June 1, 2003
By TINA A. BROWN, Courant Staff Writer

Many people are satisfied with one degree.

But for 18 of the 516 people who received master's degrees from Rensselaer at Hartford Saturday, one is not enough.

During the 46th commencement exercises Saturday, those 18 graduates walked away with their second, third or fourth master's degrees. The majority of Saturday's graduates attend classes at night and on weekends and sometimes via videotape, while working full-time jobs. The school is a branch of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, N.Y.

Rensselaer's president, Shirley Ann Jackson, applauded the graduates for successfully meeting the challenges of work and family. "We share in the glow of your accomplishments," Jackson said. "Today is your day to be proud."

Among the students honored were Dr. Kexin Sun, a computer scientist and physician; Joseph A. Kalentek, an electrical engineer; and Carol Y. Thorney, of New Jersey, who is a software engineer.

Thorney, who had worked in the World Trade Center, survived the terrorist attack Sept. 11, 2001, because she was late for work that day. As she arrived the towers were coming down.

"I had a bad feeling and I took a later train," she said.

For all the graduates, keynote speaker Thad W. Allen, chief of staff for the U.S. Coast Guard, had a few choice words: "Bravo. Great Job. You made it. You Go!"

He urged them to take their places as leaders in corporate America. And, he asked the graduates to also consider what roles they might play to help combat terrorism by being "insightful" and "innovative."

Families were excited about the achievements of the graduates. Their feelings were revealed in the smiles of such people as Deloris Drakes of Windsor, who hugged her husband, Emerson Guy Drakes, as he returned to his seat after receiving his master's degree.

Timothy W. McHenry, a 42-year-old engineer at Pratt and Whitney, did not attend the commencement ceremony under the white circus tent on the Hartford campus to pick up his fourth master's in management Saturday. McHenry, of Glastonbury, said during a telephone interview that he hopes to begin work on a fifth master's next fall, in computer science.

"I like the school, the people they attract to teach and the students," McHenry said. He decided to forgo the ceremony for a chance to garden and spend time with his family.

McHenry's love for learning is rewarded by a Pratt incentive, which pays for books and tuition and gives a bonus of $10,000 in United Technologies stock for each degree.

Randall Greenberg took home his third master's degree Saturday and wondered aloud whether he will return. The 33-year-old engineer from Granby said he might be addicted to learning.

He said he earned his first master's in electrical engineering; his second was in business administration; and on Saturday he received his third master's, this one in information technology. And he might not be done.