94 Years Old and About to Graduate From College

Like many people in this economy, I've considered going back to school recently, but also worried that I was too old. In case I needed further proof that I'm an idiot for thinking that way, there's Hazel Soares. At 94, she's a few years older than my grandmother and will graduate from Mills College next month, a mere 78 years after she graduated from high school.

As reported by the San Francisco Chronicle, Soares decided on her art history major when she transferred to Mills in 2005, and has taken classes twice a week for the last five years. Instead of taking things easy after she graduates, she plans on resuming her daily routine of swimming, something she started nearly 30 years ago. And in case you're wondering, she'll also be looking for work. She wants to be a docent at a museum. As Soares was quoted, "I have the endurance and I would totally put my heart into it," adding, "I've put in my time and I do have the background for this kind of work, you know."

As a member and patron of four different museums in the Bay Area, she has been interested in the arts since she was 12 years old, when she first saw a picture of Michelangelo's "David." Her future employer shouldn't be worried about Soares, either, as she still drives and has a clean bill of health, not even taking any prescription medications.

Amazingly enough, Soares won't be the oldest college graduate ever. That claim goes to Nola Ochs, who was 95 when she collected her history degree from Fort Hays State University in Kansas in 2007. What's Ochs doing these days? As of July 2009, pursuing a masters!

Personally, I'm thinking these two should team up and go on a motivational speaking tour. I mean, who wouldn't listen?

Photo by David Michael Morris via Flickr.