{"id":73049,"date":"2025-12-07T09:34:19","date_gmt":"2025-12-07T14:34:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.utc.edu\/news\/?p=73049"},"modified":"2025-12-17T08:39:24","modified_gmt":"2025-12-17T13:39:24","slug":"promises-kept-graduation-means-shari-warren-can-say-i-did-it","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.utc.edu\/news\/2025\/12\/promises-kept-graduation-means-shari-warren-can-say-i-did-it\/","title":{"rendered":"Promises kept: Graduation means Shari Warren can say \u2018I did it\u2019\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"attachment_73053\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" ><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"880\" height=\"593\" data-attachment-id=\"73053\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/blog.utc.edu\/news\/2025\/12\/promises-kept-graduation-means-shari-warren-can-say-i-did-it\/shari-warren-25\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blog.utc.edu\/app\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2025\/12\/Shari-Warren-25-38.jpg?fit=1200%2C809&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"1200,809\" data-comments-opened=\"0\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;4&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;Angela Foster\/University of Tennessee at Chattanooga&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;NIKON Z 8&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;Shari Warren, Thursday, Dec. 4, 2025&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;1764887730&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;24&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;250&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0.01&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;Shari Warren-25&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;1&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"Shari Warren-25\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"&lt;p&gt;Shari Warren, Thursday, Dec. 4, 2025&lt;\/p&gt;\n\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blog.utc.edu\/app\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2025\/12\/Shari-Warren-25-38.jpg?fit=880%2C593&amp;ssl=1\" class=\"wp-image-73053 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blog.utc.edu\/app\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2025\/12\/Shari-Warren-25-38.jpg?resize=880%2C593&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"Shari Warren, wearing her blue and gold UTC graduation cap and gown, stands smiling in front of the historic brick facade and arched entrance of Fletcher Hall.\" style=\"max-width: 100%;\"style=\"max-width: 100%;\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blog.utc.edu\/app\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2025\/12\/Shari-Warren-25-38.jpg?w=1200&amp;ssl=1 1200w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blog.utc.edu\/app\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2025\/12\/Shari-Warren-25-38.jpg?resize=1024%2C690&amp;ssl=1 1024w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blog.utc.edu\/app\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2025\/12\/Shari-Warren-25-38.jpg?resize=768%2C518&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blog.utc.edu\/app\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2025\/12\/Shari-Warren-25-38.jpg?resize=800%2C539&amp;ssl=1 800w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blog.utc.edu\/app\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2025\/12\/Shari-Warren-25-38.jpg?resize=580%2C391&amp;ssl=1 580w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blog.utc.edu\/app\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2025\/12\/Shari-Warren-25-38.jpg?resize=610%2C411&amp;ssl=1 610w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 880px) 100vw, 880px\" \/><p class=\"wp-caption-text\">Shari Warren will graduate with a bachelor&#8217;s degree in business administration. Photo by Angela Foster.<\/p><\/div>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Recovering from heart surgery while working full time and keeping up with her grandkids\u2019 sporting events, Thanksgiving and holiday shopping has made the end of Shari Warren\u2019s year hectic.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">On top of it all, she has been taking her final exams and preparing for Saturday, Dec. 13, the day she graduates from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga with a bachelor\u2019s degree in business administration.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u201cIt\u2019s a balance,\u201d Warren said. \u201cIt\u2019s a tough balance. But I did it.\u201d<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center\">====================================================<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center\"><a href=\"https:\/\/blog.utc.edu\/news\/tag\/commencement-2025\/\"><strong>Click here for more UTC Commencement 2025 stories<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center\">====================================================<\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Warren began her college journey at 17 years old. She attended Palm Beach State College near her hometown in South Florida but dropped out two years later.