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Content warning: This story contains depictions of sexual violence.

In the spring of 1985, Becky Wilson was preparing to graduate from Herron School of Art and Design with a degree in painting, her cap and gown ready to be worn as she walked across the stage. 

As a co-founder of the 431 Co-Op Gallery on Massachusetts Avenue and a member of Indianapolis Monthly Magazine’s “85 in 85” honoree list, she was well on her way to a successful career in the arts.

Just weeks before her 1985 graduation, she was sexually assaulted near the old Herron campus, where Herron High School sits today. She didn’t finish her last four classes to earn her degree. This year, on May 9, Wilson will receive her bachelor’s degree in painting from Herron School of Art and Design, 43 years after she enrolled in 1980. 

On May 10, she’ll show a few dozen of her paintings and sculptures in “Senior Show,” at Edington Gallery not far from campus. The exhibit, which opens with a public reception from 6-9 p.m., runs through June 1.

“I don’t see this degree as really furthering my career,” Wilson, now a full-time artist, said from a quiet spot at the IU Indianapolis Campus Center. “It’s just validation. I’m not a victim, I’m a survivor. I just had to finish it.”

Looking at her resume today, which includes exhibits at the Indiana State Museum and creating arts curriculum in schools in Indiana and California, it’s evident that Wilson has found success, though one thing was missing: a college degree.

A big inspiration for Wilson to get back into the classroom was her daughter, Nilo Schoff, who is a rising senior at Herron majoring in art education. Thanks to Wilson, art has always been a part of Schoff’s life. When Wilson was an art teacher, Schoff was the first to test their mom’s art lessons, which helped Schoff think of art both as a form of therapy and as a career path.

The pair took a ceramics class last summer and sat side-by-side.

“It was awesome, I highly recommend taking a class with your parents,” Schoff said. “Me and her had a blast whenever we had to finish assignments, we’d go in together and it was a lot of fun.”

The ceramics class was taught by Herron professor Corey Jefferson, whom Wilson met about a decade ago through their children at a birthday party. 

Wilson and Schoff are the first mother/child pair Jefferson has taught at Herron. Though they were making individual pieces, Jefferson said watching them work with one another and providing feedback — trying to be critical while still being kind — was interesting to watch. 

Jefferson, who has taught at Herron for 21 years, said he’s excited to see Wilson graduate and see her show.

“In art, age doesn’t really matter and, in some ways, the maturity of age is really great as far as life experiences that are built into things like concepts within art and just that extra living time to devote to making art,” Jefferson said.

As she gears up for her senior exhibit, which focuses on class structures in America, Wilson is reflecting on how she’s used art as a way of healing from trauma.. 

During the second semester of her senior year in 1985, Wilson and her then-boyfriend were attacked near the old Herron campus while walking downtown.

Wilson said a man cut her boyfriend’s throat — an injury he survived after being taken to the hospital — before dragging her under a bush and sexually assaulting her at knifepoint. The case was never solved. She never sought counseling. Instead, she used art to process her emotions.

“It’s definitely an emotional release,” Wilson said. “I was really into abstract and expressionism at the time, which was just perfect for my emotions.”

At the time, Wilson also faced a financial setback. After incorrectly being filed as a dependent on her mother’s taxes, Wilson lost her independent student status. At that point, she requested an “incomplete” for her three remaining classes. 

A year later, she married her husband, Alan Schoff, and the pair moved to California. There, Wilson continued painting and created art curriculum and instruction materials for schools in Merced County in the central part of the state. After moving between California and Indianapolis a few times, they returned to Indianapolis in 2012. 

Between the mid-1990s and 2013, Wilson re-enrolled in art school but was unable to finish both times. Last summer, Wilson decided to finish her final three classes. Along with the ceramics class she took with her daughter, she took an introduction to contemporary art — which she said helped her stay current with the art world — a meditation class and the history of rock ‘n’ roll, with the latter three being online classes.

While she struggled with some of the technology of her online class, Wilson said she was just as comfortable at Herron in 2024 as she was as a freshman in 1980. The hurdles Wilson had to clear to get to graduation day aren’t lost on her daughter.

“Her journey in college was definitely a tough journey,” Schoff said. “She tried going back multiple times to fulfill her degree, and it just never stuck until this coming semester, and it was honestly a really powerful move for her. Being able to see her grow was just magnificent.”

After walking across the stage and receiving her degree, she’s looking forward to turning the page.

“[Not having a degree] didn’t really bother me while I was out of state, but when I came back to Indianapolis and was around other Herron people and got asked, ‘What year did you graduate?.’ it would bring it all back,” Wilson said. “But this way, when they ask ‘when did you graduate?’ … this story is so much better.”

