Senior Outpaces ‘Grandchildren’ to Earn Degree from Tri-C

December 14, 2015

Bob Kubovcik affectionately refers to his Cuyahoga Community College classmates as his grandchildren. The 79-year-old worried he would have trouble keeping up with them when he enrolled at Tri-C in 2013. Turns out, the grandchildren had trouble keeping up with him.

As evidence, Kubovcik will collect his Associate of Arts degree at Commencement Dec. 17.

When Kubovcik signed up for his first course — American government — he simply wanted to see if he could pass it. When he completed it, though, he realized he enjoyed being in college.

After that, Kubovcik, who hand a handful of credits that transferred to Tri-C from other colleges, decided to pursue a degree. He’s steadily been attending Tri-C part time since then, taking two courses per semester at the Westshore Campus, which he said offered affordable courses three miles from his North Olmsted home. Kubovcik will graduate with honors.

Kubovcik, who retired from KeyBank in 2001, is a member of the Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society. He’s also a veteran of the United States Air Force, serving from 1954 – 1957, and received veterans’ scholarships to attend Tri-C.

“Everyone (at Tri-C) is very supportive,” Kubovcik said. “I can’t point a finger at any one person in particular, but I’ve been happy with all of them.”