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u201cLife happens. I met someone, we had kids, we had our own business,\u201d she said. \u201cI didn\u2019t really need the degree.\u201d<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">She went back to school years later, but again, life happened.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u201cI quit school, moved away and was a single mom, so school was out of the question,\u201d she said.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">In Chattanooga, where she has lived for the past 20 years, Warren worked for a nationwide large-item delivery company, eventually becoming an administrative assistant to the company\u2019s national director.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">When her boss moved north, she stayed behind to be closer to family.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u201cLosing my job, it was very challenging to find a new job that was comparable to my salary and benefits that I was getting after being employed for 16 years,\u201d she said. \u201cI decided that I would never be in that position again.\u201d<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">She enrolled at UTC in <\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">January 2024<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\"> and has not stopped since, taking full course loads and summer classes all online. Meanwhile, she has worked at the Tennessee Valley <\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Authority, first<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\"> as a management assistant and now as an engineering support specialist.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Working for TVA was a driving force behind Warren\u2019s desire to finish her degree, she said, as she wanted to get more involved in the \u201cbeat of the business.\u201d<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u201cI knew that I wanted to do more than what was offered,\u201d she said. \u201cI wanted to be an individual contributor to the team.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u201cI would love to be in management one day. This would be a path to that versus staying in the admin position. With my degree now, it opens up the door.\u201d<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Warren works four <\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">10-hour<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\"> shifts during the week, usually leaving her only the weekends to complete her assignments.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u201cRemembering the math and sciences, having to take all of those classes, it would\u2019ve been so much easier for me to do it the first time &#8230; It\u2019s hard to go back after 40 years,\u201d she said with a laugh. \u201cI feel like I\u2019ve had to work even harder, even with technology. I work on project teams, and so many of them are so tech-savvy. All of this is new to me.\u201d<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">The drive to finish the degree and feel the confidence that comes with turning the tassel allowed her to persevere.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u201cOver the years, it has always been in the back of my mind,\u201d she said. \u201cAt previous companies, I would look to a colleague and think, \u2018I could do that. I could be doing that right now.\u2019 I never went for it for many years.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u201cI had 25 years\u2019 experience and I knew I was overqualified in a lot of cases, but if they required the degree, there were opportunities that the door just wouldn\u2019t open.\u201d<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Some of the greatest motivators have been her husband, three children and four grandchildren.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u201cThey\u2019ve been watching me do this,\u201d Warren said. \u201cThe older ones especially, they\u2019re coming to graduation, so they\u2019ve seen me work hard. I hope that inspires them to do the same.\u201d<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">After years of dreaming what it would be like to say those words, \u201cI did it,\u201d she will be able to close the book on education\u2014for now.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u201cI need a break right now, but I wouldn\u2019t totally rule out going for my master\u2019s degree,\u201d she said with a quick laugh.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Crossing \u201cbachelor\u2019s degree\u201d off her list marks a milestone she once wasn\u2019t sure she\u2019d ever reach.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u201cIt\u2019s been a lot of work, but it paid off and I\u2019m going to have it,\u201d she said. \u201cI will always have that and no matter what, nobody could ever take that away or I won\u2019t ever lose it.