Learning to Adapt: KWC Graduates Recall Important Life Lessons They Learned

Graduates and families of Kentucky Wesleyan College filled the auditorium at Owensboro Christian Church Saturday morning to celebrate the graduating class.

One such graduate was Madelyn Dunlop, a third-generation KWC student who followed in the footsteps of her father, grandfather, and even her uncle.

“I’m so grateful to have gone to Wesleyan,” she said. “It’s a very cathartic thing to live on my family’s legacy. My dad, his brother, and their dad all went there and graduated; it’s really cool to have been a part of that.

Dunlop is an Owensboro native who majored in business. She chose KWC because she was impressed and inspired by the culture the school cultivated for the students, a culture that she says helped nurture her and mold her into a better person while throughout his stay there.

“They make you feel welcome and like you’re part of a family,” she said. “They really care about you and want you to succeed.”

Dunlop said she chose business because of the inspiration she found in the “strong and influential” businesswomen in her life, particularly her grandmother and a family friend who is became a mentor to her.

While she said she’s excited to start networking and figuring out what her next step will be now that she’s officially graduated, Dunlop said she plans to take things slow and enjoy her summer. for the moment.

For other students who might be considering KWC or potentially overwhelmed by the process of choosing colleges or careers, Dunlop’s advice is to do what feels right and don’t feel like you have to figure it all out all the time.

“There is no set path for anything; there is no timeline,” she said. “I think just being open-minded and going somewhere where you’re going to thrive is really important.”

Graduate Veronica Kaemerer also learned an important coping lesson during her time at KWC.

Kaemerer is from Muhlenberg County who originally chose KWC because of its education program, although she ultimately did not earn a degree in education, having eventually changed her major to history and criminal justice.

During her studies, however, she eventually found a mentor who helped her blaze an entirely different path than the one she thought she was on.

After graduating, Kaemerer said she planned to start a career in radio.

“Without him, I wouldn’t be doing anything I plan to do after college,” she said. I am very happy to start this new chapter of my life.

KWC President Thomas Mitzel also delivered a message to senior graduates about the importance of learning to adapt and understanding that not everything in life can be planned, a message students understood by persevering. in the unknown and ever-changing world amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

“You started on campus, then you were off campus, then you were on campus, then you were on campus and locked in your rooms, then you were on campus again, and during that time you was masked, not masked, masked, not masked, then hidden because you didn’t want to be masked,” he said. “You learned to adapt so well.

Christie Netherton, cnetherton@messenger-inquirer.com, 270-691-7360