This article is part of a special series, “Just the Right Time,” featuring some of our outstanding Adult Learners.
Note: The average age of graduates in the Class of 2024 is 35. About 83 percent of the Class of 2024 — over 24,000 graduates — earned their degrees through Liberty University Online Programs. As an innovator in distance learning for 40 years, Liberty has a longstanding tradition of serving working professionals, veterans and service members, parents, and grandparents. It’s why Liberty remains one of the country’s largest online education providers.
When Wanda Coltrane walked across the Commencement stage in May, she marked a personal goal decades in the making.
Coltrane, 63, of Aubrey, Texas, completed her bachelor’s degree in interdisciplinary studies through Liberty University Online Programs with focuses in education, music, and fine arts. She first decided to pursue higher education at age 35, enrolling at a community college. Her parents only had a formal education at the elementary level, and she was determined to become a first-generation college graduate. But after a year and a half, she had to halt her studies to care for her mother after heart surgery.
In 2007, Coltrane enrolled in college again, this time at the University of Missouri–St. Louis, while also working full time and caring for her mother and two daughters. With her workday starting at 4:30 a.m. and classes concluding at 7 p.m., she eventually became burnt out and stopped classes.
When the COVID-19 pandemic hit in 2020, Coltrane found herself out of a job but was still determined to finish the college degree she had started 25 years before. She enrolled with Liberty after seeing how the online programs compared in both depth and affordability to local universities. Although she said she didn’t know Liberty was a Christian college when she applied, she quickly fell in love with the emphasis that it placed on sharing the love of Christ.
“It’s been a long journey. But with the way I feel now, it’s been well worth it. I’m proud of myself for not giving up.”
-Wanda Coltrane (’24)
“It has been so rewarding and so inspirational,” she said, noting how her instructors would often send students motivational messages with Scripture. “Every instructor and professor I’ve had has been so encouraging to me. I grew up as a Christian, and it’s all I know … church and having a personal relationship with God.”
Coltrane also credited Liberty with motivating her to be outgoing and serve more in her church. She had worked at Vacation Bible School and was a youth director when she was younger but admits she became much more reserved as she grew older.
“Going to Liberty, I feel like I can do that again,” she said. “I don’t feel as withdrawn. God blessed me with multiple talents, and I think I stopped using them, but going to Liberty, I want to sing again, I want to write again, I want to draw again.”
She said her degree serves as a reminder of the importance of persevering through life’s struggles. She recalls times when she couldn’t afford to buy a bag of potato chips.
“I was determined to not give up. I’ve had a lot of struggles in my life, but in 2020 something came over me. I realized I could do this. I’m blown away because there were teachers at other schools who told me I wasn’t smart enough to graduate college. Even at the age I am now, I was scared and afraid, but I wanted to do it.”
Wanda Coltrane completed her bachelor’s degree in interdisciplinary studies through Liberty University Online Programs with focuses in education, music, and fine arts.
Coltrane is currently working as a level II paraprofessional (educational aide) with a Texas educator’s certificate. She hopes her degree will open further avenues for her to teach, possibly in private music tutoring.
She had originally planned a mock graduation at her daughter’s house in Texas instead of traveling to Lynchburg. However, her children gave her an early Mother’s Day gift and paid for her trip.
“My daughter said, ‘No ma’am, you have worked too long and too hard for this. My children, and your grandchildren, need to see you walk across that stage and know that no matter what, they can do it,’” Coltrane said.
“It’s been a long journey,” she added. “But with the way I feel now, it’s been well worth it. I’m proud of myself for not giving up.”
