At age 84, John Kihm was able to earn a BA in Psychology.

“Through many hurdles in my life, I was able to achieve this dream right here at CSUN. I did this at 84 years old. I am living proof that it is never too late to set a goal and reach it. I have done a lot in my life.

In 1954, I was kicked out of high school during my senior year. Following this, I took a break from my education. I decided to join the U.S. Navy where I served for eight years and got my GED. After the service, I was diagnosed with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.

In my 40s, I realized that getting a degree in psychology is something that I wanted to do in my life. I enjoyed psychology for the reason of having a way to explore inside my own head. I did other things for many years. I found success in acting, appearing in movies and commercials.

After all of this, I found myself at the doors of CSUN in my 80s. I was here to finally obtain the degree I wanted, and that is exactly what I did. I won’t deny that getting through school was a lot harder to do at this age compared to the past. However, I was able to get through it and form new friendships with fellow students who embraced me at CSUN along the way. I was as much of a student as they were.

Now that this goal is accomplished, I do not want to stop here. I want to continue my education in January. I appreciate my time here at CSUN and would like everyone to know that it is never too late to finish your education. There are a lot of former students and veterans out there who may feel that they missed their chance of achieving a college degree. I want to prove that if I can do it, anyone can. I want to help fellow CSUN students chase their dreams as well. The school helped me realize a dream.”

If you want to support our veterans at CSUN, please contact the director of development for Student Affairs, Jerry De Felice at (818) 677-3935 or jerry.s.defelice@csun.edu.