‘My big day, now his.’ Student graduates college hours after giving birth in Louisiana
_fitted.png "A Dillard University student graduated in her hospital room hours after she gave birth to her son in New Orleans.")
On May 15, the president of Dillard University in Louisiana said he did something he had never done in his nearly two decades as a college president — he awarded a degree in a hospital.
Jada Sayles was set to graduate from Dillard University on May 14 in New Orleans. But another milestone event took place instead that day: She gave birth to her son.
“I thought I was gonna walk across the stage to get my degree, instead I got my baby. My sweet face decided to make his way on MY big day (now his),” Sayles wrote in a May 15 Twitter post.
Yet, it didn’t stop the new mom from having her graduation.
Walter M. Kimbrough, Dillard’s president, took the graduation ceremony to the hospital.
“Jada went into labor on Friday evening. Texted me around 4:30 am Saturday saying she was being admitted, & the baby was born on her graduation day, May 14th,” Kimbrough wrote in a Twitter post. “So we rolled up to the hospital so I could finish my tenure in the most special way.”
Hours after giving birth, dressed in her cap and gown, Sayles walked across the hospital room to grab her college degree.
Sayles held her baby in her arms as Kimbrough officially declared her a graduate of Dillard University. She grabbed her tassel and turned it to the left as loved ones cheered her on.
“I even did the tassel part of commencement! This really was a very sweet moment,” Kimbrough said in a Twitter post. “I’ll never forget it.”
Sayles graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in Criminal Justice and Corrections, according to her LinkedIn profile.
Kimbrough said he had a relationship with the student that spanned her four years at the university, and while he “would have done this for anyone that asked,” Sayles “didn’t have to.”
