(Archived) Once Denied Admission, Marie Williams is Now a Graduate

In 1963, Marie Williams was the valedictorian of her high school class and received scholarships to two colleges in Texas.

However, neither of those schools were in close proximity to her, and the only one nearby, Sam Houston State Teachers College, was not accepting black students.

Forty-one years later, Williams graduated from the very same university that wouldn't admit her after she graduated high school. After entering college as a 52-year-old freshman in 1998, Williams received her bachelor's degree in sociology during Saturday's commencement ceremonies held at Johnson Coliseum on the campus of Sam Houston State University.

After Williams graduated high school and with college not an option, she stayed in Huntsville, eventually getting married and raising five children.

After encouragement from some close friends, 35 years after graduating high school, Williams entered a college classroom for the first time as a student.

Once she started her educational journey, it didn't take very long for her to settle on a major.

"After I took the first (sociology) course, I liked it," Williams said Friday as she prepared to graduate. "When I first signed up I had two courses, freshman English and sociology. When I had that first sociology class, I thought, 'This is what I want.'"

Even though she was 52 years old during her first semester, Williams was actually not too different from the rest of the freshman class. Like most students, the biggest challenges were finding her way around campus and getting to class on time.

There was, however, no rust upon returning to a learning environment. Just like when she was in high school, Williams was interested in her subjects, and she wasn't just reading books to study, she was reading for her own enjoyment as well.

"It wasn't so much studying, I just like to read," Williams said.

However, like when she was in high school, her hardest courses were those in mathematics.

"The math, the way they teach it now, they didn't teach it that way when I was in school," Williams said. "We didn't have the latest books. I went to a segregated school, so we just got castoffs."

But now, Williams is a college graduate. And even though it was a difficult road to get to that point, Williams said can live with the way things happened.

"There's no bitterness," she said. "You live in a situation and you make the best out of it that you can. There's no sense in going around harboring feelings for something you can't do anything about."

Williams eventually would like to work in the social services field. She said a position in child protective services would be her ideal job, but in the meantime, she will just be taking things one step at a time.

"It hasn't sunk in yet, but I'm sure it will on Monday when I don't have to get up early," Williams said.

'Righting a Wrong'

SHSU Media Contact: Frank Krystyniak
Aug. 8, 2004 (posted)
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