Thomas Newman became a proud Cal Dad when his daughter enrolled at UC Berkeley as a transfer student to study history in 2022. Just a year later, Newman became a Cal Student, pursuing the same degree.
After 35 years working in restaurants and hotels across the U.S. and Europe, Newman knew it was time for a change. In the past, Newman went to a few junior colleges to pursue an education degree, but never completed college.
When he sat in one of his daughter’s history classes at Cal one day, he was inspired to continue college again. He was fascinated by UC Berkeley’s resources and professors that encouraged thought-provoking conversations.
Newman and his daughter’s shared college experience has strengthened their father-daughter bond. Last year, his daughter, Maria, graduated from Cal with a degree in history and now works in education.
Newman is the youngest of 10 children. Four of his siblings have graduated college, and he’s on track to become the fifth. He will be graduating with a degree in history next week, with plans to go to graduate school.
Newman spoke to Berkeley Social Sciences about his story and hopes for the future.
Please tell us more about your background and journey to UC Berkeley.
Thomas Newman: I did a lot of moving around. I did a General Educational Development (GED) test in lieu of a high school diploma, and then I went to a couple different junior colleges. I have worked in food service since the 80s. Working in food service gave me the skillset that has allowed me to work in the Bay Area, Oslo, Rome, Holland, Porto, New York, the list goes on, to punch out without complications when the need arose.
The money in food service wasn’t great; I never broke six figures the way some of the lifers I worked with in San Francisco claimed. But I was able to be a dad. I could work for six months here and take a chunk of time off to do something else. I could spend time at home when my bio scientist wife was spending 70 hours per week at the lab. I could go shopping and cook dinner with my daughter.
So, there is a little irony, or perhaps harmony, in the fact that my investment in what is considered a career in “unskilled” work enabled me to be a responsive and present father. The first 15 years of my daughter’s life were spent living in three different countries, so having one of us able to provide some social continuity for our family felt like an important consideration.
During Maria’s first year at UC Berkeley, she asked me to come to some classes with her. I was sort of phasing out of my job at that time, so I started to have more time on my hands. When I went to audit a couple classes with her, I was taken by the experience of being here. I felt like I wanted to come here myself. She was accepted as a history major, and I started being fascinated with the classes that she was in and the conversations we were having. I decided to apply at UC Berkeley as a history major too — and then I got accepted. So I was basically a year after her, starting in 2023, while she started in 2022. So we were on campus together for a year.
What inspired you to pursue History?
Thomas Newman: Being older? I've always been interested in history, but the older I get, the more I find it fascinating. I have been exposed to some great history books over time and started gravitating toward reading more nonfiction, like history biographies.
But at UC Berkeley, in terms of history, you have the opportunities to meet and talk with people and have conversations with some of the amazing historians that come through here. It's been really like nothing else I've been exposed to. Of course, history has a reputation for being a subject that can be boring if it's taught in the wrong way. But I found that there's just so many choices at UC Berkeley. This has been an incredible place to study history.
Maria and I took the same history professor — Thomas Dandelet — in the same semester, but for two different classes, which is kind of interesting. I remember talking to him during office hours and letting him know that Maria was also in his class. Professor Dandelet told me he didn’t “think that has ever happened with” his “students before.” It was great to be studying the same subject with my daughter together. We sort of have a lot of conversations about things from a historical standpoint. It's been a really interesting way of enriching our father daughter relationship. It's always been really good anyway. But this is just another layer on top of it.
What’s your favorite part of UC Berkeley?
Thomas Newman: I found a really incredible sense of community here. The intellectual level is quite a bit higher, and the conversation tends to be more elevated than just in the world in general. I feel like being on campus is a very comfortable place because of finding a lot of like minded folks around here. I’ve taken a couple of History Professor Maria Mavroudi’s classes and found her to be an amazing resource, like Professor Dandelet. It's amazing to be able to spend time and be surrounded by so many intellectuals like these faculty members.
I think my on-campus job at the Athletic Study Center has been one of the highlights. I’ve been working for the Athletic Study Center as a graduate tutor, even though I'm an undergraduate. So basically, I help student athletes improve their writing. But it's been a huge eye opener and rewarding experience. I always had some idea that I wanted to work within the education world in some form or another.
There really is no comparison between this environment and a community college environment. So I have been encouraging anybody who is thinking about transferring to Cal that this is a life changing academic environment, especially if you avail yourself of the opportunities that exist here. I think that's one thing my daughter talks to me about. She did really well and graduated with honors. But she felt, if she could go back and do it again, she would be taken advantage of more opportunities outside of the classroom at Cal. I feel like being older has been really helpful for me, because I am not letting many opportunities pass me by.
If your daughter didn't end up going to UC Berkeley, what do you think you would have been doing right now?
Thomas Newman: That’s a great question. I think I was at the point where I wanted to continue my education. I'm not sure if I would have had the courage to believe that I could come here. I think when she got accepted, she told me, “Oh, there's a lot of older students.” It's been such a huge sort of direction shift for me and I've always tried to remain open to new things and opportunities.
I honestly didn’t think I’d fit in at Berkeley. But she physically demonstrated that I did fit in. She brought me there. It reminded me of the joys of taking an entire day off to ride the subway into New York City, when we would walk around Central Park for no good reason except to look at things. I showed her the world not only because that’s what parents are supposed to do, but because it is a privilege to show our children the world. The bigger privilege, the unexpected privilege, is allowing our children to show us their worlds.
What are your plans for the future after graduation?
Thomas Newman: As I graduate, I'm going to continue to look in the direction of education. I’m going to continue to apply to grad school. Right now, we might end up actually moving out of the Bay Area. My daughter's living in Europe now, working in the education space. And I think we have that desire to pursue education as a career in common. In the not too distant future, we do have plans to move back to Europe. I feel like I am looking for the next opportunity, and trying to make the most of it.
