Woman, 48, surprises her mom by graduating from college three years early and giving commencement address

Judy Reinhold went to Mount Mary University on Saturday expecting to attend a mother-daughter luncheon, not her daughter’s graduation.

She had no idea that her daughter, Serena Majeski, 48, of Cedarburg, would be among the 232 students to receive their diplomas.

Reinhold was also stunned to learn, at the very last minute, that Majeski would deliver the commencement address as senior class representative.

The De Pere woman had not expected her daughter to graduate until 2020.

She wasn’t aware that Majeski had sped up the plan by taking full-time course loads and accelerated classes while also working full-time at the Medical College of Wisconsin.

Reinhold fought back tears of joy as she learned that her daughter was receiving her bachelor’s degree in business administration Saturday after years of on-and-off time in school.

“She’s been on this road for quite a while,” Reinhold said.

Keeping it a secret from her mother wasn’t easy, Majeski said, but nothing was easy about going to school nights and weekends for two straight semesters while working a full-time day job.

“I would get up in the morning and do homework, then work all day, come home, and do more school work until about 11 at night,” Majeski said.

“Mom knew that I was in school, but I had told her I was only taking one class a semester.”

Majeski, who wore a Superman shirt under her graduation gown, was modest about her achievements.

“Let’s talk about the obvious. I am not your typical college graduate. In a couple of months, I will be attending my 30-year high school reunion. It’s been quite the journey,” she said.

That trek included raising a daughter, Rebecca Jadofsky, now 24.

She’s in awe of her mother’s work ethic and commitment to family.

“When I was in high school, she got a second job, at McDonald’s, to send me to Germany. She was working full-time at the Medical College and at McDonald’s on Sunday mornings so that I could have these international experiences,” Jadofsky said.

“I could only hope to be half the woman she is,” said Jadofsky, who recently moved to New York to work in the music industry.

Not finished with school quite yet, Majeski says she’s going to pursue a master’s degree in business while continuing in her job as a financial specialist at the Medical College of Wisconsin.

Her advice for others thinking about returning to school while also holding a job: “Just do it, because in five years you will regret it if you didn’t … And accept any help that’s offered. My husband (Mark Majeski) has done a lot so that I could finish my last two semesters.”

Reinhold is also a lifelong learner, having graduated from University of Wisconsin-Stout with a bachelor’s degree in business following a 20-year career in nursing.

“I have a patchwork quilt of work experience,” Reinhold said, that includes the pharmaceutical, computer and printing industries.

About a third of the students at Mount Mary, a Catholic liberal arts university on Milwaukee’s west side, are non-traditional students.

It’s a nurturing place for women returning to school because the class sizes are small and the faculty members know their students well, said President Eileen Schwalbach.

Saturday was Schwalbach’s last commencement as Mount Mary’s president.

She’s retiring after a 19-year career at the university including nine years as president. Before that, she had a lengthy career as a teacher in the Milwaukee Public Schools.

Christine Pharr from the College of St. Mary’s in Omaha, Neb., will be her replacement.

Schwalbach said she’s staying in Milwaukee, which is her hometown.

“These last few months have been bittersweet for me because I will miss Mount Mary. I love Mount Mary, but I look forward to retirement,” she said.