\u201d<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_73225\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" ><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"880\" height=\"525\" data-attachment-id=\"73225\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/blog.utc.edu\/news\/2025\/12\/promises-kept-graduation-means-shari-warren-can-say-i-did-it\/screenshot-2025-12-13-at-12-36-03-pm\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blog.utc.edu\/app\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2025\/12\/Screenshot-2025-12-13-at-12.36.03-PM.png?fit=1032%2C616&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"1032,616\" data-comments-opened=\"0\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"Screenshot 2025-12-13 at 12.36.03\u202fPM\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blog.utc.edu\/app\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2025\/12\/Screenshot-2025-12-13-at-12.36.03-PM.png?fit=880%2C525&amp;ssl=1\" class=\"wp-image-73225 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blog.utc.edu\/app\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2025\/12\/Screenshot-2025-12-13-at-12.36.03-PM.png?resize=880%2C525&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"A graduate wearing a navy cap and gown with a gold stole holds a diploma folder and flowers while standing outdoors with several family members, including adults and a young child, smiling together on a sunny day.\" style=\"max-width: 100%;\"style=\"max-width: 100%;\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blog.utc.edu\/app\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2025\/12\/Screenshot-2025-12-13-at-12.36.03-PM.png?w=1032&amp;ssl=1 1032w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blog.utc.edu\/app\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2025\/12\/Screenshot-2025-12-13-at-12.36.03-PM.png?resize=1024%2C611&amp;ssl=1 1024w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blog.utc.edu\/app\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2025\/12\/Screenshot-2025-12-13-at-12.36.03-PM.png?resize=768%2C458&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blog.utc.edu\/app\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2025\/12\/Screenshot-2025-12-13-at-12.36.03-PM.png?resize=800%2C478&amp;ssl=1 800w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blog.utc.edu\/app\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2025\/12\/Screenshot-2025-12-13-at-12.36.03-PM.png?resize=580%2C346&amp;ssl=1 580w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blog.utc.edu\/app\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2025\/12\/Screenshot-2025-12-13-at-12.36.03-PM.png?resize=610%2C364&amp;ssl=1 610w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 880px) 100vw, 880px\" \/><p class=\"wp-caption-text\">Shari Warren poses with her family at the Dec. 13 undergraduate commencement ceremony.<\/p><\/div>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<h4>Learn more<\/h4>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/blog.utc.edu\/news\/tag\/commencement-2025\/\">Commencement 2025<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.utc.edu\/enrollment-management-and-student-affairs\/admissions\/visit\">Visit UTC<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.utc.edu\/apply\">How to apply<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Recovering from heart surgery while working full time and keeping up with her grandkids\u2019 sporting events, Thanksgiving and holiday shopping has made the end of Shari Warren\u2019s year hectic.\u00a0 On top of it all, she has been taking her final exams and preparing for Saturday, Dec. 13, the day she graduates from the University of&hellip; <\/p>\n<p class=\"more-link-wrap\"><span><a class=\"more-link button text\" href=\"https:\/\/blog.utc.edu\/news\/2025\/12\/promises-kept-graduation-means-shari-warren-can-say-i-did-it\/\"><span>Continue Reading <\/span><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2000,"featured_media":73059,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_slider":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_featurette":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[64,70,15,122493,57,8244,99051,661,124930],"tags":[125515,123827,123828,124776,123829,126441,12731,998],"class_list":{"0":"post-73049","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-academics","8":"category-campus","9":"category-education","10":"category-college-of-business","11":"category-honors-and-awards","12":"category-news","13":"category-online-learning","14":"category-students","15":"category-transfer-students","16":"tag-commencement-2025","17":"tag-creating-the-mocs-experience","18":"tag-leveraging-our-special-place-as-chattanoogas-university","19":"tag-mocs-learn-mocs-do-mocs-lead","20":"tag-operating-with-excellence","21":"tag-shari-warren","22":"tag-tennessee-valley-authority","23":"tag-tva","24":"entry"},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.7 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Promises kept: Graduation means Shari Warren can say \u2018I did it\u2019\u00a0 | UTC News<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Recovering from heart surgery while working full time