"I've got seven kids, 42 grandkids, and 19 great-grandkids."
That's how Clara Gene Chase-Pace proudly introduces herself — followed by a nod and an "mhmmm," she’ll look up with a smirk that says she's got stories to tell.
With an infectious southern charm — and an insistence that she doesn’t have an accent, just “talks fast” — Clara Gene will go on to recount stories from her childhood in Mississippi, where she was the second oldest of 12 children and dropped out of school in 11th grade, in part to help raise her younger siblings.
In her early twenties, Clara Gene left Mississippi for Iowa through a Job Corps opportunity. She built a life here, raising her children and working in restaurants and nursing homes, always taking care of others before herself.
Eventually, the matriarch at the heart and helm of her large military family decided it was never too late to finish what she started.
At 77 years old, Clara Gene is determined to earn her high school diploma.
“Because I’m not a quitter,” she says. “My grandpa told me, ‘If you want something, you’ve got to go for it. Nobody’s gonna hand it to you.’ And that’s how I live.”
Most mornings of the week, Clara Gene rides a DART bus to DMACC's Urban Campus — often arriving at least 30 minutes early for her 8 a.m. class. She’ll chat with the security staff on site, help her teacher set up the classroom, and say “good morning” to everyone who passes by.
It’s been Clara Gene’s routine for more than a decade – ever since her daughter, who graduated from DMACC’s Business Administration program in 2010, said “Mommy, I want you to go back to school and get your high school diploma. Do it for you.”
“People will still ask me, ‘Why are you doing this?’ and I tell them because it’s for me. It’s not for anybody else,” Clara Gene said.
When she began attending the Adult Education Program at Urban Campus in 2014, Clara Gene was 11 credits shy of her high school diploma. She started on the HiSET (High School Equivalency Test) route, which requires students to pass five tests: Math, Science, Social Studies, Reading and Writing. Her teachers over the years have said she was more than capable of passing those tests, based on her competency in the coursework, but not everyone thrives in a test-taking environment.
Earlier this year, Clara Gene switched to a different option: credit recovery, i.e. finishing incomplete coursework and tests from high school.
She’s now just six credits from graduation.
“We have students that earn their diploma in a matter of weeks, and for some, it takes years,” said Bethany Flanders, a Career Coach in DMACC's Adult Basic Education program. “It is all dependent on the individual and their learning needs. We are a space for all students to learn.”
This past year, the program celebrated 90 HiSET graduates.
Clara Gene is a uniquely loyal and persistent student, Flanders said, a fixture in the HiSET classroom and a source of joy among the community.
“She genuinely cares about the students, staff, and teachers,” Flanders added. “She considers the teachers and staff her family and remembers details about their lives only a family member would.”
For Clara Gene, that's because everyone in Building 5 at Urban Campus is like kin.
They were there for her as she was diagnosed with colon cancer seven years ago. And in 2018, when her son suddenly died, staff and peers reached out to Clara Gene, checking in on her and bringing food to her home.
“If it wasn’t for DMACC, I would have given up a long time ago," Clara Gene said. “They’re family to me. They’ll always be family.”
Flanders said Clara Gene is the kind of student who knows how to put a smile on someone's
face with her contagious sense of humor and energy, Flanders said.
"I’m just a little girl that enjoys life, even though I’m old, because life’s too short," Clara Gene said.
Beyond campus, Clara Gene volunteers at the Des Moines Public Library in her neighborhood, assisting homeless community members.
And at home with family, Clara Gene reminds her grandkids who are finishing high school, “If I can do it, you can do it.”
“I’m just blessed to be alive every day,” she says. “I’m gonna keep on trucking. And when I walk across that stage, I’m gonna do it for me — and for everybody who helped me get here.”
Bear Trails highlights unique journeys of DMACC students, alumni, faculty, and staff, celebrating their diverse experiences and inspiring paths. Have a story idea? Contact Savannah Eadens, Public Relations & Communications Specialist, at sjeadens@dmacc.edu or 515-675-3275.