West Virginia Junior College holds graduation ceremony

MORGANTOWN, W.Va (WDTV) – Students at West Virginia Junior College now have a degree to put on their mantle. On Saturday, 90 graduates received their associate degrees in their chosen fields. The graduation ceremony was hosted at the Erickson Alumni Center in Morgantown. WVJC’s campus president, Samantha Esposito, says WVJC is unique compared to other colleges.

“Our school is a school for the non-traditional student,” Esposito said. “[The students] may have not known what career they wanted to do right when they graduated high school, and we are the place for them to go. We are the place where they can get a degree very quickly and get into the workforce very quickly as well.”

Programs ranging from business to nursing were honored in the ceremony. WVJC has been responsible for furthering the careers of students for more than 130 years. 2021 WVJC graduate and this year’s graduate speaker, William Shahan, credits West Virginia Junior College for his success.

“I am so thankful for West Virginia Junior College because it changed my life dramatically,” Shahan said. “I graduated here, and that first year I actually opened my first business. With this college backing me, we have had over 500 students, 500 kids, visit our facility on almost a yearly basis.”

Now that they are alumni and have an associate degree, graduates can choose to further their academics at a university or take the next leap in their careers. Graduate Nick Nuzum says all the hard work has prepared him for the next steps in his life.

“We’ve been working so hard to finally get here,” Nuzum said. “Today’s the day we finally graduate. I’m excited to start working.”

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