The importance of attaining a college degree is a constant theme in Stephen and Colleen Specht’s Abington, Pennsylvania, household.

The husband and wife want their children, James, 18; Stephen, 11; and Gianna, 7; and their nephew, Brian, 17, to pursue higher education. Modeling the way, Stephen and Colleen will earn their bachelor’s degrees from Temple—he in criminal justice and she in biology—on May 8, with their children watching.

“I don’t feel like anything I’m doing is special. I just do it,” Colleen said. “And that’s what it takes. If I sat there and thought about it, I’d never do it. Plenty of parents are going back to school now. I don’t think anything that he and I are doing is extraordinary.”

But it is. For the Spechts, Commencement isn’t just the culmination of a years-long journey of switching careers and balancing the demands of family life with school. It’s a step toward more education.

This fall, Stephen will attend Drexel University’s Thomas R. Kline School of Law on a full scholarship. A Temple Honors student, he is one of only 12 undergraduates universitywide on pace to graduate with a cumulative 4.0 grade-point average. Colleen plans to apply to local physician-assistant programs.

Stephen and Colleen both transferred to Temple from community college. He went to Montgomery County Community College, and she attended Community College of Philadelphia. Before that, the Northeast Philadelphia natives served together as paramedics in the Philadelphia Fire Department. Stephen also worked for the federal government before going back to school.

During their time at Temple, the couple have provided special care for their son Stephen, who has immune deficiencies and has endured repeated hospital visits and regular transfusions for his lifelong conditions. Because of the challenges his son has faced, Stephen wants to pursue education law.

“I’ve become a strong advocate for kids with special needs,” said Stephen, who co-chairs the Abington School District’s Special Education Parents Advisory Council. “It’s a natural progression that if I want to advocate for kids in the education realm, I should become an education attorney.”

Joanne Metzger, an assistant professor of criminal justice who has taught and mentored Stephen, said he is a “front-row type of student” who is focused, bright and balanced.

“He’s blessed with natural intelligence, maturity and a work ethic like I’ve never, ever seen,” she said.

Even with a major milestone approaching, the Spechts don’t appear to be the types who dwell for too long on their successes. They’re too busy working toward their next goals.

“We just work as a team. I’m a morning person; he’s a night person. It just works out,” Colleen said. “We don’t really think about it too much. We just do it.”