Woman, 95, to Be Oldest College Graduate

Nola Ochs drives through the Fort Hays State University campus after classes Monday, April 23, 2007 in Hays, Kan. At age 95, Ochs will become the world's oldest college graduate when she graduates May 12. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel) (Charlie Riedel - AP)

At 5-foot-2, her white hair pulled into a bun, she walks purposely down hallways to classes with her books in a cloth tote bag. Students nod and smile; she's described as witty, charming and down to earth.

"Everybody has accepted me, and I feel just like another student," she said. "The students respect me."

Coming out of a classroom, Skyla Foster, a junior majoring in history, sees Ochs and calls out to her. To everyone on campus, she's "Nola," not Mrs. Ochs _ and that's the way she wants it.

"She is pretty neat, a very interesting person and very knowledgeable," Foster said.

Todd Leahy, history department chairman, wondered at first if Ochs could keep up with the other students. After her second week, all doubts were gone, as he discovered she could provide tidbits of history.

Leahy, who had Ochs in four classes, wants to record oral histories with her after she graduates.

"I can tell them about it, but to have Nola in class adds a dynamic that can't be topped," Leahy said. "It's a firsthand perspective you seldom get."

For instance, Ochs offered recollections of the 1930s Midwest dust bowl, when skies were so dark that lamps were lit during the day and wet sheets were placed over windows to keep out dust that sounded like pelting sleet hitting the house.

During a discussion about World War II, Ochs told how she and her husband, along with other wheat farmers in the area, grew soybeans on some of their acres for the war effort.

"I would have never talked about that in class, but she brought it up and we talked about it," Leahy said. "She often adds color to the face of history."

Ochs hasn't complained about the work, nor has she asked for special considerations.

In her one-bedroom apartment, books are open and papers and notes are within easy reach when she sits down at her computer to research and write.