and keeping up with her grandkids\u2019 sporting events, Thanksgiving and holiday shopping has made the\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/blog.utc.edu\/news\/2025\/12\/promises-kept-graduation-means-shari-warren-can-say-i-did-it\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Promises kept: Graduation means Shari Warren can say \u2018I did it\u2019\u00a0 | UTC News\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Recovering from heart surgery while working full time and keeping up with her grandkids\u2019 sporting events, Thanksgiving and holiday shopping has made the\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/blog.utc.edu\/news\/2025\/12\/promises-kept-graduation-means-shari-warren-can-say-i-did-it\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"UTC News\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/UTChattanooga\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-12-07T14:34:19+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-12-17T13:39:24+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/blog.utc.edu\/app\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2025\/12\/Shari-Warren-25-50-2.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"600\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"420\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Peyton Schultz\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@UTChattanooga\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@UTChattanooga\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Peyton Schultz\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blog.utc.edu\\\/news\\\/2025\\\/12\\\/promises-kept-graduation-means-shari-warren-can-say-i-did-it\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blog.utc.edu\\\/news\\\/2025\\\/12\\\/promises-kept-graduation-means-shari-warren-can-say-i-did-it\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Peyton Schultz\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blog.utc.edu\\\/news\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/ca60ab887fd5cad0ce4234a6c82b21af\"},\"headline\":\"Promises kept: Graduation means Shari Warren can say \u2018I did it\u2019\u00a0\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-12-07T14:34:19+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-12-17T13:39:24+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blog.utc.edu\\\/news\\\/2025\\\/12\\\/promises-kept-graduation-means-shari-warren-can-say-i-did-it\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":786,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blog.utc.edu\\\/news\\\/2025\\\/12\\\/promises-kept-graduation-means-shari-warren-can-say-i-did-it\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/i0.wp.com\\\/blog.utc.edu\\\/app\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/9\\\/2025\\\/12\\\/Shari-Warren-25-50-2.jpg?fit=600%2C420&ssl=1\",\"keywords\":[\"Commencement 2025\",\"Creating the Mocs Experience\",\"Leveraging Our Special Place as Chattanooga\u2019s University\",\"Mocs Learn Mocs Do Mocs Lead\",\"Operating with Excellence\",\"Shari Warren\",\"Tennessee Valley Authority\",\"TVA\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Academics\",\"Campus\",\"education\",\"Gary W. Rollins College of Business\",\"Honors and Awards\",\"News\",\"Online Learning\",\"Students\",\"Transfer Students\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blog.utc.edu\\\/news\\\/2025\\\/12\\\/promises-kept-graduation-means-shari-warren-can-say-i-did-it\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blog.utc.edu\\\/news\\\/2025\\\/12\\\/promises-kept-graduation-means-shari-warren-can-say-i-did-it\\\/\",\"name\":\"Promises kept: Graduation means Shari Warren can say \u2018I did it\u2019\u00a0 | UTC News\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blog.utc.edu\\\/news\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blog.utc.edu\\\/news\\\/2025\\\/12\\\/promises-kept-graduation-means-shari-warren-can-say-i-did-it\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blog.utc.edu\\\/news\\\/2025\\\/12\\\/promises-kept-graduation-means-shari-warren-can-say-i-did-it\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/i0.wp.com\\\/blog.utc.edu\\\/app\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/9\\\/2025\\\/12\\\/Shari-Warren-25-50-2.jpg?fit=600%2C420&ssl=1\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-12-07T14:34:19+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-12-17T13:39:24+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blog.utc.edu\\\/news\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/ca60ab887fd5cad0ce4234a6c82b21af\"},\"description\":\"Recovering from heart surgery while working full time and keeping up with her grandkids\u2019 sporting events, Thanksgiving and holiday shopping has made