Family of six adopted kids celebrates Penn State graduation

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. (WTAJ) — A State College family with a special connection to Penn State is celebrating, not one, but two graduates, and reflecting on the challenges they’ve overcome since first arriving in the U.S.

Susan Strauss is the mother of six children adopted from Ethiopia: Tenaye who is 25, Addie who is 23, Mihret, Bereket and Biniyam who are all 21 and, the youngest, Terefech who is 19. Their transition to America was not easy due to the different culture.

“They came with pretty much zero literacy,” Susan said.

However, they did not let that negatively impact their education. Tenaye graduated from Penn State in 2022 and Mihret and Addie will be graduating at this year’s spring graduation ceremony.

“I think they’ve done really a tremendous job of learning the material and performing at the very same level that their peers are performing at,” Susan said.

For her, seeing them graduate is a triumph, but also a reminder of how far her kids have come.

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“When you live with people, kids, especially growing up, you don’t see their growth quite as much because you are with them, you know, every day,” Susan said.

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