When Assistant Manager of Custodial Services Kenneth Coleman received his bachelor’s degree in corporate systems from the Woods College of Advancing Studies in 2015, he described the milestone to the Boston College Chronicle as “a forward step I thought I’d never make.”
Kenneth Coleman (Yiting Chen)
Coleman, who has worked at Boston College for 30 years, took another forward step on May 20, when he graduated with a master of science degree in leadership and administration from the Woods College.
The first in his family to earn a master’s, Coleman completed the degree in three years despite suffering a heart attack in 2017.
“It’s an accomplishment I never thought I could get,” said Coleman. “It was more for myself; to prove to myself that I am better than I thought I was.”
James Woods, S.J., the Woods College namesake and its longest-serving dean, was a mentor to Coleman and more: he officiated at the marriage of Coleman and his wife, Student Affairs Business Service Center Business Manager Stephanie Coleman. When Fr. Woods stepped down as dean in 2011, he allowed Coleman to take his desk.
Besides his wife, the double Eagle attributes his motivation for higher education to the influence of his parents.
“My father died 16 years ago and I want to make him and my mother proud. Making them happy is what I always try to accomplish.”
Christine Balquist | University Communications | May 2019