Mirror Indy reporter Breanna Cooper reports on arts and culture. Email her at Breanna.cooper@mirrorindy.org. Follow her on X @BreannaNCooper. 

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 ‘I just had to finish it’: Herron art student receives degree 43 years in the making

by Breanna Cooper, Mirror Indy
May 7, 2024

<h1> ‘I just had to finish it’: Herron art student receives degree 43 years in the making</h1> <p class="byline">by Breanna Cooper, Mirror Indy <br />May 7, 2024</p> <p><em>Content warning: This story contains depictions of sexual violence.</em></p> <p>In the spring of 1985, Becky Wilson was preparing to graduate from Herron School of Art and Design with a degree in painting, her cap and gown ready to be worn as she walked across the stage.&nbsp;</p> <p>As a co-founder of the 431 Co-Op Gallery on Massachusetts Avenue and a member of Indianapolis Monthly Magazine’s “85 in 85” honoree list, she was well on her way to a successful career in the arts.</p> <p>Just weeks before her 1985 graduation, she was sexually assaulted near the old Herron campus, where Herron High School sits today. She didn’t finish her last four classes to earn her degree. This year, on May 9, Wilson will receive her bachelor’s degree in painting from Herron School of Art and Design, 43 years after she enrolled in 1980.&nbsp;</p> <div class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow aligncenter"> <div data-effect="slide"> <div class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_container swiper-container"> <ul class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_swiper-wrapper swiper-wrapper"> <li class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_slide swiper-slide"> <figure><img alt="" class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_image wp-image-20779" data-id="20779" src="https://mirrorindy.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Becky-Wilson-Herron-School-of-Art-grad_JRW011-1024x682.jpg" /><figcaption class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_caption gallery-caption">Becky Wilson adds final touches to her artwork May 6, 2024, at Edington Gallery.</figcaption></figure> </li> <li class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_slide swiper-slide"> <figure><img alt="" class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_image wp-image-20778" data-id="20778" src="https://mirrorindy.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Becky-Wilson-Herron-School-of-Art-grad_JRW010-1024x682.jpg" /><figcaption class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_caption gallery-caption">Wilson adds final touches to a painting.</figcaption></figure> </li> <li class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_slide swiper-slide"> <figure><img alt="" class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_image wp-image-20782" data-id="20782" src="https://mirrorindy.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Becky-Wilson-Herron-School-of-Art-grad_JRW014-1024x682.jpg" /><figcaption class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_caption gallery-caption">Artwork by Wilson is displayed at Edington Gallery.</figcaption></figure> </li> <li class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_slide swiper-slide"> <figure><img alt="" class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_image wp-image-20773" data-id="20773" src="https://mirrorindy.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Becky-Wilson-Herron-School-of-Art-grad_JRW005-1024x670.jpg" /><figcaption class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_caption gallery-caption">Wilson adds final touches to a painting.</figcaption></figure> </li> <li class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_slide swiper-slide"> <figure><img alt="" class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_image wp-image-20774" data-id="20774" src="https://mirrorindy.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Becky-Wilson-Herron-School-of-Art-grad_JRW006-1024x880.jpg" /><figcaption class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_caption gallery-caption">Wilson adds final touches to a painting.</figcaption></figure> </li> <li class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_slide swiper-slide"> <figure><img alt="" class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_image wp-image-20781" data-id="20781" src="https://mirrorindy.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Becky-Wilson-Herron-School-of-Art-grad_JRW013-1024x682.jpg" /><figcaption class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_caption gallery-caption">Artwork by Wilson is displayed at Edington Gallery.</figcaption></figure> </li> <li class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_slide swiper-slide"> <figure><img alt="" class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_image wp-image-20780" data-id="20780" src="https://mirrorindy.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Becky-Wilson-Herron-School-of-Art-grad_JRW012-1024x682.jpg" /><figcaption class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_caption gallery-caption">Wilson adds final touches to a painting.</figcaption></figure> </li> </ul> <p><a class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_button-prev swiper-button-prev swiper-button-white" role="button"></a><a class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_button-next swiper-button-next swiper-button-white" role="button"></a><a aria-label="Pause Slideshow" class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_button-pause" role="button"></a></p> <div class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_pagination swiper-pagination swiper-pagination-white"></div> </div> </div> </div> <p>On May 10, she’ll show a few dozen of her paintings and sculptures in “<a href="https://downtownindy.org/do/senior-show-new-works-by-becky-wilson" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Senior Show</a>,” at Edington Gallery not far from campus. The exhibit, which opens with a public reception from 6-9 p.m., runs through June 1.