February 11, 2005 Print this page

Theresa E. Berger Realizes Goal of Earning Bachelor’s Degree from La Salle University After Nearly 20 Years in College

Theresa E. Berger would have had good reason to delay her education. Even without the added pressure of college courses, she had plenty on her plate: raising three children as a divorced mother, working a full-time job, and caring for her sick mother. But she didn’t quit—she excelled. After 20 years of lectures, projects, and midterms, Berger recently graduated from La Salle University with a degree in religion and philosophy.

“You just do what you’ve got to do,” Berger said of the sacrifice and determination it took to earn her bachelor’s degree. “It wasn’t a major burden, it’s just what you do.”

Berger, 43, studied part time toward her bachelor’s degree until last spring. She was working as the manager of research administration at a local college but had grown frustrated at her ever-increasing duties without comparable compensation.

She left her job last spring and decided to dedicate herself full time to finishing her last few courses at La Salle. Long before then, however, Berger had also decided that a career in health care management is not where her greatest talents lie.

“It was a job, but it was never a passion for me,” she said.

Her passion became the study of religion and philosophy—a discovery that surprised her. The revelation came during a religion course, taught by Dr. Luke Jih, at Manor College. She earned her associate’s degree at Manor before transferring to La Salle.

“When I was a teenager, my parents each practiced different religions. Their beliefs seemed contradictory and confusing,” Berger said. “I needed to know how each group, being so adamant, came to believe their religion to be correct in its beliefs and practices.”

Even though she has been taking college classes since 1985, Berger said she isn’t finished with her education. She’s interested in continuing her education toward a master’s degree or Ph.D. in religious studies, and said she would love to work at a university. She’s also interested in writing a book about indigenous West African religions and African Americans’ lack of knowledge of ancestral religious traditions. “Christianity was the religion of colonial slavers. I find it sad that a people can be convinced that their ancestors were misguided pagans.”

“I’m fascinated by the west coast of Africa, where the slave trade happened, what the religious practices were there, what the traditional religions were, how they’ve been retained, and what was left behind,” Berger said.

Dr. Jacqueline Pastis, an associate professor in La Salle’s Religion Department, had Berger in her majors colloquium last semester, a course required for religion majors that includes a significant research project. Pastis said it wasn’t unusual to see Berger in the library for hours after class.

“I was amazed by her. She’s a natural academic, and she truly represents the Renaissance woman. Nothing was going to hold her back,” Pastis said. “The moral of the story is that it’s not about your circumstances, it’s about your drive.”

Berger has passed that hunger for learning on to her children. Her oldest, Terrell, 25, just graduated from Embry-Riddle University with a degree in aerospace engineering. His college education was interrupted by service in Iraq in 2003, but he picked right back up again when he returned. Berger’s 15-year-old daughter, Taylor, is a gifted pianist. Her daughter Terez, 9, is a straight-A student and devoted reader.

“Your children watch you. They see the perseverance that it takes,” Berger said. “They may not seem like they’re always listening, but they all know that education is the greatest tool you can obtain.”

The last several years of her education were the hardest, Berger said. She was her mother’s caretaker from 1994 until her death in 2002. But that experience, and witnessing the care her mother received at Abington Memorial Hospital’s hospice program, she became a volunteer for the hospice, and has also donated her time as a literacy tutor, an escort for the blind, and an event coordinator for the Special Olympics and Lions Club.

Berger chose to attend La Salle not only because of the proximity to her home in Elkins Park, but also because she just had a feeling that the University was where she was supposed to be.

“Academically, I had the most wonderful experience,” she said. “I had experiences out in the field, attending war protests and visiting churches, that I would not have gotten elsewhere.” She credited Pam Monaco, another La Salle professor, with igniting her passion for experiential education.

Attending college as an adult presented many challenges, but Berger said it was never a burden. “There’s a commitment that adult students have. I wanted to set an example for my kids, I wanted a better paycheck, but I’m doing it because I want to do it,” Berger said. “I’m here because I want to be here.”

-- Marian Morton