the\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blog.utc.edu\\\/news\\\/2025\\\/12\\\/promises-kept-graduation-means-shari-warren-can-say-i-did-it\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/blog.utc.edu\\\/news\\\/2025\\\/12\\\/promises-kept-graduation-means-shari-warren-can-say-i-did-it\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blog.utc.edu\\\/news\\\/2025\\\/12\\\/promises-kept-graduation-means-shari-warren-can-say-i-did-it\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/i0.wp.com\\\/blog.utc.edu\\\/app\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/9\\\/2025\\\/12\\\/Shari-Warren-25-50-2.jpg?fit=600%2C420&ssl=1\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/i0.wp.com\\\/blog.utc.edu\\\/app\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/9\\\/2025\\\/12\\\/Shari-Warren-25-50-2.jpg?fit=600%2C420&ssl=1\",\"width\":600,\"height\":420,\"caption\":\"Shari Warren, Thursday, Dec. 4, 2025\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blog.utc.edu\\\/news\\\/2025\\\/12\\\/promises-kept-graduation-means-shari-warren-can-say-i-did-it\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blog.utc.edu\\\/news\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Promises kept: Graduation means Shari Warren can say \u2018I did it\u2019\u00a0\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blog.utc.edu\\\/news\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blog.utc.edu\\\/news\\\/\",\"name\":\"UTC News\",\"description\":\"Official news releases of the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blog.utc.edu\\\/news\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blog.utc.edu\\\/news\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/ca60ab887fd5cad0ce4234a6c82b21af\",\"name\":\"Peyton Schultz\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/9782a322d76538faee70994895b5b4dab6b3b572e6af9d53fa80a7b989977821?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/9782a322d76538faee70994895b5b4dab6b3b572e6af9d53fa80a7b989977821?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/9782a322d76538faee70994895b5b4dab6b3b572e6af9d53fa80a7b989977821?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Peyton Schultz\"},\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blog.utc.edu\\\/news\\\/author\\\/zbz585\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Promises kept: Graduation means Shari Warren can say \u2018I did it\u2019\u00a0 | UTC News","description":"Recovering from heart surgery while working full time and keeping up with her grandkids\u2019 sporting events, Thanksgiving and holiday shopping has made the","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/blog.utc.edu\/news\/2025\/12\/promises-kept-graduation-means-shari-warren-can-say-i-did-it\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Promises kept: Graduation means Shari Warren can say \u2018I did it\u2019\u00a0 | UTC News","og_description":"Recovering from heart surgery while working full time and keeping up with her grandkids\u2019 sporting events, Thanksgiving and holiday shopping has made the","og_url":"https:\/\/blog.utc.edu\/news\/2025\/12\/promises-kept-graduation-means-shari-warren-can-say-i-did-it\/","og_site_name":"UTC News","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/UTChattanooga","article_published_time":"2025-12-07T14:34:19+00:00","article_modified_time":"2025-12-17T13:39:24+00:00","og_image":[{"width":600,"height":420,"url":"https:\/\/blog.utc.edu\/app\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2025\/12\/Shari-Warren-25-50-2.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Peyton Schultz","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@UTChattanooga","twitter_site":"@UTChattanooga","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Peyton Schultz","Est. reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/blog.utc.edu\/news\/2025\/12\/promises-kept-graduation-means-shari-warren-can-say-i-did-it\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/blog.utc.edu\/news\/2025\/12\/promises-kept-graduation-means-shari-warren-can-say-i-did-it\/"},"author":{"name":"Peyton Schultz","@id":"https:\/\/blog.utc.edu\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/ca60ab887fd5cad0ce4234a6c82b21af"},"headline":"Promises kept: Graduation means Shari Warren can say \u2018I did it\u2019\u00a0","datePublished":"2025-12-07T14:34:19+00:00","dateModified":"2025-12-17T13:39:24+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/blog.utc.edu\/news\/2025\/12\/promises-kept-graduation-means-shari-warren-can-say-i-did-it\/"},"wordCount":786,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/blog.utc.edu\/news\/2025\/12\/promises-kept-graduation-means-shari-warren-can-say-i-did-it\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blog.utc.edu\/app\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2025\/12\/Shari-Warren-25-50-2.jpg?fit=600%2C420&ssl=1","keywords":["Commencement 2025","Creating the Mocs Experience","Leveraging Our Special Place as Chattanooga\u2019s University","Mocs Learn Mocs Do Mocs Lead","Operating with Excellence","Shari Warren","Tennessee Valley Authority","TVA"],"articleSection":["Academics","Campus","education","Gary W. Rollins College of Business","Honors and Awards","News","Online Learning","Students","Transfer Students"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/blog.utc.edu\/news\/2025\/12\/promises-kept-graduation-means-shari-warren-can-say-i-did-it\/","url":"https:\/\/blog.utc.edu\/news\/2025\/12\/promises-kept-graduation-means-shari-warren-can-say-i-did-it\/","name":"Promises