</p> <p>“I don’t see this degree as really furthering my career,” Wilson, now a full-time artist, said from a quiet spot at the IU Indianapolis Campus Center. “It’s just validation. I’m not a victim, I’m a survivor. I just had to finish it.”</p> <p>Looking at her resume today, which includes exhibits at the Indiana State Museum and creating arts curriculum in schools in Indiana and California, it’s evident that Wilson has found success, though one thing was missing: a college degree.</p> <p>A big inspiration for Wilson to get back into the classroom was her daughter, Nilo Schoff, who is a rising senior at Herron majoring in art education. Thanks to Wilson, art has always been a part of Schoff’s life. When Wilson was an art teacher, Schoff was the first to test their mom’s art lessons, which helped Schoff think of art both as a form of therapy and as a career path.</p> <p>The pair took a ceramics class last summer and sat side-by-side.</p> <p>“It was awesome, I highly recommend taking a class with your parents,” Schoff said. “Me and her had a blast whenever we had to finish assignments, we’d go in together and it was a lot of fun.”</p> <p>The ceramics class was taught by Herron professor Corey Jefferson, whom Wilson met about a decade ago through their children at a birthday party.&nbsp;</p> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img src="https://mirrorindy.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Becky-Wilson-Herron-School-of-Art-grad_JRW018-1024x683.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-20786" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Artist Becky Wilson works to finish a painting at her home studio May 6, 2024, in Indianapolis. Wilson will soon graduate with a bachelor’s degree in painting from Herron School of Art.</figcaption></figure> <p>Wilson and Schoff are the first mother/child pair Jefferson has taught at Herron. Though they were making individual pieces, Jefferson said watching them work with one another and providing feedback — trying to be critical while still being kind — was interesting to watch.&nbsp;</p> <p>Jefferson, who has taught at Herron for 21 years, said he’s excited to see Wilson graduate and see her show.</p> <p>“In art, age doesn’t really matter and, in some ways, the maturity of age is really great as far as life experiences that are built into things like concepts within art and just that extra living time to devote to making art,” Jefferson said.</p> <p>As she gears up for her senior exhibit, which focuses on class structures in America, Wilson is reflecting on how she’s used art as a way of healing from trauma..&nbsp;</p> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img src="https://mirrorindy.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Becky-Wilson-Herron-School-of-Art-grad_JRW004-1024x341.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-20772" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Wilson works to finish a painting at her home studio May 6, 2024, in Indianapolis.</figcaption></figure> <p>During the second semester of her senior year in 1985, Wilson and her then-boyfriend were attacked near the old Herron campus while walking downtown.</p> <p>Wilson said a man cut her boyfriend’s throat — an injury he survived after being taken to the hospital — before dragging her under a bush and sexually assaulting her at knifepoint. The case was never solved. She never sought counseling. Instead, she used art to process her emotions.</p> <p>“It’s definitely an emotional release,” Wilson said. “I was really into abstract and expressionism at the time, which was just perfect for my emotions.”</p> <p>At the time, Wilson also faced a financial setback. After incorrectly being filed as a dependent on her mother’s taxes, Wilson lost her independent student status. At that point, she requested an “incomplete” for her three remaining classes.&nbsp;</p> <figure class="wp-block-image alignleft size-large is-resized"><img src="https://mirrorindy.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Becky-Wilson-Herron-School-of-Art-grad_JRW007-1024x682.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-20775" style="width:400px;height:auto" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Artist Becky Wilson shows an area of a reference painting that inspired one of her own painted works. She acquired the reference piece from her father, who worked as a medical illustrator.</figcaption></figure> <p>A year later, she married her husband, Alan Schoff, and the pair moved to California. There, Wilson continued painting and created art curriculum and instruction materials for schools in Merced County in the central part of the state. After moving between California and Indianapolis a few times, they returned to Indianapolis in 2012.&nbsp;</p> <p>Between the mid-1990s and 2013, Wilson re-enrolled in art school but was unable to finish both times. Last summer, Wilson decided to finish her final three classes. Along with the ceramics class she took with her daughter, she took an introduction to contemporary art — which she said helped her stay current with the art world — a meditation class and the history of rock ‘n’ roll, with the latter three being online classes.</p> <p>While she struggled with some of the technology of her online class, Wilson said she was just as comfortable at Herron in 2024 as she was as a freshman in 1980. The hurdles Wilson had to clear to get to graduation day aren’t lost on her daughter.