Family keeps the YSU tradition

The family members now have a combined six degrees from YSU.
YOUNGSTOWN -- In their long careers as guidance counselors, Youngstown State University graduates William and Margaret Kinnick have helped thousands of students select the best college to attend after high school.
So, when it came time for their daughter, Adrienne, to choose a school, they took her on the typical tour of area colleges -- Mount Union, University of Akron, Kent State University, Westminster College and even Penn State.
"I'll never forget that at some point in one of these visits, she looked at me real serious and straight in the eye and said, 'Mom, YSU was good for you and Dad, so it should be good for me too, right?" Mrs. Kinnick remembers.
"I said, 'You're damn right.' And she enrolled at YSU."
On Sunday, Adrienne received a bachelor's degree in criminal justice during YSU's fall commencement.
Adrienne is now the third member of her family to receive two degrees from YSU. William received a bachelor's degree in education in 1968 and a master's degree in education in 1971. Margaret earned a bachelor's degree in education in 1968 and a master's degree in education in 1969. Adrienne received an associate degree in criminal justice in 2005 and now her bachelor's degree.
"YSU is home. It's like family. We think it's an extraordinary school," William said.
Feels close to YSU
YSU was Adrienne's home away from home when she was growing up. She regularly attended YSU football games and theater productions, as well as art classes at the Butler Institute of American Art.
"YSU was such a big part of my growing up; I just loved being here," said Adrienne, 23, who graduated from Hubbard High School in 2001. "I couldn't imagine going anywhere else."
William and Margaret Kinnick spent most of their careers as guidance counselors. William worked in Hubbard, Jackson-Milton and West Branch schools before settling at Girard High School as senior counselor. He retired 12 years ago. Margaret worked at Hubbard and Ursuline high schools before settling at West Branch. She retired last year, but returned this year for her 35th year of service at West Branch.
Adrienne plans to return to YSU to earn a third degree -- a master's degree in higher education counseling. She hopes to one day work on a college campus, counseling students on their careers.
"Who knows, maybe I'll even end up at YSU," she said.