From The Madison Times, May 2007

UW Odyssey Project graduation
28 earn six UW credits in humanities

By Pamela Gates

The University of Wisconsin Odyssey Project held its fourth annual graduation ceremony May 9 in Tripp Commons of the UW Memorial Union. The large room was filled with well-wishers, families and friends, who applauded and cheered as each grad presented a brief reading by him/herself or by a well-known writer before accepting a certificate and several gifts. The greatest gift each one took home, however, was a tremendous boost in self-esteem that had been building since Sept. 6, 2006, when tonight's graduating class met for the first time to talk about revolutionary poetry, painting, and the philosophy of William Blake.

"Every student has discovered a new-found sense of self and determination to go forward," said Odyssey Director Professor Emily Auerbach. "I have seen the power of those who struggle out of poverty through higher education. … They should not be blocked by lack of money," she said, appealing for donations to help maintain the program.

Auerbach introduced Lt. Gov. Barbara Lawton as "the boldest and most active lieutenant governor in the history of the state. [Like many of our students], she too, put her education on hold to raise a family."

Lawton honored the grads with her words: "You have shown a willingness to take on the complex texts [of this humanities course.] You have all the right stuff now. You have transformed your lives and are poised to transform the world. We need you: you talent, your wisdom, and your expertise. Your diploma bears witness to your tenacity and audacity."

Auerbach elaborated on the gifts each grad would be receiving, the most amazing of which was The Norton Anthology of African American Literature, edited by former UW Professor Nellie McKay, who died about a year ago. Norton has committed to donating this book to each and every Odyssey grad each and every year. But the best gift, Auerbach said, "is my solemn commitment to keep you going as far as you can go, as long as you're willing to work hard."

Brian Benford composed and read "The Life of Brian," in which he declared, "Education has brought me out of the cave." Of Odyssey he said, "Being part of this class has been life-altering. Each and every one of my classmates has inspired and empowered me to reach my full potential."

Dwayne Bland, son of 2006 graduate Annette Bland, read from The Life of Frederick Douglass, a Slave. He commented that "I have never seen a program like Odyssey. Odyssey is a support group, class, friend, and mentor for life."

Kathleen Brown read an original poem titled "Missing You." Of Odyssey she said, "I have changed because the Odyssey program has given me more than hope and education. It's also given me a new-found family.

Cameron Daniels spoke lines from "MacBeth," a play the class read, discussed, and acted out scenes from with the help of theater Professor Baron Kelly. "My experience this year showed me that what doesn't kill you makes you stronger," he said of his challenging schedule this past year.     

Katy Farrens read from the preface to Walt Whitman's Leaves of Grass: "Hate tyrants," she read, "… have patience … go freely …" Of Odyssey, she says, "I am on the road to a better life for me and my family. … My kids can … see me … achieve my goals."

Erica Garcia read her own poem, titled "Me": "Who do you think I am? … I am native, because I was born here. I am Mexican, because that is what you made me." Of Odyssey, she said, "I have always dreamed of going to college and making life better for myself."

Molinda Henry read a poem she wrote for graduation, "Search Engines": "I am traveling on this odyssey, and every day I have changed. … Now I can't wait to get my hands on the next book … I have become a search engine … my task: to learn and be free."

Yasmin Horton read a profile she'd written of her son, "What a Man," which concluded, "He tells me how proud he is of me, but I'm the one that's proud." Of Odyssey she says, "This opportunity to recommit to my life is a blessing. I know that nothing can deter me."

Lily Komino, from Tanzania, read a Langston Hughes poem which she dedicated to her ancestors in Africa, of the "slow … low beating of the tom-toms [that] stirs your blood." She appreciated Odyssey for showing her that she still has "the mental capacity to learn."

Lorena Lovejoy read another of Langston Hughes' poems: "So much misery in the world: What can I do? … How little help our love, for those who no longer care." But of Odyssey she said: "I believe anybody can [go back to school] and be successful at it."

Angela McAlister read Hughes' "Mother to Son," which Auerbach said "has become a metaphor for our class": "Life for me ain't been no crystal stair," McAlister read. "Odyssey is my breath of fresh air, my second wind," she wrote of the program.

