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Sometimes teenagers feel that college is the perfect time to break away from the family unit and find a path to call their own. However, 18-year-old Melanie Salazar couldn’t be any more thrilled to enter her first year at Palo Alto College with her 82-year-old grandfather.
You see, Melanie’s grandfather, Rene, has been enrolled in post-secondary economics classes for as long as Melanie can recall. Hoping to receive an associate’s degree following this semester, Rene originally gave up college in the 1950s after getting married.
“I think people are very drawn to him because he is an every day person – an 82-year-old person – who isn’t giving up on their education,” said Melanie, a liberal arts major, during an interview with CBS News. “He’s determined to get his degree.”
She continued: “He’ll spend hours at a time in the library by himself just studying. He’s very focused with schoolwork.”
Once Rene graduates from the San Antonio, Texas-based Palo Alto College, he plans on applying to the University of Texas. His goal? To earn his bachelor’s degree, of course.
“[He] really inspires me and keeps me determined,” added Melanie. “I want to be like my grandpa and be determined to find what I love and get a degree.”
-Adam Grant
