MEET OUR GRADUATES: Deprived of an Education at a Young Age, Now Graduating at 57

Born on the island of Jamaica, Jacqueline (Millie) Lawson, the eldest of 11 siblings, had to leave high school because her mother could no longer afford it.

At age 15, she began working to help support the family and shouldered the responsibility of caring for her younger siblings.

“I was able to sponsor one of my sister’s and one of my brother’s high school education,” she says. “For me, it was a joy to see my siblings attain what I was not able to. If you ask me now, ‘Would you do it again?’ I would say yes in a heartbeat.”

In 1989, at the age of 20, Lawson embarked on a new chapter in her life by immigrating to the United States to work as a nanny. She served various families in the New England area, eventually settling in New York City, where she worked with a family for 24 years.

“We moved around often, finally landing in Rhode Island,” she recalls. “Once the children were grown and I wasn’t needed as a nanny any longer, I found a job as a preschool assistant at the David C. Isenberg Family Early Childhood Center in Providence. I was 46 years old.”

Because the center requires all preschool assistants to be a certified child development associate, Lawson enrolled at CCRI at age 47 to earn an associate degree in early childhood education and became certified.

Encouraged by her husband to continue her education, at age 51 Lawson enrolled at RIC to earn a B.S. degree in early childhood education. This would enable her to become a lead teacher at the David C. Isenberg Family Early Childhood Center. She graduated from RIC this past May.

Lawson’s advisor, Professor of Elementary Education Leslie Sevey, has high praise for her work.

“Millie is a student who worked very hard and is committed to her chosen field,” she says. “She was always positive and supportive of her fellow students, and her focus was always on how she could improve as an educator. She is passionate about advocating for issues like access to quality care for all children and equitable wages for educators. I see great things for Millie’s future as an early care and education professional.”  

During her internship at the Rhode Island Association for the Education of Young Children (RIAEYC), Lawson worked with several key leaders and testified several times at the State House for better wages for early childhood educators.

“From these experiences, I realized that I wanted to continue down the road of advocacy,” she says. “Rhode Island College not only opened my eyes to this new direction in my life, it opened up many more opportunities for advocacy for me.”

“I’ve communicated with several state senators and representatives as well as senators in Washington DC about increased wages for early childhood educators,” Lawson says. “Along the way, I’ve met other advocates, who, like me, are passionate about this work.”

“I hope my story encourages all young people to attend school and keep on going,” she says. “Never give up. Learning is something that we should all ascribe to. I am graduating at 57 years old, and it feels great.”