At 60, unquenched learning thirst.

Raja Mishra Pearline James sought help attending college once upon a time, only to hear from her father: "Pearline is a girl-child and girls will grow up just to have babies. She will live on a hill and remain barefooted and pregnant."That quote from her father appears in an essay James wrote recently. For a class. At a college. From which James will graduate tomorrow. At age 60.In this graduation season of high-wattage commencement speakers and career-bound young achievers, James is a different scholar. She's the great-grandmother of one and a grandmother of 10 who runs a child-care center in her Mattapan home. James last regularly attended school four decades ago, and as she charged through her college courses, she discovered something new about herself."For some reason, I have this thirst for knowledge," James said. "The more I learn, the more I want to learn."Tomorrow, she will receive an associate's degree in early school education from Urban College of Boston. Next, James said, with a twinkle in her eye, she will go for a bachelor's degree at Cambridge College.James's story is not unusual among the nearly 180 graduates expected to cross the Hyatt Regency Boston ballroom tomorrow at Urban College's graduation. More than 90 percent of the school's students are female, over 60 percent have children, and most work full time.The school, located off the Common, was founded in 1993 to "provide access to a college education to people in the area who are traditionally underserved," said its president, Linda Edmonds Turner."Most of these students are first-generation college in their families," Turner said. "Many people had told them: It's not for you."James, who grew up in rural Jamaica, said she excelled in grade school because her grandparents taught her: "I must leave each class with an A."But her educational climb stopped when her father sternly refused to let her take college entrance exams when she finished high school.After that, she said, "I never thought about going to college in Jamaica."James married, immigrated to Boston, and had four children. Then, for three decades, she worked a succession of jobs in food service at hospitals until 1979, when she decided to open a child-care center at her Mattapan home, a business she maintains to this day.But in 1989, tragedy interrupted life. Her only son, Conrad James, 24, was shot to death."He had a quarrel with another kid about 100 feet from here," she said during an interview at her Mattapan home. "I was so sad."She turned to food for solace, a choice that years later would threaten her academic career.In 1999, James found out that she would have to take child development courses every few years to earn child-care accreditation, under state regulations."Or I could go to college," said James. Under state regulations, a degree in early child education eliminates the need to repeatedly gain accreditation.She began attending Urban College in 2004, finding college work daunting at first."Psychology was challenging. The teacher was not an easy teacherC*The first paper I did, I got a C-plus," said James. "I was mad."After one year, health problems stemming from her weight gain--arthritis and back problems--began bothering her. School on top of work became a nearly unbearable chore."I thought, 'I'm too old for this'!" she said. "I figured I had a year, and that was enough."But Urban College gave her a scholarship through a program funded by a private gift, which lifted her spirits."If someone believes in me, then why not," said James, explaining that the scholarship gave her motivation to work through her health and personal problems.She still does not know who recommended her for the scholarship, but James sees divine providence at work. After her son died, she established a scholarship in his name at Hyde Park High School, his alma mater, holding fund-raisers every year to finance it. Then, at a time when problems that originated with her son's death were hampering her, she was being given a scholarship."You reap what you sow, my grandmother always said," James said.Grace Caines, chairwoman of the early childhood department and James's academic adviser, said the transformation in James was dramatic."She said she was not sure if she could do this at her age," Caines said. "But then she started feeling more confident, and she bloomed."James had a 3.8 grade point average and took courses in history, anatomy, and psychology, ranging far beyond childcare. Learning, she found, was second nature. Not only has she put to work practical lessons on childcare, but she said broader knowledge about psychology, sociology, and history has helped her work with parents and deepened her understanding of the world.She paused when asked what will go through her mind as she receives her diploma--with high honors--as her husband, three daughters, who range from age 34 to 43, and several close friends look on."Knowing me, I'll be crying. It's been a landmark, a life dream," James said. "I've always wanted to say: I am a college graduate."The Boston GlobeCaption: Pearline James was surrounded recently at a family gathering by (from left) Cherina Clark, Jasmine Worsley, and B.J. Clark, three of her 10 grandchildren. (Photo by Justine Hunt/ Globe Staff)At 60, unquenched learning thirst

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