IU Kokomo graduates 328 today

By DANIELLE RUSH
Tribune staff writer

May 05, 2008 09:33 pm

— Nancy Caster took 24 years to earn her bachelor’s degree from Indiana University Kokomo, finally receiving her diploma in 2005. Immediately after graduation she enrolled in the Master of Arts in Liberal Studies program, and today she will be among the 328 graduates receiving degrees during the annual commencement ceremony, scheduled for 10:30 a.m. in the university’s east parking lot.
According to IU Kokomo’s Office of Communication and Marketing, 541 students will have completed degree requirements in May, June and August 2008.
Also during the ceremony, the Indiana University Kokomo Alumni Association will present its Distinguished Alumni Award to Dr. Walter Brown II, a local dentist who received his bachelor of arts degree from IU Kokomo in 1968. He earned his D.D.S. in 1973 from the IU School of Dentistry.
Caster, 73, has no plans to take it easy now that she’s completed her master’s degree. She’s planning a new career as a motivational speaker and computer repairperson, and would like to earn her Ph.D. in some area of study.
She thinks as a two-time cancer survivor who persevered in getting her degree despite also having Parkinson’s disease, she has something to say, particularly to senior citizens and high school seniors.
Caster said she’d like to talk to high school students about the value of education, and she’d like to teach senior citizens how to use computers, and not to fear them.
“Some senior citizens say ‘I’m too old to learn to use a computer.’ This is not true. You can teach an old dog new tricks. I’m an example,” she said.
Caster said she’s taught herself to use her computer and to repair it through reading books, particularly the “Dummies” series.
She’d also like to inspire senior citizens to get out an enjoy life.
“I want them to wake up in the morning and not feel like they’re waiting for the inevitable. There is something to do every day ... If I can make a senior citizen happy to be alive, I would be pleased. I’ve been told my enthusiasm is contagious.”
She enjoys going to school, playing poker with her friends and dancing, though she says people are surprised she can dance because of her Parkinson’s.
“You might think with Parkinson’s, how do you dance? Very carefully,” she said with a laugh.
Caster thinks she could be a motivational speaker now because she has the degrees to back up her life experience.
She took her first college classes when IU Kokomo was still housed in the Seiberling Mansion, after graduating from Kokomo High School in 1952. Marriage, motherhood and 30 years of working an office job at Haynes International kept her from earning a degree at that time.
She started taking more classes in 1981, then began working on her degree in earnest in 1991, after she retired. She’s survived uterine and breast cancer and was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease six years ago.
Caster thinks school gave her a reason to keep going through adversity, and also keeps her mind young and fit.
“I look like I’m in my 70s, but I feel so much younger. I smile a lot. I love to learn. I love school.”
If inclement weather forces ceremonies inside, there will be two ceremonies, at 10:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m., both in Havens Auditorium. Tickets are required for admission to indoor ceremonies only.