A World War II veteran who was drafted before he finished his degree at Niagara University has been waiting more than 70 years to receive his diploma.
Louis John Pioli, 99, completed his first year of school at Niagara University in 1941. But Pioli was drafted a year after starting school and served as a glider trooper in the 13th Airborne Division in France.
He returned to the U.S. and to his wife after World War II but never completed his degree — until now.
“I’m doing great. Overwhelmed. I can’t get over it,” Pioli told WCAX-TV about receiving the degree.
After Piloi’s daughter Lou Ann contacted Niagara University and shared details about her father’s experience, the university decided to award him additional credits so he could complete his associates degree.
“I’m just so happy that he was able to experience this before he dies,” Lou Ann said.
“I heard him say, ‘You know, I’ve always regretted not being able to finish my degree.’ And three days later, we got the annual report from Niagara University in the mail. And I said, ‘It’s a sign,'” Lou Ann said.
According to Niagara University’s provost Dr. Timothy Ireland, senior administrators discussed the situation after receiving Lou Ann’s letter and decided to “award him 21 credits of life experience to get him to the 60 credits he needed to earn his associate’s degree.”
“His memories of Niagara 1941, 1942 — incredible. He remembers his professors’ names, he remembers the courses he took, he remembers the layout of the campus,” Ireland said.
Pioli, who lives in South Burlington, Vt., was unable to attend Niagara University’s commencement ceremony this month, and so his grandson Kevin Pioli-Hunt accepted the degree on his behalf. Ireland also made a trip to Saint Michael’s College in Burlington, Vt., near where Pioli lives to present him with the degree.
