Father and son, Duvinson and Benjamin Jeanty, graduated from William Paterson University in New Jersey on the same day, making history as the first members of their family to earn a university degree.

At 27, Benjamin proudly walked the stage with his 63-year-old father, who had started his academic journey over a decade earlier.

For Benjamin, a first-generation American, the moment was deeply emotional. He had always dreamed of becoming the first to graduate in his family, but sharing the stage with his father, he said, made it all the more special.

“I always had it in my mind to graduate college, but to graduate with my dad? It’s indescribable,” he shared.

Benjamin earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology, while his father received his degree in finance. Their story began years earlier when Duvinson, who migrated from Haiti to the United States in 1983, decided to pursue his education while Benjamin was still in high school.

He enrolled in classes while juggling full-time work as a bus driver and caring for his ailing mother.

“That was my junior year. It was a lot on the family… But he still saw the need to pursue an education for himself. And that marked me. So because of that, I started to develop a desire, a passion, to go,” Benjamin recalled.

Duvinson earned his associate’s degree from Passaic County Community College in 2016 before continuing toward his bachelor’s. Despite working long hours and rarely taking a day off, he remained committed to both his family and his academic goal.

“Growing up and seeing the way he took care of my grandmother and all of us — it was a lot. Sometimes he was stuck working in the city until two, three in the morning. He never took a day off and helped everyone he encountered,” Benjamin said.

Benjamin initially enrolled at Rutgers University but left after a year to pursue a career in the restaurant industry. However, the impact of his father’s persistence to return to school stayed with him.

Three years later, he returned to school, working part-time at a special needs school while completing his degree.

Though their relationship was not always perfect, Benjamin admitted there was once a rift that created distance between them, and they eventually reconciled. Benjamin transferred to William Paterson University to be closer to his dad and finish what he started.

“What better way to show him I appreciate him and love him than to graduate alongside him?” he said. “I thought I’d be the first to graduate. But graduating with my father means that much more.”

After graduation, Benjamin plans to study for a master’s degree in urban policy analysis. Duvinson, on the other hand, has launched Genevieve Investment Solutions, named in honor of his late mother.

Duvinson’s goal is to help families, especially first-time home buyers, build financial stability and achieve their version of the American dream.