![Patrick Carter M.Ed. '19 and students]()
作为密尔沃基一所特许高中的过渡后协调员，帕特里克·卡特(Patrick Carter).Ed. ' 19花了七年时间密切关注学生进入大学，帮助他们应对高等教育的挑战.
Then in the spring of 2017, he, too, tackled a new round of classes for himself at Carroll, enrolling in the master of education program, 仍然在帮助他在卡门高中的学生，但并没有真正考虑到他会在一个特殊的日子里与他们相遇。 graduation day.
On May 11, Carter walked the graduation stage as he received his M.Ed. 和他在卡门高中的三名学生伊莉莎玛·格雷罗·卡尔德隆, Karolina Andrade '19, and Yadira Ramirez '19—also received their bachelor degrees from Carroll.
"It was very humbling, 很荣幸能有机会和我的一些学生分享同一个舞台，也能和一些我作为导师在场外密切合作过的学生分享舞台," Carter said.
Carroll University's chaplain, the Rev. Elizabeth McCord, reflects on the importance of mentors here.
今年3月，一名学生问卡特5月11日是否有空，或者他是否能参加他们的毕业典礼, he thought about it and realized that was the date that he, too, would be graduating.
"It was a powerful realization," Carter said.
卡特和他的母亲是卡门高中最初策划团队的一员, Patricia Hoben, who will be finishing her career there on June 15. 自开办以来，学校已经扩大到包括两所额外的高中和两所中学. 现在正式更名为卡门科技学校，并一直名列该州顶尖高中之列, coming in second in a recent U.S. News and World Report in 2019.
The Carroll ceremony was particularly special for Carter, 谁说他在另一所大学没有最好的本科经历，从来没有参加过毕业典礼. So obtaining his M.Ed. 从高中毕业后，我第一次走上讲台接受学位证书. 他说，在卡罗尔完成了教育硕士课程，现在可以让他加强在卡门的工作，帮助学生自己过渡到大学.
“能够有基础，所以我可以继续发展(卡门)项目，并使其更强大是我很高兴我离开了卡罗尔的项目," he said.
All three women—Calderon, 安德拉德和拉米雷斯于2015年从卡门大学毕业，当时班上有55名学生. As part of his job at the high school, 在威尼斯游戏大厅的大一期间，卡特一直在跟进他们，帮助他们解决任何问题，并在他们过渡到大学时提供指导. Later, he stayed in touch with them via email and text.
Calderon was a public health 在2017年和2018年担任学生组织PASOS的财务主管. She also was a chemistry department teacher assistant.
她回忆起作为第一代学生，卡特曾帮助指导她完成大学学业, helping to figure out scholarships and deadlines, saying he was "there for me the whole way." She attended Carmen all four years before coming to Carroll, where her brother had also attended six years earlier. 她说，她的哥哥也影响了她决定来卡罗尔，因为他“真的在那里成长了很多，真的很享受他的经历。."
Calderon learned before coming to Carroll that Latino students, she said, “真的没有被充分代表”，她想帮助做出改变，并影响那些继她之后考虑卡罗尔教育的人.
Learn more about Carroll's efforts to increase diversity on campus here.
“我想，来到这里，努力在学校内外发挥影响力，也许我可以为那些和我有同样经历的人带来改变," she said. “我可以向所有人展示我可以做到，这可以影响其他人."
She said she hopes later to seek her master’s in communication health. For now, 她将在联合密尔沃基工作，进行社区外展和培训社区卫生工作者. 更具体地说，她将负责数据库和门户管理.
卡尔德隆说，她在3月份得知，她和卡门学院的其他学生将与卡特同日从卡罗尔学院毕业. 她说:“当我发现他和我们一起毕业时，我真的很兴奋. 他真的教会了我很多关于大学的知识，和我们一起毕业，或者我们和他一起毕业. He was a mentor."
Andrade majored in psychology and Spanish. As a first-generation college student, 她说，她早期在卡罗尔的经历充满挑战，但卡门为她从高中到大学的过渡做好了准备. She developed leadership skills from her work study position in Pre-College Programs她说，她在那里与卡罗尔的员工建立了联系和关系. 她说，她还通过LASO等学生组织获得了友谊, Latin American Student Organization, at Carroll. During her studies, she carried an emphasis in pre-occupational therapy and plans to pursue her master’s degree.
Andrade said, "It was great to see Mr. 卡特走过同一个舞台，因为他在我高中最后一年支持我，看到他在卡门, while obtaining his master's, shows so much dedication."
Ramirez obtained her nursing degree and also minored in Spanish at Carroll. Facing the challenges of nursing courses, she said the journey was not always fun and often stressful, one with many obstacles and ups and downs.
“注意到护理项目中少数族裔学生的数量急剧下降，这很可怕. I had to overcome many obstacles, I had to defeat the numbers, 并表明我有能力成功，即使对第一代有色人种学生来说似乎是不可能实现的目标," she noted.
拉米雷斯确实成功了，他将在奥罗拉街医院担任神经重症监护室护士. 她计划扩展她在工商管理方面的知识.
“我计划继续成长，向最优秀的人学习，就像奥巴马这样的人一样. Carter, 一个人总是提供足够的支持，以确保你能成功，即使看起来艰难和不可能. 我计划有一天将我的知识和技能以有益的方式融入社区和那些缺乏资源的人," she noted.
毕业典礼那天，她和卡特以及卡门的同学们站在同一个舞台上, she recalled, “知道我们作为一个团队正在成长和成功，这是有史以来最好的感觉之一."