Amanda Dyslin
MANKATO — Some college students might not be so thrilled if their parents told them they would be attending the same university.
Katie and Kristen Halloran see it a different way.
“I always kind of thought it would be a cool thing,” Katie said.
“It’s not so bad because I never really see them — they take later classes,” Kristen said. “And if I ever need anything, they just bring me it.”
This semester, Katie, Kristen and their parents, Jim and Holly Halloran of Belle Plaine, all are attending Minnesota State University. Katie graduates at the end of this semester, so these few months will be the only time the family spends together on campus.
So far, though, they haven’t bumped into each other much. All have different majors, which keeps their class schedules separate.
Katie, 21, is a psychology major. Holly, a social work major, was the next to attend MSU and is also a senior.
Kristen, 18, transferred to MSU from Crown College, where she’s now a freshman in pre-med. Jim, a social studies and education major, was too inspired by his girls to wait any longer, so he started this semester.
“I think it’s neat,” Katie said. “I think they love it.”
Holly and Jim had some post-high school education years ago, but never earned bachelor’s degrees. Jim owns an appliance store in Shakopee and Holly had worked for an insurance company for nine years and was later a stay-at-home mom.
Holly home-schooled the girls on and off, and when Kristen decided to attend college at age 16 at Normandale Community College in Bloomington through the Post Secondary Enrollment Options program, Holly decided she’d go with her. She’d been thinking about going back to school for years and would have started earlier had she not been home-schooling the girls.
“I felt really nervous about sending a 16-year-old to college,” Holly said. “So we both went together.”
Holly earned her associate’s degree and went on to MSU, where Katie already had been attending school for a couple of years. Kristen transferred to MSU from Crown shortly after.
The plan was for Jim to wait to go back to school until Holly was finished. But the rest of the family seemed to be having so much fun, he just couldn’t wait.
“I had reservations about going to class with students much younger than myself,” he said. “But I feel accepted. It hasn’t been a problem.”
Besides the occasional sighting in the Student Union, the Hallorans don’t see each other much on campus. But they did make a point to have lunch together every Tuesday.
And if Katie or Kristen see one of their parents on campus, they don’t ignore them and quickly walk past, Holly said.
“If they see me in the CSU they just plop down and chat with me,” Holly said. “It’s actually been a really neat experience for all of us.”
Among the four of them, Holly has the best grades, but she doesn’t claim to be the smartest. She just applies herself.
Katie is the most involved on campus, Holly said, having served as president of the Residence Hall Association. She also did campus tours.
Holly plans to work in a high school with minority youth. Jim plans to become a social studies teacher.
Kristen plans to be a doctor. And after Katie graduates this fall, she plans to go on to air-traffic control school.
