Povolo quintuplets will graduate from MSU on Monday, making their mom proud
Four years ago Montclair State University surprised Silvia and Paolo Povolo by offering their quintuplets, Victoria, Vico, Ashley, Michael and Marcus, a free four-year college education.
On Monday, the Totowa siblings will make history as the first quintuplets to graduate simultaneously when they attend the university’s graduation exercises to receive their degrees one after the other.
The five Passaic Valley Regional High School alums said the four-year journey was a great ride.
In an interview, the siblings shared their very different dreams and how they intend to capitalize on the gift the university bestowed.
Victoria will graduate with a biochemistry degree, Vico one in political science, Ashley focused on an English major, Michael studied nutrition and food science and Marcus studied business administration.
"Montclair helped us be together, but also helped us to become our own people, with our own majors, our own interests, our own friend groups,” said Victoria, the firstborn and the sibling leader. The other four acknowledged that she is indeed the leader.
“We customized our own paths, but we got to the finish line together,” Victoria said.
Their mother agreed that while all five are very different people, "like fingers on my hand" they all work together.
The university surprised the family at Passaic Valley Regional High School in February 2020 with full-tuition scholarships.
From their birth on July 4, 2002, until 9 a.m. on that day in February, the couple had worried about paying for five college tuition bills at once.
"We had been thinking since the first day: How are we going to do this?" Paolo Povolo said in 2020.
Since then, the quintuplets have worked hard and all will graduate on Monday after four years.
"They'd push each other along and say, 'Come on we can do this'," Silvia Povolo said last week.
Their individual stories are told in birth order, which their mother said is generally how they did things growing up, such as when getting ready or organized.
Victoria Povolo
Even before she stepped onto the Montclair State University campus in Montclair, Victoria surprised her family and high school teachers in February 2020 by saying she knew what her dream job would be — a medical examiner.
"I'd sneak in while my grandmother would watch NCIS," Victoria said. "My mom wouldn't let me watch it. She said it was too scary."
The show had the opposite effect as she changed her dream career from that of a veterinarian to one who investigates deaths and performs post-mortem examinations. During her college years, she was an intern with the Bergen County Medical Examiner's office and hopes to attend medical school after graduating.
Vico Povolo
The political science major plans to use his people skills to become a salesman. By networking, he said he first was able to land a job working in the restaurant business and more recently interviewed with South Carolina-based firm Techtronic Industries, better known as TTI.
He landed the position and soon will selling Milwaukee and Ryobi power tools.
Ashley Povolo
On Thursday, she completed her student-teaching assignment at Passaic's Arts and Science Charter School and is looking for an English teaching position for the fall.
"I've always been interested in reading," she said, adding she has a penchant for books that are banned. She looks forward to sharing her love of film and literature with her students.
During her undergraduate years, she studied abroad in Newcastle upon Tyne, England, which she said took her outside the comfort zone of being part of a big family as she navigated the experience on her own.
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Michael Povolo
Next fall Michael plans to continue his studies and possibly by next spring complete his master's degree in food and nutrition. A walk-on lacrosse player for the Red Hawks, he has a year's eligibility left while he completes his degree. He may get another year playing an SSDM or short-stick defensive midfielder.
Ultimately he hopes to work on perfecting a nutritional product tailored for athletes who struggle to get enough nourishment.
Marcus Povolo
By his sophomore year, the business administration major had found his chosen profession when he landed a job at J.P. Morgan. He has since been offered a full-time position working with the department that specializes in mergers and acquisitions.
Because of his job, he was the only sibling to live on campus, where he could grab the train to get to his job in Jersey City.
Despite his mother's concern that it would be difficult to hold down a job and complete his degree, he did it.
"I am proud of him," she said. "I am proud of all of them."
This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Povolo quintuplets will graduate from MSU, making their mom proud
