By Emily Oliva, WSU Global Campus, WSU Insider
For years, Patrick Hylton dressed like a Coug. As his wife and two oldest children pursued their education through Washington State University Global Campus, Patrick proudly wore WSU gear wherever he went. These days, it’s part of his daily work wardrobe. “I wear my Cougar ball cap every day at work,” Patrick said. “I have to put the screws to those Washington Huskie fans.”
This spring, the hat will carry a little more meaning. After years of supporting the Cougs in his family, Patrick will become one himself, beginning his studies in data analytics through WSU Global Campus and continuing a family connection to WSU that began with his two oldest children, Alexis and Tanner Ruiz, and eventually inspired his wife, Robin Hylton, to return to school as well. “Our entire family has embraced being Cougars,” Robin said. “My husband has proudly supported us by wearing Cougar spirit gear everywhere, which often led to conversations with random WSU alumni.”
For Patrick, however, becoming a college student himself wasn’t always part of the plan. Patrick and his family live in Oak Harbor on Whidbey Island, where he has called Washington home since arriving with the U.S. Navy in 2006. Originally from the Detroit area, Patrick retired from the Navy in October 2022 after more than 23 years of service.
He now works at Naval Air Station Whidbey Island as a quality control, reliability, and safety technician for Tessera, a facilities maintenance contractor. His work involves analyzing data, identifying trends, and using data visualization – skills he hopes to build upon by earning a degree in data analytics.
Finding the right fit in data analytics
Data analytics is a field Patrick wouldn’t necessarily have pictured himself pursuing when he was younger. “I hated math in high school,” he said. “It was just so boring with no practical applications.” That changed over a year ago when Patrick took a statistics course at Skagit Valley College.
While meeting with an advisor to discuss his degree plans, he spotted a WSU brochure featuring the Data Analytics program. That is when he started researching. “I had just finished a statistics class and absolutely loved it,” Patrick said. “I immediately went home and looked at WSU’s website and was super excited to find out more about the Data Analytics program.”
Patrick later visited WSU’s Everett campus, where he spoke with Data Analytics faculty and sat in on a DATA 115 course. Combined with what he had already seen from his family’s experiences with Global Campus, those experiences helped convince him that WSU was where he wanted to continue his education. “
A WSU Global Campus family tradition
The family’s connection to WSU began with Alexis and Tanner, who both pursued their education through Global Campus.
Their experiences ultimately inspired their mother, Robin, to return to school.
Robin became a nurse in her early 20s but had to put her goal of earning a bachelor’s degree on hold while raising a family. Watching her children succeed helped convince her to give college another try, and she went on to earn a bachelor’s in criminal justice and a master’s degree in special education from global campus.
“When I discovered WSU Global Campus and its flexible online format, I realized I finally had an opportunity that simply didn’t exist when I was younger,” Robin said.
Joining the Cougs at WSU
As one family member after another pursued their education, Patrick remained one of their biggest supporters. However, becoming a college student himself wasn’t necessarily something he had envisioned. “For me personally, I was always reluctant to go to college,” Patrick said. “I didn’t feel like I could make the cut, and there wasn’t anything that really made me super excited to want to go to college.”
But watching Robin, Alexis, and Tanner succeed helped Patrick see a different possibility for himself. “Just the fact that my wife and two oldest kids were able to go and succeed made it easy to decide to go back to school,” Patrick said.
Patrick and Robin are also homeschooling three of their younger children, making learning a constant part of life in the Hylton household.
Patrick hopes his own decision to return to school sends an important message to his younger children. “I wanted to show my younger boys that even though I started later in life, you can still earn a degree,” he said.
Professionally, Patrick hopes his data analytics degree will help advance his career by building on his experience analyzing data and identifying trends. Personally, the goal is simpler. “I would love to have a diploma from Wazzu showing that I did it,” he said.