Anne Meyer read from T.S. Eliot's "Four Quartets": "We arrive where we started and know the place for the first time." "After a miserable school career," she says of Odyssey, "I thought, 'Finally a chance to do it right.' … Odyssey has been a priceless experience."

Tillman Morris read his own poem, written in the spirit of George Jackson and Franz Fanon: "Winds of discontent are sweeping the world … wonder what change is in the making?" "Odyssey is effective because they use a holistic approach," he said.

Roslyn Phillips read a beautiful poem she had written about her father, "Daddy's Little Girl." "Baby girl, be all you can be," he had told her. "Look out, Madison," she wrote proudly as she completed the Odyssey program, "here comes a Phenomenal Woman!" 

Tiffany Puccio read Robert Frost's "The Road Not Taken." "[Odyssey] has reminded me of my love of learning, as well as my thirst for knowledge," she wrote. "… With so many on my team, I feel as though my possibilities are endless. … it is my time to shine."

Sandra Ramirez wrote about her El Salvadoran grandma, who decided at age 80 to learn to read and write. "My grandma is a wise woman: 'Education is the key to being free,' she said." "This class … has been an odyssey through an ocean of knowledge," Ramirez writes.

Corinthians Reece declaimed, "We are now among the upward bound, and our goal is a college degree. … We won't shut up!" Reece played the saxophone after the ceremony with Robert Auerbach, Emily's father, on the piano. "I keep on trying," Reece wrote.

Ella-Oroki Rice read a piece about her first-grade teacher, Mrs. Castille, who taught her class capably with the used "Dick and Jane" readers from the White school. "I am now writing and performing as I always dreamed," Rice writes. "Watch out for me!"

Latoya Robinson read Langston Hughes' "I, Too, Am America." "I am the darker brother," she read. The mother of four young children thanked her dad, Odyssey grad Joseph Hurst, for introducing her to Odyssey and the teachers for their patience and hard work. She plans to be an R.N.

Stanley Sallay read Emily Dickinson's "I Step from Plank to Plank," a metaphor for life and the precariousness of what "some call experience." "If Odyssey received enough money to unlock its potential … it could be the most prestigious university in the nation," he wrote.

Lakeitha Sanyang read her poem "Who Was I? And Who Am I Now?" She was selling drugs; she had three kids and no help, no direction, no education. But now, she said, "I am a strong, unconfused, unbound, courageous, educated Black woman … free from bondage!"

Sonia Spenser, originally from Angola, read from Plato, in her native Portuguese and then in English, on education and ignorance. "Uneducated people are similar to people in a cave, and it is important that we get out of the cave," she said.

Derrick Washington read a piece he had composed: "I speak of my ideals. I speak of the way things are and the way things could be. … Professor Baron Kelly told us to use our outside voices inside. … [We] have the courage to put our thoughts on paper for others to scrutinize."

Mary Wells read from Martin Luther King Jr.'s "Where Do We Go from Here?": "As long as the mind is enslaved, the body can never be free. … We will only be free when we reach down into the depths of our inner being and sign our own Emancipation Proclamation!"

Angela Williams read her original poem "How I didn't want to come": "At first I was doing this for my mom [Odyssey grad Darnetta Carter] … how I didn't want to come … and now I love that I came!" "I love coming and can't believe it's over," she wrote.

Curtis Williams, Angela's brother, drew a comparison between the Odyssey Project and bike riding. "I was quiet," he said. "Thank you, class, for letting me open up. … Thank you, Odyssey family, for helping me get back on my bike."

Juanita Wilson read Langston Hughes' poem "Still Here." "I love Odyssey, because before Odyssey I always felt like an outsider. I feel I'm no longer a slow learner. ‘Still Here’ demonstrates me." "Odyssey has given me the confidence that I can achieve," she wrote.

Nou Yang read a poem by Emily Dickinson, first in Hmong and then in English: "A word is dead when it is said, some say. I say it just begins to live that day." "Odyssey …  changed my life, in how I look at others and how I treat others," she wrote.

To close the formal part of the program, Odyssey writing coach Marshall Cook demonstrated the staff approach that is so critical to the positive power of this program: "Luminous," he said to the grads. "Giving off light; filled with light; brilliant. The Odyssey Class of 2007 is luminous!"