Part of a special feature celebrating student success during spring convocation. You can join the celebration by following @MemorialU on Twitter, MemorialUniversity on Instagram and liking the Memorial University of Newfoundland page on Facebook. Well wishes will be projected in the Arts and Culture Centre prior to each ceremony and can also be seen at www.today.mun.ca. 

Jennifer Hanley will receive her bachelor of music conjoint with bachelor of music education degree this spring, a dream more than 10 years in the making.

The Torbay native credits her music teachers for showing her how rewarding making music could be. Ms. Hanley began working towards her degrees in the late 1990s. She took a leave from her program and later had a child. She kept thinking about music and faced a decision: return to school as a single parent or keep working. After a 12-year hiatus, she decided that her family’s best future would be realized if she returned to Memorial.

There were challenges. Ms. Hanley had to carefully budget her time, but she was determined and had a great support system.

“There were times when I simply could not meet a deadline,” she said. “But along with family and friends, I found in my professors another support system that I wasn’t anticipating.” 

Ms. Hanley’s hard work has paid off and her son will watch her cross the stage on Friday, May 29. After graduation, she hopes to find a teaching position where she can run a music program for intermediate and secondary students. She believes that band programs help students build both music and life skills.

“Band taught me much more than just music, it taught me the importance of standing up and taking a leading role,” said Ms. Hanley. “These lessons were taught in the context of music but they cross over into all areas of life.”