León, (EFE).- An octogenarian from León has graduated in Art History from the University of León.
His name is Lucio Ángel Santamarta and he was born in Villamoral de las Matas 81 years ago.
This man from Leon was widowed in 2014 and then decided that “something had to be done.” He chose that career, since he has always been a great fan of art.
The recently graduated octogenarian from Leon says in an interview with Agencia EFE that “it has been a very pleasant and enriching experience.”
The 80-year-old graduate studied engineering in his youth
This is not the first university experience for this man from León, since a little less than sixty years ago he graduated in what was then called Public Works Engineering.
And as an engineer, he worked for more than 40 years, first in a national company and in his last stage in a consultancy that he started with a partner.
A 10-year affair, after the death of his wife
The death of his wife almost ten years ago was the moment when he decided to embark on this new academic adventure.
And this year he has achieved the degree after attending class regularly, except in two stages, one due to health problems and the other to be closer to his mother in the last months of her life until her death at the age of 104 in 2019.
Finally, on March 3, the octogenarian defended his Final Degree Project (TFG) at the Faculty of Philosophy and Letters of the ULe, something that he did encouraged by his teachers and his family, since he specifies that more than a degree What I was looking for was knowledge.
‘Renaissance architecture in the Cathedral of León’ is the title of his TFG, in which he analyzes the entire process of transformation undertaken in the 16th century in this temple, the first national monument declared in Spain by Royal Order of August 28 from 1844.
“I did not plan to defend a TFG, because I went to the University to acquire knowledge and culture and I was not obsessed with the title, but between the teachers and the family they forced me a bit to complete the cycle,” he adds.
The recent graduate: example and reference
With this work, as explained by his teacher and TFG tutor, Joaquín García Nistal, “he has not only shown to develop the skills of the degree, but has also become an example of improvement”.
And “a benchmark for his generation and other younger ones with whom he has shared his enthusiasm for art in recent years.”
His passion for the emblematic cathedral of Leon makes him direct his raisins towards it every day when he goes for a walk through the city.
“I liked art as a spectator, but I wanted to know more and I decided then that the best decision was to pursue that degree and the truth is that it has been very satisfactory”, explains this recent graduate.
It also weighed in his decision that he wanted to do something “totally different” from what his professional life as an engineer had been and “make a 180 degree turn.”
“This second step at the University has been extremely enriching, where I have also met other retirees,” he reflects.
Also “for the good environment I have found and the people he has met, both among the younger classmates and teachers”.
What has cost you the most: new learning technologies
He points out that perhaps what has cost him the most has been adapting to new technologies as a basis for learning.
It is one of the main changes that he has perceived between his two university stages.
“Of course, computing is not my forte and it has cost me,” this veteran student has settled.
At the moment, he advances that he considers his academic life closed, although he assures that what he is not going to do is “stand hand in hand.”
You will have to dedicate yourself to something “but not as large as a university degree”, he concludes.