kept: Graduation means Shari Warren can say \u2018I did it\u2019\u00a0 | UTC News","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/blog.utc.edu\/news\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/blog.utc.edu\/news\/2025\/12\/promises-kept-graduation-means-shari-warren-can-say-i-did-it\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/blog.utc.edu\/news\/2025\/12\/promises-kept-graduation-means-shari-warren-can-say-i-did-it\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blog.utc.edu\/app\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2025\/12\/Shari-Warren-25-50-2.jpg?fit=600%2C420&ssl=1","datePublished":"2025-12-07T14:34:19+00:00","dateModified":"2025-12-17T13:39:24+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/blog.utc.edu\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/ca60ab887fd5cad0ce4234a6c82b21af"},"description":"Recovering from heart surgery while working full time and keeping up with her grandkids\u2019 sporting events, Thanksgiving and holiday shopping has made the","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/blog.utc.edu\/news\/2025\/12\/promises-kept-graduation-means-shari-warren-can-say-i-did-it\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/blog.utc.edu\/news\/2025\/12\/promises-kept-graduation-means-shari-warren-can-say-i-did-it\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/blog.utc.edu\/news\/2025\/12\/promises-kept-graduation-means-shari-warren-can-say-i-did-it\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blog.utc.edu\/app\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2025\/12\/Shari-Warren-25-50-2.jpg?fit=600%2C420&ssl=1","contentUrl":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blog.utc.edu\/app\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2025\/12\/Shari-Warren-25-50-2.jpg?fit=600%2C420&ssl=1","width":600,"height":420,"caption":"Shari Warren, Thursday, Dec. 4, 2025"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/blog.utc.edu\/news\/2025\/12\/promises-kept-graduation-means-shari-warren-can-say-i-did-it\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/blog.utc.edu\/news\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Promises kept: Graduation means Shari Warren can say \u2018I did it\u2019\u00a0"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/blog.utc.edu\/news\/#website","url":"https:\/\/blog.utc.edu\/news\/","name":"UTC News","description":"Official news releases of the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/blog.utc.edu\/news\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/blog.utc.edu\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/ca60ab887fd5cad0ce4234a6c82b21af","name":"Peyton Schultz","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9782a322d76538faee70994895b5b4dab6b3b572e6af9d53fa80a7b989977821?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9782a322d76538faee70994895b5b4dab6b3b572e6af9d53fa80a7b989977821?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9782a322d76538faee70994895b5b4dab6b3b572e6af9d53fa80a7b989977821?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Peyton Schultz"},"url":"https:\/\/blog.utc.edu\/news\/author\/zbz585\/"}]}},"featured_image_src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blog.utc.edu\/app\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2025\/12\/Shari-Warren-25-50-2.jpg?resize=600%2C400&ssl=1","featured_image_src_square":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blog.utc.edu\/app\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2025\/12\/Shari-Warren-25-50-2.jpg?resize=600%2C420&ssl=1","author_info":{"display_name":"Peyton Schultz","author_link":"https:\/\/blog.utc.edu\/news\/author\/zbz585\/"},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blog.utc.edu\/app\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2025\/12\/Shari-Warren-25-50-2.jpg?fit=600%2C420&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.utc.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/73049","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.utc.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.utc.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.utc.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2000"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.utc.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=73049"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/blog.utc.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/73049\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":73227,"href":"https:\/\/blog.utc.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/73049\/revisions\/73227"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.utc.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/73059"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.utc.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=73049"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.utc.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=73049"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.utc.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=73049"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}