Student Spotlight: Karen Moran '21

Ten years after first starting the Adult Undergraduate Program at Trinity, Karen Moran ‘21 will be graduating with her degree in business management. While she temporarily put her college career on hold to take care of her family and work full time, she has persevered and fulfilled her goal of earning a bachelor’s degree.  

“It’s never too late to finish your degree and pursue your dreams,” she said. “I joke that this has been 25 years in the making. For me, it’s the perfect time to finish. I honestly enjoy classes more now than when I first started.” 

Moran’s first time at Trinity was interrupted by the passing of her mother and the birth of her daughter, now 5, who was born with a heart condition. “Trinity felt like a family to me,” she said. “To this day, I’m still friends with the people I started classes with.” 

Moran spent the next few years caring for her daughter as well as her son, who is now 9, and working full time. Then, the pandemic hit, her father passed away, and both her children were learning remotely. “I decided to take some time off from work and focus on my family,” said Moran, who lives in Manhattan, Ill.  

She also began to think about finishing her degree. “I told myself, I’m just nine classes short of a degree. So, I reached out to Kathy [Davis, operations manager, adult undergraduate business and business departments.] She remembered me from 10 years ago—you just don’t find that at other universities. And she told me, ‘Let’s figure this out.’ And we did.” 

Moran is excited to walk across the stage at commencement on May 8, then complete the rest of her coursework over the summer.  

“It’s been a long road for me,” she said. “But I’m glad I was able to complete it at Trinity.”