When student commencement speaker Chris Dexter took the podium to speak to the Class of 2025, he brought with him a message of perseverance, inspiration and a touch of humor.
Chris, a graduate of the part-time Associate Degree Nursing (ADN) program, shared his unique experiences and perspective as a student returning to college in his 40s.
Chris’s journey started more than 20 years ago when he joined the U.S. Navy Reserve as a Corpsman. For 12 years—including 18 months on active duty—he cared for service members both at home and overseas. After leaving the military, Chris returned to Northeast Wisconsin and spent 15 years working in security.
Chris’s interest in healthcare never waned, but balancing work and family made returning to school seem impossible. When his wife discovered FVTC’s part-time ADN program, Chris knew he had found his educational path.
Read Chris’s remarks to the Class of 2025:
I am honored to serve as the 2025 winter commencement student speaker, and I want to first say congratulations to my fellow graduates. It’s been a challenging road for all of us…and tonight, we are here to celebrate success.
As mentioned, my name is Chris Dexter, and I am — or was as of tonight– a nursing student. As you may have noticed, I am not your typical nursing student. I was in my 40s before I knew what I wanted to be when I grew up.
I chose nursing because from the time I was a Boy Scout and then as a U.S. Navy Corpsman… I liked taking care of people. When I got out of the Navy, I took a break from the medical field, but as time went on, I missed it more and more and my family took notice.
So let’s jump to about four years ago. I was a Boy Scout leader on a weekend campout with my son, where – ironically — I was teaching first aid skills to Boy Scouts. It was that day that my wife sent me a text asking me if I still wanted to be a nurse, to which I replied, of course. But I couldn’t afford to quit my job and go to school full-time. She told me that we would talk more when I got home the following day…
That’s when I knew she was up to something.
Unbeknownst to me, she had done some research and discovered Fox Valley Tech had launched a new part-time associate degree nursing program.
So – I thought about it… and my first thought was that I didn’t want to go back to school again, since I already have a degree and after 15 years, I was comfortable at my job; not happy, not unhappy — but comfortable.
Then I thought – I was going to be 46 years old when I graduated from this part-time program. But, I came to the realization that I am going to be 46 no matter what happens, and at least I would be working toward something I wanted to do.
Now out of excuses, I began my journey in the summer of 2021. So here I am, four years later, 46, and graduating.
I didn’t accomplish this alone, and I want to thank my family, friends, coworkers, and my classmates of the small but mighty Cohort Three. Because, without their support and encouragement, I would not be standing here today.
Being a returning adult makes interactions with my younger classmates interesting at times. I remember the first day of one of my gen ed classes.
A younger classmate turned to me at our first break and asked, “Is it weird being in class with people that are WAY younger than you?” I was taken aback, and I asked, “How old do you think I am?” and she replied, “26.”
I replied – “Well, first of all, thank you for thinking I look 26, and second of all, how old are you that you think 26 is way older?”
“18” was her reply.
Then came moments when the instructors were the only ones who understood my movie, music, and TV show references, and conversely, I was the only one who understood theirs because I was closer to them in age than I was to most of my classmates.
Despite an awkward moment here and there, I settled into my nursing classes and before I knew it, my classmates became more like family with each passing semester. We relied on each other… not only to critique each other and offer input to improve our skills, but also to provide encouragement.
It wasn’t always about school either, sometimes we gave and sought advice about personal matters. That is the benefit of having classmates with different backgrounds, genders, personalities, and stages of life.
And that is the part about Fox Valley Technical College that I know I will miss. Not the seemingly endless studying and assessments… but the strong family we have built together.
As we leave here tonight, I’d like the Class of 2025 to remember a few things:
- We all now have a strong foundation on which to build our futures.
- We can do anything we want to do, as long as we get out of our own way and don’t let our excuses hold us back.
- No one is ever too young or too old to build or rebuild their future.
- It is up to each and every one of us to take the skills we have learned and continue to build our future, adding new skills as we go and perhaps pass on the skills and wisdom we have learned to others, so that they might too build a future for themselves.
Thank you… And again, congratulations to the Class of 2025.
