By Cindy J. Roth
For one Bellmore family, graduation from Molloy College this spring took on new meaning as the mother-and-son team of Christine and Justin McDannell received their diplomas together. What made the event extra special was that Christine McDannell, 49, was named valedictorian of Molloy's class of 2002.
While many children would be mortified to share their college experience with their mother, Justin, 23, said he and his mother have always gotten along, and sharing the same alma mater made their relationship even stronger.
"We've always been close," said Justin. "This is just another thing we share together."
Christine, who majored in English and minored in theology and graduated with a cumulative grade point average of 3.99, attended Molloy part-time for eight years. She decided to get an undergraduate degree because the opportunity was there, working as an administrator in the school's Bursar Department.
Originally from Massachusetts, Christine and her husband moved to Bellmore in 1976. Christine said raising a family kept her busy. But with her sons all grown up, she had the time to pursue the college education of her dreams. Her oldest, Aaron, is now 30, and her youngest, Matthew, 19, will be a junior at Molloy in the fall.
Christine decided to major in English because she originally thought she might go into teaching and she loved English. For now, though, Christine said she will continue to work at the school's Bursar Department and is considering going back to school next spring for a master's degree in business.
Even though Justin majored in communications, the mother-son duo did share one undergraduate course, 20th Century American Novel, this past spring. Justin said the experience was fun for them. Christine and Justin sat next to each other in the class and even shared notes.
"One time my mom forgot her textbook, and we shared that too," Justin noted.
Because 40 percent of the school comprises non-traditional students, Christine said she felt comfortable in all of her classes. Especially with night classes, there is a good mix of students, she said.
"Everybody learned from everybody," said Christine. "You had the wisdom of the ages and younger points of view. It's one of the big attractions to the school."
Justin, who studied abroad in England during his junior year, agreed that the mix of students in the classroom added to the experience. He recalled in one of his classes talking about Shakespeare and the Globe Theatre and an older man saying nonchalantly how he once saw Macbeth at the theater, and the man not even realizing how special that was, said Justin.
A graduate from Mepham High School in 1998, Justin said Molloy was his only choice for college. The only choice soon turned into the best, as Justin became extremely involved in the school. He was a peer tutor, a special-needs tutor in philosophy, editor-in-chief of the school's student literary magazine, a copy editor of the school's newspaper and community-service coordinator for the student government this past year. He even graduated with a 3.4 cumulative grade point average.
Christine and Justin said the school's three-day graduation celebration was a wonderful capstone to their time at the school. Although the actual graduation day, May 18, was rainy and the school's tent almost came crashing down, requiring the roughly 450 graduates and their families to run for cover inside nearby buildings, Christine said nothing could take away from the day's symbolism.
"In scheme of things, you still graduated," she said. The day's weather "can't deter from the education you got. It's one for the history books."
In her valedictory address, Christine challenged the class of 2002 to "go out and walk their walks," turning all the times in their lives when they thought "I can't" into "I can succeed."
Justin will certainly have to listen to his mother, as he hopes to break into one of three very tough professions -- directing, acting or writing -- in the near future.
