, “The vibes are immaculate.”
‘Immaculate’ is a fitting word to describe the buzz of optimism that comes from witnessing a community of lifelong learners taking up space and celebrating their achievements — no caveats.
