James Hatch, Navy Seal, applied to Yale University and was accepted as a freshman at the age of 52.
He was wary about how he would fit in.
Were the students the “liberal snowflakes” he had heard about?
Would he be able to do the work expected of a Yale freshman?
Read his reflections on his experience. He was amazed, and you may be too.
He began:
In May of 2019, I was accepted to the Eli Whitney student program at Yale University. At 52, I am the oldest freshman in the class of 2023. Before I was accepted, I didn’t really know what to expect. I had seen the infamous YouTube video of students screaming at a faculty member. I had seen the news stories regarding the admissions scandal and that Yale was included in that unfortunate business. I had also heard the students at Yale referred to as “snowflakes” in various social media dumpsters and occasionally I’d seen references to Ivy League students as snowflakes in a few news sources.
I should give a bit of background information. I was an unimpressive and difficult student in public schools. I joined the military at 17 and spent close to 26 years in the US Navy. I was assigned for 22 of those years to Naval Special Warfare Commands. I went through SEAL training twice, quit the first time and barely made it the second time. I did multiple deployments and was wounded in combat in 2009 on a mission to rescue an American hostage.
Every single day I went to work with much better humans than myself. I was brought to a higher level of existence because the standards were high and one needed to earn their slot, their membership in the unit. This wasn’t a one-time deal. Every time you showed up for work, you needed to prove your worth.
The vetting process is difficult and the percentage of those who try out for special operations units and make it through the screening is very low.
In an odd parallel, I feel, in spite of my short time here, the same about Yale.
After receiving my acceptance email and returning to consciousness, I decided to move to Connecticut and do my best in this new environment. Many people have asked me why I want to attend college at 52, and why at an Ivy League institution like Yale? I could have easily stayed in Virginia and attended a community college close to my home. Well, based on my upbringing in the military, I associated a difficult vetting process with quality and opportunity. I was correct in that guess. More importantly, I simply want to be a better human being. I feel like getting a world-class education at an amazing institution like Yale will help me reach that goal. Are there other places to get a great education? Of course, but I chose Yale.
Diane Ravitch's blog 
Imagine, as the leaders of our nation do their thin, James Hatch tells us “Every single day I went to work with much better humans than myself. I was brought to a higher level of existence because the standards were high and one needed to earn their slot, their membership in the unit. This wasn’t a one-time deal. Every time you showed up for work, you needed to prove your worth.”
This is what powers me through my difficult days.
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This comment he wrote is rather sad:
“I could have easily stayed in Virginia and attended a community college close to my home. Well, based on my upbringing in the military, I associated a difficult vetting process with quality and opportunity.”
Um, he could easily have stayed in Virginia and attended University of Virginia or William and Mary, both public colleges.
“a difficult vetting process” that is associated with private schools and wealth is not about quality. It is terrific that this former seal is embracing his education and has this opportunity, but it is a shame that he confuses wealth and privilege for quality.
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^^I should have added that the rest of his essay was lovely and the students at Yale are very lucky to have this veteran as a classmate. He well-deserves his place there and clearly will thrive!
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He could have stayed in the South, but maybe he’s tired of the backward bible-belt southerners and wanted to get out int he real world. I can’t wait for retirement, so I can move back to the Northeast!
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Yale, the real world?
The rich, white religious use faith to make themselves feel comfortable in the privileged world, example Robert P George.
Whites of the southern and midwestern Bible Belt use faith to feel superior to those one step lower on the socio-economic ladder.
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Some of my family members are conservative. I recently became friends on social media with a conservative cousin’s daughter that I didn’t really know very well. She is a second year law school student. She and I have bonded over progressive politics and immigrant issues. She is currently doing legal field work at a immigration center in Philly. If there are many more young people like her coming up, the future is in good hands.
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I heard this person interviewed on NPR a couple of times. He is an interesting guy. An odd thing struck me the first time I heard him. There are a lot of interesting folks out there. It seems to me that he is one of them. How many of them are teachers? What do we do so that our children get to be taught by interesting people?
I have a close friend who got out of the Navy and trained to teach in an alternative program. He too was an interesting guy. Still is. Journalists should take time to know us. John Merrow is featured in another post. He is, I take it, an educational journalist. Maybe he could call me. We could talk. Well, not necessarily me, for there are literally thousands of teachers who could talk to him and to thousands of journalists and have interesting conversations.
We should have coffee. Kind of like we do on this website.
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Thank you for this feel-good article, Diane. I needed that
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Bethree,
If you really need a feel-good dose, read my new book. It will make you very happy.
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Expecting delivery shortly!
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