As graduates and their families hurried to their seats, Sarah Reed stood in E.A. Diddle Arena, holding her friend’s graduation gown.

Reed, an Elizabethtown native, was one of the few students in the arena who appeared to be calm, but her outwardly relaxed demeanor hid her true feelings.

“I’m nervous and excited,” Reed said as she watched her friend pull on her graduation gown.

The elementary education major said her whole family had come to watch her receive her diploma. After she receives her diploma, Reed will walk out of WKU straight into a job as a fifth grade teacher. For the moment, however, she will enjoy the culmination of her time as a WKU student.

“It felt like a never-ending road, so I’m still in denial,” Reed said.