Despite deferring their dreams, couple
graduates together
When Sherryl Johnson-Tandy and her husband Erik Tandy
walked across the commencement stage together on the
evening of Friday, April 27, it was a little out of the ordinary.
Sherryl, a corporal in the Pasco County (FL) Sheriff ’s Offi ce,
completed her Bachelor of Arts degree in criminal justice.
So she was grouped with the other adult learners receiving
undergraduate degrees in the evening.
Her husband Erik was also graduating with a Saint Leo
degree, but his was the Master of Business Administration.
The MBA grads are a big group, and are scheduled
for the Saturday morning ceremony of commencement
weekend, along with those who have attained graduate
degrees in other disciplines. But Erik was switched
to Friday night at his request so that he and Sherryl
could walk across the stage together to celebrate
their joint accomplishment.
It was no easy road for the two. They
had long wanted to reach these educational
goals, but raised a family, so they
waited for everyone to be grown and out of
the house. It did not quite work out that way.
As they went to school, and worked, circumstances
required that they also tend often to
three grandchildren, ages 5, 8, and 9.
Sherryl has a memory of both the adults
studying at night, and then Erik “waking me up from sleeping
on my computer.” And she often did the same for him.
When their fi nals were over, she said, it was a blessing to
don their robes and receive their diplomas together. •
Twin brothers choose same major and
graduate together
Two recent grads from the Class of 2018 are not only twins,
but they also graduated with the same major and held equivalent
jobs as residence hall advisors. In another family connection,
they are the sons of Sandy and Dr. Okey Igbonagwam, a
Saint Leo assistant professor of computer information systems
in Virginia.
As an employee, Igbonagwam is eligible for the university’s
tuition remission benefi t, which is a big plus in helping families
pay for college. While the fi nancial benefi t was certainly a
factor in the decision, Igbonagwam said his sons were also
drawn to Saint Leo by the appeal of University Campus. “First
impressions matter,” according to Chidozie and Chigozie. They
also liked the academics, and both have wanted to be doctors
since they were small. That made the biology major with a
specialization in biomedical and health sciences a natural fi t.
The major is off ered only at University Campus.
So, the twins came to Florida and got involved with the Pre-
Medical Club, the student-run fundraisers for St. Jude Children’s
Research Hospital, and research projects with faculty mentors.
Since graduation, both have taken the Medical College Admission
Test and are hoping to be admitted to medical school.