PALO ALTO, Calif. — A 105-year-old woman received her master’s degree from Stanford Graduate School of Education (GSE) after beginning her journey at the school over 80 years ago.
Virginia “Ginnie” Hislop had taken the required classes at Stanford in the 1940s.
Just before she turned in her final master’s thesis, World War II broke out which affected her plans to graduate.
Her then-boyfriend George Hislop was called in to serve in the war, prompting Ginnie Hislop to leave school to marry him. She eventually assisted in the war effort and focused on raising her family.
While navigating life with her family which consists of two kids, four grandchildren and nine great-grandchildren, Ginnie Hislop also served on school and college boards in Washington State for decades.
Along the way, Stanford dropped its thesis requirement, and Ginnie Hislop finally returned to the school to graduate, walking the stage on Sunday, June 16, to accept her master of arts in education.
When she was handed her diploma by GSE Dean Daniel Schwartz, Ginnie Hislop could be heard saying, “My goodness, I’ve waited a long time for this.”
Speaking to “Good Morning America” in an interview that aired on Wednesday, Ginnie Hislop shared how pleased she felt about the long-awaited milestone.
“False modesty has never been one of my problems,” she said. “I felt I deserved it, and I was delighted to get it.”
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