Double celebration for graduating couple

Rebecca & David Hooper and family

There are a million and one excuses a person can find to not undertake tertiary studies, but as the Hooper family have proven, anyone can change their lives no matter what their circumstances.

Husband and wife, Rebecca and David Hooper will both don ceremonial regalia to celebrate their joint conferring of degrees at USQ Springfield campus on Saturday 15 May.

They will both graduate with a Bachelor of Education (Primary and Middle Schooling), which they have studied full-time while raising a family of three young children including a two-year old son who was born in the thick of their studies.

David said there had been many occasions the challenges seemed overwhelming during this time.

'I was in the army and due for deployment to Iraq while Rebecca was pregnant with Annabelle (now 4 years) and had I gone overseas I wouldn’t have been at the birth, nor would I have met her until she was two months old,' David said.

'Needless to say Rebecca wasn’t thrilled at that idea, so I decided it was time for a change and teaching was something I’d always been interested in pursuing.

'It was a huge commitment to leave full-time employment to undertake full-time study, but there was a lot to be gained from doing so.'

Rebecca said she decided to follow David into studying teaching at USQ after seeing how well he was handling the course materials.

'I was working in childcare at the time and had a Diploma in Childcare, but after watching David, I thought education was something I could really enjoy.'

Both agree the biggest challenge of their academic studies has been finding time for their family.

'Children don’t understand when you are busy and can’t spend time with them,' David said.

'They need your time and you just have to find a way to give it to them and study when they are occupied or asleep.'

Competition whilst both completing the same degree was one-sided according to David.

'You can say that I was not competitive at all, but Rebecca was very competitive,' he jibes.

'Doing the same program at the same time was difficult at times because we might be doing the same course and had to come up with different ideas for projects and couldn’t run things by one another.'

Both Rebecca and David are now teaching at Richlands East State School and are enjoying the work as much as they thought they would.

'It is a great school to work at, the teachers are a close knit group and are all focussed on a common goal and the students are wonderful.'

USQ Springfield Director Doug Fraser said more than 120 students would graduate this month, including 20 postgraduate graduands and a doctoral graduand.

'This will be the last graduation held on campus owing to size constraints, we have so many people graduating each year we have simply outgrown our auditorium,' Mr Fraser said.

'Next year’s ceremony will be held in the Ipswich Civic Hall.'

The graduation ceremony for the Faculty of Education will be held at the USQ Springfield Auditorium this Saturday, May 15, at 10am.

The graduation ceremony for the faculties of Arts, Business and Science will be held at the USQ Springfield Auditorium on Saturday, May 15, at 2.30pm.

An academic procession will take place leaving from Orion Springfield along John Nugent Way to USQ Springfield campus at 9.30am and 2pm.

Media are invited to attend all of these events.

Contact Details:
Jo-Ann Sparrow, USQ Media, +61 7 3470 4119 or 0438 309 096