First-generation BGSU student inspires with journey to graduation day

Kyle Wilhelm ’25 credits time at BGSU for helping him turn around academic career

As Kyle Wilhelm ’25 walked across the stage to accept his Bowling Green State University degree, the honor represented much more than just four years of academic success.

For Wilhem, a first-generation college graduate, earning a degree was a key milestone — tangible proof he could overcome major personal obstacles, realize lifelong dreams and create the type of life he wanted.

A naturally bright student, Wilhelm’s adolescence was marked by struggles in school. Even though his teachers could see his ability, he felt lost — and he stopped trying.

“I wasn’t in the right mental space and struggled with a lot of aspects of school because I had a hard time finding my people, and all of that combined to really hold me back from unleashing my full potential,” Wilhelm said. “Even though I was a pretty smart kid, I had school on the back burner, which really affected my attendance and grades.”

For a time, Wilhelm said he dreaded the thought of going to junior and high school so much that he began skipping altogether, preferring to secretly return home.

As his grades plummeted, he began to think that he might never achieve his dream of going to college.

“My mom would drop me off, and because we lived only a mile from school, I would get out of the car and then walk straight home,” Wilhelm said. “There was a time when it looked like my childhood dream of attending college was no longer a possibility for me because I couldn’t even get myself to go to high school.”

Midway through high school, however, Wilhelm changed course in a major way.

He enrolled in an accelerated diploma program, buckled down, improved his grades and graduated high school, after which he went full steam ahead toward college.

When seeking a college that suited him, he sought an environment in which he could be himself and realize the best of his natural abilities.

Once he toured BGSU, he saw a place that checked every box for the college experience that he wanted: nationally recognized academic programs, a renowned student experience, a Division I gymnastics team he could assist as a student manager, a walkable campus and an environment in which he believed he could thrive.

Moving away from his native St. Louis represented a big challenge for Wilhelm — but one he felt ready to overcome in the BGSU learning community.

“I ended up deciding to tour the campus, and I absolutely fell in love with it,” he said. “It’s a classic college town, but a medium-size school where you knew professors and your professors knew you, but you also didn’t know absolutely everyone on campus.

“I realized when I stepped on campus the feeling of community and close proximity of everything was a huge perk that I hadn’t really considered.”

As a student manager for the Falcons’ gymnastics team, Wilhelm made lifelong friends and professional connections. And like many students, he found that a fulfilling extracurricular wasn’t just personally beneficial, it also benefited his studies by regimenting his schedule.

A political science major, Wilhelm added an advertising minor at the suggestion of a friend, who saw his natural creativity blooming through his work with the Falcons’ social media pages and marketing endeavors.

“A lot of my struggles as a kid were about not feeling like I had a community or that I had found the right crowd, but I think I really found what I was looking for through gymnastics,” he said. “I found friendship and accountability, and having a rigorous schedule of DI athletics was really beneficial because it lit a fire under me. I became a lot more organized and managed my time a lot better.”

In the end, Wilhelm said he saw the value in trying new things and found at BGSU exactly what he hoped to unleash his full potential.

“All of the things I did on campus helped my academics and helped spark my interest to see the full picture of my life,” Wilhelm said. “I realized I had different interests outside of just getting degree — my college experience was so much more than that. It was about self-discovery, finding community, being involved on campus and living my life to my fullest.”

Wilhelm graduated from BGSU with cum laude honors, concrete proof of four years of academic success and an undeniable success story.

He shared his story in hopes students from different academic backgrounds and those who faced adversity along the way will continue believing in themselves to attend college.

As he prepares for a full-time career, Wilhelm said picking BGSU was exactly the challenge he needed to chart the course of his life.

“The beginning was really hard, but being so far away from home, I was forced to deal with things head-on,” Wilhelm said. “It was a scary decision and a really hard decision, but coming to BGSU was the right decision.

“I found out I was a lot stronger than I gave myself credit for.”