Sisters share college life, graduation together

What do the Texas towns of Addison, Albany and Avery have in common – other than the fact their names begin with the letter “A?”

Nothing, really.

But looking at it another way, they are the first names of sisters who are graduating from Texas Woman’s University in the same ceremony this December.

And, no, they aren’t triplets all pursuing the same degree, either.

The Martin sisters are from the North Texas town of Denison and they range in age from 21 to 26.

So how did it come to pass that the sisters – members of the first generation of their family to attend college – land at Texas Woman’s?

It started with Avery, the youngest, who took a friend’s advice to attend TWU. Avery enrolled as an undergraduate in the fall of 2022 and majored in math. She immediately was taken by the campus beauty and the knowledge and approachability of her professors.

“In a smaller classroom, you really get to know your professors – and I got to do undergraduate research,” Avery said.

Given the favorable experience that first year, she didn’t hesitate to alert her sisters, both of whom were considering graduate school options after they received bachelor’s degrees at different institutions.

Addison, the oldest, was next. She enrolled in the spring of 2023 to pursue a master’s degree in English. Middle sister Albany enrolled in fall 2023 to pursue a master’s in history.

Their shared collegiate experience was extraordinary. They studied together, played co-ed softball together, and leaned on one another during tough times. Timing their graduations to coincide with one another took some careful scheduling and a measure of serendipity.

“Not many people get to say that they graduated with both of their sisters at the same time from the same university, so looking back on this memory in the future will be something I will remember and tell others with pride,” Addison said.

Although new paths lie ahead – Avery plans to pursue data analytics, Albany wants to work in a museum, and Addison would like to be an English professor – they said sharing their college journey made their bond even tighter.

“They are my best friends, my greatest confidants, my biggest cheerleaders,” Albany said, adding: “No matter the circumstances, they were always in my corner. We could get on each other's nerves at times, as siblings do, but at the end of the day they were and always will be two of the most important and influential people in my life.”

Oh, and if you are wondering about their names, turns out their parents, Jason & Lisa, have an affinity for Texas towns.

After the parents couldn’t agree on names listed in a book of baby names, they took out a map of Texas and started searching for catchy names of Texas towns. Apparently, they didn’t venture beyond the “A”s.

Fittingly, their father refers to his daughters as the “A-Team.”