A family legacy occurs when back-to-back generations graduate from the same institution. When Childhood Inclusive Education major Kayla Reese made her way to the commencement stage May 12, she marked the fifth generation in her family to earn a degree from SUNY Brockport.
“The connection to Brockport was extremely well known and talked about in my family,” said Reese. “Coincidentally, I wrote my college essay about being the potential fifth generation to attend.”
The five generations of Reese’s family dates back to the 19th century. The University traces its origin to 1835 when village leaders initiated an institution of higher learning to formalize the Brockport Collegiate Institute. Following the Civil War, it joined a movement to become a part of the “Normal” state school system in 1867.
Five Generations of Graduates
- Reese’s great-great-grandmother, Laura Belle Mathewson, graduated from the Brockport State Normal School in 1899. At that time, it was a three-year program training teachers.
- Reese’s great-grandmother, Leona Rayburn Nesbitt, graduated from Brockport twice, first in 1935 and later earning her bachelor’s degree in 1961.
- Reese’s grandparents, Gerald Nesbitt (Secondary Science Education) and Diane Draper Nesbitt Shapiro (Elementary Education), graduated in 1966 and 1967, respectively.
- Reese’s mother, Heidi Lancia, earned her master’s degree in Arts for Children Education in 2003.
- Kayla Reese graduated on May 12, 2023, with a bachelor’s in Childhood Inclusive Education.
With aspirations of becoming a teacher and a long history of educators in her family, Reese’s desire to attend SUNY Brockport was never in question.
“Brockport was always my number one choice,” Reese said. “After hearing about my family’s positive experiences with their programs in Education, I knew that it would benefit me as a future teacher to enroll in their programs.”
As the final piece to earn her degree, Reese has worked as a long-term substitute teacher at QUEST Elementary.
“I am in a job-embedded placement that will also count towards my student teaching,” Reese said. “I am teaching at QUEST Elementary right now for fifth and sixth grade, but I started my student teaching in a fifth-grade classroom at Fred W. Hill School in Brockport. I have had amazing experiences in both placements.”
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