Back to school
for all ages

By Jon Campisi
Times Staff Writer

Doreen Ziccardi always had a passion for law.
Her work as a legal secretary for a law firm piqued her interest so much that she decided to further her pursuit of the legal field.
But there was one problem — Ziccardi never went to college, thus making her prospects of moving up the professional ladder near impossible.
So, in 2004, Ziccardi, a wife and mother of three grown children, decided to go back to school after more than 25 years. Her choice — Peirce College, a learning institution specifically geared toward working adults.
On June 5, Ziccardi, who lives in Mayfair, will be one of about 450 Peirce graduates accepting bachelors’ degrees during a commencement ceremony at the Kimmel Center.
"I wanted to become more knowledgeable of the law. I knew that paralegal was where I wanted to go, and Peirce’s program offered everything that I needed," Ziccardi said of her return to the academic world.
For Ziccardi, her pursuit of a degree came more than a quarter-century after she finished high school. During that time, she married her husband, Michael, and they had three children, ages 21, 24 and 27.
When her youngest was a college freshman, the 46-year-old mom decided to get her bachelor’s degree, taking both online and night classes while simultaneously working a full-time job.
Her supportive family also didn’t get to see mom as often. "It was interesting," Ziccardi said, "because my obsession kind of got in the way a little bit of the time."
She juggled 12 to 15 credits per semester, finishing her college career in four years. All the while, she was able to take care of her family and her work commitments.
Jim Mergiotti, chief operating officer of Peirce, said the school is flexible with the student body, especially because most of them are returning to the classroom after a long hiatus.
"Many — and when I say many, I mean ninety-plus percent — are working adult students who have been away from school typically five, ten, fifteen, even twenty years," he said. "They come back to us with the need to be reoriented, with the need to assimilate back to the educational environment."
The average age of the Peirce student is 34, and about 73 percent of the student population are women, school officials said.
Ziccardi also got involved with activities at Peirce, relishing the college experience as any younger student would. She served as both co-president and president of the school’s paralegal association, and she was chosen to be the commencement speaker at next week’s graduation ceremony.
Ziccardi also praised Peirce’s ability to work with students whose time constraints may prevent them from keeping an otherwise regular schedule. She gave the example of an American soldier in Iraq who would log on to the online courses when time permitted.
"They’re very, very accommodating, and they do work with you," she said. "They give you assignments that they know you can handle."
For Ziccardi, whose own children furthered their education after high school, education is a road that can be traveled by anyone, regardless of age.
"You’re never too old to learn, that’s my motto," she said. "Go back, do it, succeed, you will. But then you have to want it, it’s a little hunger that you have to have, but once you get in there, it’s really cool."
Ziccardi did have some initial regrets about returning to school; during her sophomore year, she joked to her professor that she would just drop everything and become a pastry chef. But as time went by, she realized she had made the right decision, especially after her professor praised her aptitude and encouraged her to stay the course.
"He really made me feel good about myself," she said.
John MacLean has a similar story. The Holmesburg resident is a deputy director of communications for the city’s Office of Emergency Management, a division of the managing director’s office.
MacLean has a demanding job, working to maintain communications equipment in the city’s emergency operation center. He also has a role in regional communications projects for the Southeastern Pennsylvania Regional Taskforce.
Some time back, as a Department of Defense employee performing an apprenticeship at the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard, MacLean considered going back to school, a move he’d contemplated for some time, but one that hadn’t come to fruition.
"I always wanted to go back to college after high school, but never went back because I did a lot of traveling while working for the Department of Defense," he said. "It made college pretty much impossible."
Again he moved on to another job, with the radio communications division of the city’s Department of Properties. During those five years, he still longed to get back in the classroom.
"Trying to find a college that would work with me on that kind of schedule was nearly impossible," he said.
Finally, MacLean landed a relatively steady 9-to-5 job at the city’s fire headquarters in 2000. After six years, his search for higher education ended — he learned of Peirce.
"I can’t wait any longer, I’m getting close to forty," MacLean said of his decision at the time. "I might as well bite the bullet and enroll in college."
And that’s just what he did. MacLean opted for a bachelor’s degree in information technology, taking mostly night classes, although online classes were an option available to him. MacLean finished school in a little more than three years; he’d brought with him some course credits from his time in the Naval Reserves.
"I loved the college," MacLean said of his Peirce experience. "It was a very supportive environment, very encouraging, very flexible as far as financial options. The ability to split up the course load was great."
MacLean was especially pleased that he could take some classwork at Father Judge High School, which is only two blocks from his house. Peirce operates something called "cluster sites," which allow students to attend class at pre-approved outside locations.
MacLean, an already busy guy, said his decision to go back to school put a slight strain on his family life — he’s married and has three daughters, ages 9, 7 and 3 — but his loved ones understood this was something he needed to do for himself.
"The girls missed daddy being around, and I think they’re thrilled that I’m all done," he said.
Well, not entirely. MacLean plans to attend the U.S. Naval Post Graduate School in Monterey, Calif. While he would have to fly there for his final exams, he’d be able to do most of his coursework from the convenience of his home computer, since a bulk of the classes are online.
By July or August, he expects to learn if he’ll be accepted to the school.
"I don’t like to be too bored," he said.
Hectic work schedules, like those that keep Ziccardi and MacLean on the go, are something that Peirce is used to dealing with, said Mergiotti, the administrator.
"They typically come with real time-management problems," he said of students. "Certainly when there are peaks and valleys in their work availabilities, certainly they have to adjust their schedules."
Mergiotti thinks the extensive online program particularly helps working adults who have a desire to return to school but face challenges to always being in the classroom.
The college’s Walker Center for Academic Excellence provides academic, life management and psychological support for returning students.
"We feel as though we have a good handle of what these support systems are and how to help people assimilate to the educational arena," Mergiotti said.
Peirce also touts its Protect and Serve Program, which was established in 2003 and provides grants to students who are active soldiers, military veterans or emergency first-responders. The grants are extended to spouses and dependents, as well.
"We wanted to make sure the grant program was far-reaching and embraced the entire family," Mergiotti said.
The program enables students to save up to 25 percent on their tuition, depending on the number of courses taken, as long as they maintain good academic standing.
Peirce College, founded in 1865, serves about 2,750 students each year, with about 90 percent of them from Philadelphia and the surrounding counties, Mergiotti said.
It focuses mostly on degrees in business, law and technology, but continued expansion is likely in coming years. Students can obtain associate’s and bachelor’s degrees, and Peirce officials are considering a move to master’s degrees, too. ••
Reporter Jon Campisi can be reached at 215-354-3038 or jcampisi@phillynews.com