Unfinished Business
John P. Smith started his college journey 40 years ago, but he never had the chance to finish his undergraduate degree. That all changed on May 3, 2025. The Gold Dome roared with applause and cheers when Smith, at the age of 67, walked across the stage to accept his Bachelor of Arts degree from Centenary College of Louisiana.
It was a long journey, but Smith is no stranger to hard work challenges.
Smith worked for AT&T in manufacturing right out of high school, but after eight years, he was laid off. The company encouraged employees (and former ones) to take advantage of incentives to go to college to open doors to more employment opportunities. So, he enrolled in Panola College, and in just a year and a half, he earned his associate's degree. It was 1988 when Smith first enrolled at Centenary College aiming to get his bachelor's degree. He loved history and political science, but Spanish stumped him, and a year later, he left school.
Finishing college was in the rearview mirror, for the time being. Time marched on. John and his wife Sherri Penn Smith, herself a Centenary graduate ('84 and '93), became the proud parents of two daughters. Over the years, John worked for a beer company, a cigarette company, and Coca-Cola, and eventually, he retired. But a man who had worked all of his life did not warm to boredom, and he accepted "an offer I couldn't refuse" from Gary ISD in east Texas to be a maintenance man. Between work, playing tennis, and spending time with his family, life was full and good.
That changed in December 2022, when his beloved wife of 41 years passed away. Shortly thereafter, he lost his only brother. Smith was devastated, but his wife's words kept him moving forward.
"[Sherri] said 'John, when I'm gone, I want you to play tennis three times a week,'" he said.
He kept busy with work and playing tennis; yes, three times a week. Still, something else was nagging at him. "When you lose somebody, you've got a lot of time on your hands, and you find things to keep moving on," he said. "I knew this would keep me busy, plus I didn't want to leave it left on the table."
Smith's family members – especially his daughters – were elated and encouraging when they learned he wanted to go back to Centenary and finish the two courses he would need to get his degree. He is the baby of five children, and "everybody else had theirs, so I said, 'You know what? I'm going back to get mine.'"
Smith was quick to point out how helpful Centenary was to help him.
"Everybody I've come into contact with at this Centenary school has been good as gold to me and helped me accomplish what I wanted to accomplish, especially Dr. Donahoe," he said.
Dr. Amanda Donahoe is the chair of Centenary's History and Political Science department, and she is as much of a fan of Smith as he is of her. "He showed bravery at every challenge and expressed gratitude in every exchange," she said. "I congratulate John on his momentous success in achieving his Bachelor of Arts in Political Science."
That was a feat on many levels, particularly in view of the fact that college today is far different from the way it was during Smith's first time around.
"The thing that killed me was these stupid computers!" Smith grimaced as he nearly spat out those words. He was also not particularly fond of footnotes. However, he said the Learning Commons helped him, dictating his paper to a computer helped him, and his daughters helped him. Through perseverance, he submitted his final paper with pride.
"One of the things about it is achievement," he said. "I'm a very big competitor, especially in the game of tennis, and I don't like things left over. I didn't finish this thing."
Imagine his sense of achievement when he received the message from Dr. Donohoe, "Congratulations. You got a 'B'."
He received his degree from Centenary College with the Spring Class of 2025, and a whole host of family members came to help celebrate. This accomplishment, though, is also bittersweet. He admitted that if his wife were still alive, he probably would not have come back "because I'd be doing stuff with her."
She was with him at graduation, though. He had her ashes in one pocket and his brother's in the other.
Now, Smith gets to think about what's next. The path for him is different from most graduating seniors. Instead of starting a new job, he's thinking of retiring from his for good this time.
As for what he will do with that newly minted Centenary diploma? With a smile and a chuckle, he said, "To tell you the truth, I'm going to get my degree and hang it on the wall."
