MONMOUTH, Ill — Seven sets of twins will be graduating from Monmouth College on May 15th, 2022. For the siblings that are part of the largest group in the school's history, it's exciting to have others understand the experience of graduating with someone in your family.
Courtney and Kara Fisher are one of those sets of twins. They always knew they wanted to go to school together.
"I think we were both planning on going here from the get go, I don't know if she thinks the same thing," says Courtney.
Kara does agree, and they aren't alone in that. Payton and Jordan Gosell also knew they wanted to go to school together. They both play soccer together at Monmouth.
"We were both set on Monmouth right from the start. So there was no going somewhere else without each other," says Jordan, "We told all the people that recruited us, we come as a package, if you don't want both of us, you can't have one of us."
Several of the twins say they often get mixed up on campus. Most of them say they just go with it.
"Professors like messing up or like not wanting to call on us because they don't know which ones which. So, we don't get called on as often," says Payton Gosell.
For Sara and Matt Simonson, getting mixed up isn't necessarily an issue. In fact, they've fooled some peers for the past four years.
"I've met people I've known for three years, and they just found out we were twins," says Matt.
Sara and Matt will be going their separate ways after graduation for the first time in their lives. Sara will be pursuing a PhD at the University of Wisconsin-Madison while Matt will be heading to medical school at the University of Illinois.
Jordan and Payton will also be parting ways for the first time. Jordan will be going to graduate school in Chicago while Payton will attend Palmer Chiropractic School in Davenport, Iowa. It's bittersweet for them.
"I think we're ready. It's been a long time," says Payton.
For identical twins Emma and Nicole Poole, this graduation has a special added layer. Their dad will be giving them their diplomas.
"Not many people can say that they've been given their diplomas by their father," says Nicole.
He's given them their diplomas at both the 8th grade graduation and their high school graduation. The tradition will carry on for this ceremony too.
"I almost get emotional thinking about it. The fact that like, I know that he's proud of us, so the fact that he actually gets to give us the diploma, it means so much more than anything," says Emma.
All of the students agree it's extra special to get to walk across the graduation stage with the person that has been by their side for their entire life.