68-Year-Old Mom Earns Berkeley Ph.D.

May 18 - KGO (KGO) -- It's never too late to go back to school, and a 68-year-old mother of four is proof. Today she received her Ph.D. from U.C. Berkeley's Ethnic Studies Department. And her son, a history professor, was the keynote speaker at the graduation.

At 68, Ananda Sattwa is the most senior member of the Ethnics Studies graduating class of 2007. Her children and grandkids made sure this would be an unforgettable day.

She was only 10 years old when she moved from her home in Jamaica to go live with her great aunt and uncle in New York. She left her mom behind because it was a chance for her to get a proper education.

Ananda Sattwa: "Like in Jamaica, you don't have free high school, you didn't, I don't know what it's like now, but it wasn't."

Her mom had made sure she was prepared for school.

Ananda Sattwa: "I read Shakespeare when I was little because that's the kind of stuff that we had to read."

Still, when Sattwa came to this country, she was held back. Discouraged, she eventually dropped out of high school. That meant low paying jobs was all she could find.

Ananda Sattwa: "It was really hard because I didn't have the education."

She now had four children. Her goal was to make sure they all went to college.

Ananda Sattwa: "I would tell them that they had to get good grades because they would probably need a scholarship to go to college."

All four kids got the message. All have gotten a degree and more.

Dr. Robin Kelly, Sattwa's son: "It is precisely people like my mother, immigrants, people of color, who made this American dream possible."

Dr. Robin Kelly is a well-known African American historian and Sattwa's son. He was the keynote speaker at today's graduation ceremony.

Ananda Sattwa: "I think I'll probably cry, but I really don't know how I'll feel yet, but they're very supportive, so supportive."

Today, Ananda Sattwa did not get an undergraduate degree. Her focus and determination earned her a Ph.D. in Ethnic Studies. And like her son, she plans on spending the rest of her career doing research and writing.

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