</p> <div class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow aligncenter"> <div data-effect="slide"> <div class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_container swiper-container"> <ul class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_swiper-wrapper swiper-wrapper"> <li class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_slide swiper-slide"> <figure><img alt="" class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_image wp-image-20777" data-id="20777" src="https://mirrorindy.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Becky-Wilson-Herron-School-of-Art-grad_JRW009-1024x682.jpg" /><figcaption class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_caption gallery-caption">Wilson works to finish a painting at her home studio.</figcaption></figure> </li> <li class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_slide swiper-slide"> <figure><img alt="" class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_image wp-image-20776" data-id="20776" src="https://mirrorindy.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Becky-Wilson-Herron-School-of-Art-grad_JRW008-1024x682.jpg" /><figcaption class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_caption gallery-caption">Wilson works to finish a painting at her home studio.</figcaption></figure> </li> <li class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_slide swiper-slide"> <figure><img alt="" class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_image wp-image-20787" data-id="20787" src="https://mirrorindy.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Becky-Wilson-Herron-School-of-Art-grad_JRW019-1024x682.jpg" /><figcaption class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_caption gallery-caption">Paint brushes at Wilson’s home studio.</figcaption></figure> </li> <li class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_slide swiper-slide"> <figure><img alt="" class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_image wp-image-20785" data-id="20785" src="https://mirrorindy.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Becky-Wilson-Herron-School-of-Art-grad_JRW017-1024x669.jpg" /><figcaption class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_caption gallery-caption">Wilson works to finish a painting at her home studio.</figcaption></figure> </li> <li class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_slide swiper-slide"> <figure><img alt="" class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_image wp-image-20784" data-id="20784" src="https://mirrorindy.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Becky-Wilson-Herron-School-of-Art-grad_JRW016-682x1024.jpg" /><figcaption class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_caption gallery-caption">Wilson laughs while posing for a portrait.</figcaption></figure> </li> </ul> <p><a class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_button-prev swiper-button-prev swiper-button-white" role="button"></a><a class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_button-next swiper-button-next swiper-button-white" role="button"></a><a aria-label="Pause Slideshow" class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_button-pause" role="button"></a></p> <div class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_pagination swiper-pagination swiper-pagination-white"></div> </div> </div> </div> <p>“Her journey in college was definitely a tough journey,” Schoff said. “She tried going back multiple times to fulfill her degree, and it just never stuck until this coming semester, and it was honestly a really powerful move for her. Being able to see her grow was just magnificent.”</p> <p>After walking across the stage and receiving her degree, she's looking forward to turning the page.</p> <p>“[Not having a degree] didn’t really bother me while I was out of state, but when I came back to Indianapolis and was around other Herron people and got asked, ‘What year did you graduate?.’ it would bring it all back,” Wilson said. “But this way, when they ask ‘when did you graduate?’ … this story is so much better.”</p> <p><em>Mirror Indy reporter Breanna Cooper reports on arts and culture. Email her at <a href="mailto:Breanna.cooper@mirrorindy.org" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Breanna.cooper@mirrorindy.org</a>. Follow her on X</em><a href="https://twitter.com/BreannaNCooper" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><em> @BreannaNCoope</em></a><em>r.&nbsp;</em></p> <p>This &lt;a target=&quot;_blank&quot; href=&quot;https://mirrorindy.org/herron-graduation-for-becky-wilson/&quot;&gt;article&lt;/a&gt; first appeared on &lt;a target=&quot;_blank&quot; href=&quot;https://mirrorindy.org&quot;&gt;Mirror Indy&lt;/a&gt; and is republished here under a &lt;a target=&quot;_blank&quot; href=&quot;https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/&quot;&gt;Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;img src=&quot;https://i0.wp.com/mirrorindy.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/cropped-Mirror-Indy-square-logo-1.png?resize=150%2C150&amp;amp;ssl=1&quot; style=&quot;width:1em;height:1em;margin-left:10px;&quot;&gt;</p> &lt;img id=&quot;republication-tracker-tool-source&quot; src=&quot;https://mirrorindy.org/?republication-pixel=true&amp;post=20868&amp;amp;ga4=G-X0R0QW371R&quot; style=&quot;width:1px;height:1px;&quot;&gt;&lt;script&gt; PARSELY = { autotrack: false, onload: function() { PARSELY.beacon.trackPageView({ url: &quot;https://mirrorindy.org/herron-graduation-for-becky-wilson/&quot;, urlref: window.location.href }); } } &lt;/script&gt; &lt;script id=&quot;parsely-cfg&quot; src=&quot;//cdn.parsely.com/keys/mirrorindy.org/p.js&quot;&gt;&lt;/script&gt;

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