Finishing What She Started with ‘Grace’
More than 30 years after gaining admission to SUNY New Paltz, South Florida resident Donna Grace Harrilal, ’24 (General Studies), age 52, can officially—and proudly—call herself a college graduate.
After all, the Brooklyn, New York native has overcome plenty of hardship in her life, including cancer diagnoses, an abusive marriage, and raising three children as a single parent.
“Due to my low SAT scores, I had to find an alternative way into college,” said Harrilal. “Just weeks before the 1990 Fall semester, I auditioned for the Theatre Program at SUNY New Paltz and was accepted. Although I initially aspired to become a singer and actress, my goals shifted, and I became uncertain about what I wanted to pursue in life.”
In 1992, at the end of the fall semester, Harrilal discovered she was pregnant and returned home to Deer Park, Long Island to focus on raising her first of three children.
“I didn’t resume my studies,” explained Harrilal. “As a single parent, I juggled work while raising my daughter, Dayna, but my mother spurred me to continue my education.”
Three years later, in 1995, Harrilal transferred to SUNY Farmingdale, but financial and academic hardship soon followed and forced her to pause her studies once more. During this time, to help make ends meet, she worked as a certified nurse’s assistant.
In 2004, a few years after leaving an abusive partner and relocating to South Florida, Harrilal remarried and brought two more children, Joseph and Jayla, into the world.
However, at four-years-old, Joseph was diagnosed with Asperger’s Syndrome, and his sister, Jayla, was diagnosed with a rare genetic disorder and other health concerns. Harrilal then suffered a mini stroke in 2007 before her mom passed away in 2009.
“Despite these obstacles, my desire for personal growth persisted,” said Harrilal, who suffered another mini-stroke in 2015, and years later, two bouts of breast cancer. “During the pandemic, I discovered the Bachelor of Arts in General Studies program, which offered me the flexibility of online learning. Determined to graduate, I pressed on.”
In May 2024, Harrilal’s persistence finally paid off. Having earned her degree, she, alongside her children, flew in from Florida for New Paltz’s Spring Commencement.
“The last time I set foot on campus was 30 years ago, so I was excited,” said Harrilal. “It also felt strange because I was much older than the other students walking around campus. Initially nothing looked familiar, but gradually, memories began to resurface.”
Though her battle with cancer persists, and more struggle lies ahead, Harrilal is content in knowing that she has shown her children what you can accomplish with hard work.
“Being diagnosed with cancer was frightening and pushed my mindset to finish college into overdrive,” said Harrilal. “Although I had always heard of the phrase, ‘no one is promised tomorrow,’ I now live with that mindset. Regardless of the pain I was in and how sick I felt, I stayed resolute because I had one final lesson to teach my children: You finish what you start!”
For information on our General Studies program, visit the SUNY New Paltz website.