LAKELAND, Fla. — Keiser University's Lakeland campus celebrated the class of 2023 at graduation Friday evening. This year's valedictorian was College of Nursing student Ashley Payne.

What You Need To Know

  • College of Nursing student Ashley Payne is valedictorian of the class of 2023 for Keiser University's Lakeland campus.

  • Payne's winding road to her Bachelor's degree began nearly 20 years ago and included ups and downs like a medical scare, the death of her mother, and the birth of two of her children.

  • She credits her success to support from her family, including an encouraging Post-It message her oldest daughter wrote at the beginning of her freshman year.

  • Payne next plans to pursue her Master's degree with the ultimate goal of becoming a midwife and opening a birthing center.

"I got the phone call, and I was overwhelmed and kind of just in shock. I knew that I kind of had the grades for it, but I never anticipated actually getting that phone call," said Payne, 35. "I was like, 'I don't know if you realize, but most of the time, you don't have seven kids and stuff. This isn't an achievement that's often given to somebody with that.'"

Payne's journey that ended in crossing the stage at the Youkey Theater to accept her diploma began nearly 20 years ago. She graduated from Families of Faith Christian Academy High School in 2006, where she was also valedictorian. Payne said she began college in Fort Myers that fall to study criminal forensics, but her path changed when she suffered a pulmonary embolism.

"The care plan that followed it made it so difficult to stay in Fort Myers, and the doctors were not sure why it happened. They were encouraging me, basically, to kind of stop doing that and pursue the family, the life that you want, because we're not really sure how long you've got. We don't know what caused it. So, that's what I did, and I guess I went very headstrong into that," Payne said.

She married her husband, Joseph Payne, and the two started their family. Payne joined her husband in managing their party planning business, and she was also a doula and birth assistant before enrolling at Keiser to pursue her nursing degree.

Lorelai Payne displays a note she wrote for her mother when she began classes at Keiser University.

"I wanted to be a midwife for so very long, and the milestones and stepping stones to get to that is you have to become a registered nurse, and you've got to get your Bachelor's, and then go to a Master's program for midwifery, and that's my next step," Payne said.

Shortly after starting her freshman year in 2019, Payne's mother, JoJo Ziegele-Hickam, passed away.

"Oh, she was my cheerleader," Payne said. "She was the first one to tell everybody, my achievements, to complete strangers."

Payne said there were some days that getting up in the morning to go to class was tough. One day, she went into her bathroom to get ready and found a Post-It note stuck to the mirror. It was put there by the Paynes' then nine-year-old daughter, Lorelai.

"I knew that she was really sad, and I knew that she was going to school, so I was like, 'Hey - I'm gonna do something to cheer her up," said Lorelai, now 13.

Lorelai grabbed the Post-It and wrote a note to her mom: "Winners never quit. Quitters never win!!! Aim for the moon. If you miss you may hit a star."

"For a little while there, I was taking it with me," said Payne. "It was in my binder, and then after, I kind of got to the point where I'm like, 'Oh, my gosh, this note's going to get damaged.'"

The Post-It went into a shadow box for safe keeping, but its message stayed with Payne.

"Whenever I don't hear their voice, I see the words, you know? It's right there pushing me forward, and I love them so much," Payne said.

She said so did support from her husband and all of their children.

"Even on times when I was just completely exhausted and going, 'Why am I doing this? Oh, my gosh, you know, why am I working so hard?' They'd be the first ones to remind me and the first ones to push me out the door and make my lunch boxes," Payne said. 

Payne tackled school work while caring for her growing family.

"I have had two babies during my time in the program," she said. "So, that was, you know, being nine, ten months pregnant, doing clinicals and then giving birth and having your final the next day and just kind of keep going."

Lorelai said she wasn't surprised by the news that her mom was valedictorian.

"Before she got the call, I was like, 'She's gonna get valedictorian.' And when she got the call, I was like, 'Knew it,'" she said.

Payne spoke about the importance of her family's support, as well as her faith, in her graduation speech. Next up, she plans to work toward her Master's degree in Nurse-Midwifery from Bethel University in St. Paul, MN. She said she'll be able to do some work remotely and fulfill in-person requirements in Florida. Payne said she hopes her story inspires others.

"There is so much room for opportunity and growth, and there's nothing that can stop you," Payne said. "If you put your mind to it, it doesn't matter what walls you perceive, you could knock them down."

Payne said she has two weeks off before her next round of classes begins.