Bridget Benjamin was unemployed for the entire two years she attended the National Labor College (NLC) and wasn’t sure from day to day where the money was going to come from for tuition. Dennis Miller balanced a full-time job, a family of four and traveling across country for classes at NLC.

Despite these obstacles, Benjamin and Miller are now college graduates. Last weekend, they joined 53 other union members who received degrees during NLC’s 13th commencement.

AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka paid tribute to the graduates, saying:

Today, the labor movement confronts challenges everywhere we turn.

That’s why it’s important that we have graduates who understand the world that we live in and how to effectively respond to these challenges.

A member of Plumbers and Pipefitters (UA) Local 601, Benjamin received this  year’s President’s Award, which is given to a student who overcomes extraordinary challenges or makes a unique contribution above and beyond the expected commitment and effort.

Benjamin, 47, who is single, had to pay for her education herself, but she found help from Union Privilege, the consumer arm of the AFL-CIO. She won two consecutive Union Privilege scholarships, whichwent a long way towards  helping her attain a degree. She took out student loans and struggled. But today she is working in Verona, N.J., near Newark, in the field she studied: workplace safety.

Every union member, especially building trades members, should take the opportunity to earn a degree at NLC, Benjamin says. After spending five years in apprenticeship it is inspiring and important to be able to put that training towards a college degree without having to start over like a freshman, she says.

Miller, a member of Sheet Metal Workers (SMWIA) Local 104 in San Jose, Calif., spoke on behalf of the class of 2011 at the commencement. He says it took a lot of sacrifices for him and his family to earn his degree. At age 44, he is married with three children, ranging in age from 13 to 22.

Both Miller and Benjamin say the best part of their experience at the college was the camaraderie and  unity they felt with other union members.  Here’s how Miller put it:

Going to these classes…I truly felt that we were united [as one union movement].  I wish that flame would get reborn with union labor.  If it can be done in the classroom like that, why can’t it be done outside the classroom?

NLC also awarded honorary degrees to author Barbara Ehrenreich and Frances Fox Piven, a professor of sociology and political science at the City University of New York (CUNY).

It’s not too late to register for NLC’s fall online classes. Courses are taught online so you can schedule time for school when it’s convenient for you.  Whether you need one more class to get your degree or two years’ worth, now is the time to look into the National Labor College’s bachelor’s degree programs in Labor Studies, Business Administration, Construction Management and Emergency Readiness and Response at www.nlc.edu/new-students/degree.