UWG News Archive

A Birthday to Remember

June 9, 2003

CARROLLTON, GA - If it’s true that every cloud has a silver lining, then the storm that postponed 2003 spring graduation for the University of West Georgia shone brightly on Velvie Banister, a nontraditional graduate of the Philosophy Program.

Banister had been “rushing through” West Georgia since summer 1999, when she returned to school after a career in insurance to get a bachelor’s degree. Her goal was to earn a Bachelor of Arts with a major in philosophy and a minor in religion by her 50th birthday.

And by a lucky chance her 50th birthday fell on June 7, the date on which West Georgia conducted the spring commencement ceremony postponed from May 7 because of heavy rains and UWG News Photo tornado warnings. She celebrated the event with three of her four children, LeAnne Preston, Meri Whitlock, David Banister and Jonathan Banister.

“They have always been my motivation and my support for everything,” she said. “I told my children, ‘I don’t want a gift or anything or a big fuss; I just want my picture made with you with my cap and gown on.’”

Banister, who had motivated herself at West Georgia by envisioning graduating in the same stadium in which her son David had graduated from high school in 2000, said the rained-out May ceremony was initially a big blow.

“When I heard the tornado warnings [on May 7], I was so disappointed, but I thought, well a private ceremony [in the Carrollton High School gymnasium] won’t be so bad,” she said. “But then when the man came and said, ‘Everybody get down on the lower level’ and that eerie sound of the sirens started, I wasn’t so much frightened as so disappointed.”

But the rescheduled June ceremony suited her fine, said Banister, who just wanted a chance to celebrate her success before leaving for Texas to enroll in Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in August.

A 1972 graduate of Carrollton High School, Banister had chosen return to school for a bachelor’s degree so that she could then pursue a master’s degree in Christian education and become a minister for children and a writer of children’s educational church literature.

At first, she hesitated over her choice.

“I kept saying, ‘I’m too old. I can’t do this. I’m too old,’” she explained. “I’ll be in my fifties when I finish.” But her daughter encouraged her by reminding her that she’d be in her fifties whether or not she returned to school.

Banister’s doubts were revived, however, when she struggled with her first writing assignments and made a D on her first essay in her first West Georgia class, English 1101.

“I literally cried, and I said, ‘I’m not going to be able to do this,’” she said.

It was then that Banister discovered two tools that considerably eased the college experience for her. The first was a motivational quote she heard from her developmental math teacher, Karen Rollins, a learning support program specialist.

“She gave us a lecture about how to succeed in college,” Banister said. “She said, ‘By the yard, it’s hard, but by the inch it’s a cinch,’ and I have lived the last four years by that philosophy.”

The second was the support of West Georgia faculty and staff. At the suggestion of a faculty member, she sought help in the Writing Center, where center Director Sonja Bagby worked with her for three months to improve her writing skills. The tutoring helped her make a B in her next class, and an A in the next.

In future semesters, Banister says, she was inundated with help from faculty and staff, whose names she reeled off with gratitude, including Cheryl Rice, EXCEL Center director; Burdett Wantland, then assistant professor of philosophy; Dr. David Newton, chair of the Department of English and Philosophy; and theatre instructor Amy Cuomo.

“They were all so willing to help me, and they want the students to succeed,” said Banister. “I’ve never had a professor turn down my request for help.”

One form of help for which she is particularly grateful is her financial aid, which included a scholarship for nontraditional students from the UWG Alumni Association, a HOPE Scholarship and a Pell Grant, as well as aid from several religious organizations to attend the McAfee School of Theology as a dual student.

“If the truth be known, I’ve not had to spend any of my own money to go to school,” she said. “That’s when I know that God’s in it because I’ve been provided for every step of the way.”

Even with aid, however, Banister worked hard for her degree. Until her retirement in December 2002, she was working 20 to 30 hours a week with the Woodman of the World Life Insurance Society while attending classes. She also worked 20 hours a week at Tabernacle Baptist Church, first as the children’s worship director and then as the children’s ministry intern. Meanwhile, she took 12 to 15 hours of classes in the fall and spring and 9 hours in the summers.

“It didn’t come easy by any means,” she said. “But when I hear people say that they can’t afford to go to school or they don’t have time, I want them to know that they can because where there’s a will, there’s a way here at West Georgia. Anybody can go to school. There’s money to go to school; there’s a way to go to school if you’re willing to work for it.

“I hope to one day get my doctorate,” she added. “I want to go out to Texas and pour it on there, too. I want to finish in 2005 and then maybe get my doctorate before I’m 65. I’ll set myself a goal and work toward it — one inch at a time!”

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