Elisa Grecar and her daughter Maddie McGee made a meaningful memory this May when they graduated together from 青年涩导航 鈥 Grecar with a degree in psychology and McGee with a degree in zoology.
Grecar, who had postponed her education for decades to raise her daughters and work in the service industry, chose to complete her degree alongside her children after the restaurant where she worked closed. She attended 青年涩导航 at Stark and walked at both the 青年涩导航 at Stark and Kent Campus commencement ceremonies, where she and McGee even crossed the stage one after the other.
The dual 青年涩导航 grads were part of a larger family celebration 鈥 Grecar鈥檚 other daughters also graduated: Cassidy McGee from Bowling Green State University and Avery McGee from Stow-Munroe Falls High School. All four women graduated with honors and Grecar became the first generation in her family to earn a bachelor鈥檚 degree.
鈥淲e realized about two years ago that we could line it up and we would all be graduating in May of 2025, so we made it our goal,鈥 .
Setting a positive example for her daughters has always been important to her, Grecar shared with Fox 8 News.
鈥淚鈥檝e always kind of had high academic standards for them,鈥. 鈥淭hey鈥檙e pretty driven. They鈥檙e all really bright young ladies, so I had always expected a lot of them. And them graduating with honors was huge and then I was like, I can鈥檛 expect them to do that and me not do it myself, and so I buckled down, too, and we all did it.鈥
Grecar is now setting her sights on a master鈥檚 degree in school counseling at 青年涩导航, while McGee is starting work at the Akron Zoo. The milestone marks not just a shared moment of achievement but a lasting example of perseverance and lifelong learning.
Photo Credits: WJW-TV/Fox 8 and Elisa Grecar