When desire takes up residence in the human heart and mind, it initiates a journey of a thousand actions. But desire has no backbone without perseverance. Without it, every challenge, delay and failure can pull the plug on desire. For determined Wimberley grad Mollie Willoughby, learning last week that she’d gained entry into Texas A&M University’s Aggie ACHIEVE Program was an especially proud moment for her and her family.
It was her third try. Learning that she’d missed admission to the program in last year’s round of interviews, the 21-year-old admitted, “the disappointment of not getting in that second time was pretty disappointing.”
The four-year, residential college program at A&M for young adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities considers 50 applicants but admits up to 10 students each year.
While a disappointing experience, Mollie was not deterred. In the family’s kitchen hangs a photograph of a second-grade Mollie with the declaration, “When I grow up I want to be a teacher.” Next to it, in grade-school penmanship, is a school exercise that reads, “Mollie’s word is “perseverance.”
Born in Corpus Christi, Mollie moved to Wimberley when she began kindergarten, with her mother Wendi Willoughby Norton, who is the Social Emotional Learning teacher at Blue Hole Primary school, and her older brother, Jack. Now married, Jack lives in Colorado with his wife Delaney. Despite the distance, both siblings remain very close. According to Mollie and mom Wendi, Jack cried tears of joy when he heard the news.
Wendi credits the Wimberley community for helping shape her children. “It was the best decision I ever made, moving here as a single mama,” she said. “I wanted both of them to grow up in a small town, so Mollie could be Mollie, not just another person with disabilities.”
When asked if she made friends while growing up in Wimberley, Mollie answered a polite, “Yes, ma'am.” On her 15th birthday party, which fell during the COVID-19 years, Mollie celebrated with a drive-by birthday party. According to Wendi, “The whole town showed up, cars were lined up along the street, honking and waving at her. I mean, everybody showed up from this incredible town.”
The Aggie ACHIEVE program was launched in 2019. Wendi’s father read about it in a Texas Aggie magazine. “It was just getting started and he said ‘this looks like something Mollie needs to do,’” she said. “They were very, very close and he believed in her. Although he passed about four years ago, he was firmly committed to her. ‘This girl’s gonna do this,’ he said, so that became our goal.”
In the ACHIEVE program, students take one A&M class and one PE class per semester along with seminars, a changing internship, Aggie Achieve life skills courses, and must live off campus. Each graduates with a certification in interdisciplinary studies.
Since Mollie wants to be a pre-K special education teacher, counselors will help her focus on those studies. At graduation, ACHIEVEers are expected to be 100 percent independent, ready for the job world and able to live independently.
When asked what made Mollie a good candidate for the program, Wendi said, “She is responsible and independent. She does her own laundry, can cook, washes dishes, cleans and is very organized. Evaluators called her skills ‘phenomenal.’ She had to work on lengthening her focus in a class environment. To do that, she took an ACC online class, two days a week for two and a half hours a day.”
To build reading skills, the family engaged retired first-grade teacher, Beverly Clark, a well-regarded reading teacher, to tutor Mollie twice a week for a year. Mollie’s reading level improved greatly.
Classes for Mollie begin August 24. When it’s time to move her to her apartment in College Station, Jack will come from Colorado to help. Mollie wants to play basketball, she says, and is excited about attending A&M sporting events.
When asked if she’s nervous about seeing her daughter off to college, Wendi said, “This has been a dream for the whole family because we knew she could do it and do it well. She already has an Aggie family there in the program director and the program manager who are like the mom and the dad of the group.”
“She’s beginning the best four years of her life,” she continued, “and the growth for her will be amazing. Plus, the first three football games are home games, so we'll be seeing her often, if she’s not too busy!”
“I’m a little nervous about missing my mom,” said Mollie when she was asked the same question. But the young lady looked confident in her maroon dress and matching necklace with its A&M charm.
Step-dad Bubba Norton ended the conversation about Mollie’s upcoming college experience by saying, “I grew up on the A & M campus while my Daddy went there in the late ‘60s. I have loved A & M my entire life. My wife Wendi is an Aggie. Generations of her family are Aggies. Now Mollie gets to proudly carry on as a fourth generation Aggie. But this isn’t just about continuing a family tradition, it’s about watching a young woman with Down's Syndrome accomplish something extraordinary and seeing a University live out its values like creating a place where students like Mollie can thrive. A&M has always been known for tradition, service and character. Aggie ACHIEVE proves those values by extending them to students who are often underestimated, just like A&M’s football team. Mollie isn’t just following in our family’s footsteps, she’s blazing her own trail and we’re incredibly proud to watch her do it.”
