College President Knocked Over by Graduating Daughter Recalls 'Magical' Moment — and How It Inspired a New Nickname (Exclusive)
He and his wife Beth reflect on Grace's life story, and how they hope it will inspire others, in an exclusive interview with PEOPLE
Grace now has a new nickname for her dad after they toppled each other at the school event: "Butterfingers"For Clemson University President Jim Clements, watching his daughter sprint across the graduation stage to receive her diploma — only to accidentally topple them both as she leapt into his arms for a hug — was a "magical" moment.
'She literally just sprinted. I've never seen her run that fast," Jim tells PEOPLE. 'I would let her tackle me a thousand, million times over to see the joy in her face when she did it.'
On May 8, Grace Clements graduated from the ClemsonLife (Learning Is for Everyone) Program, which teaches independence and job skills to students with intellectual disabilities.
'I was in dad-mode. I just wanted to show her to everybody, and then give her the biggest hug and let her know that I love her and that I'm proud of her," Jim recalls.
After he and Grace both toppled over, the father-daughter pair quickly recovered and helped each other up — but Grace says that after what happened, she has a new nickname for her dad: "Butterfingers."
'He didn't even catch me," she jokes.
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Jim's wife Beth Clements says Grace and her classmates learned essentials for living alone, getting along with roommates and finding meaningful work at ClemsonLIFE.
'They're learning really how to live with each other, just like a typical student, but their apartments are a whole lot cleaner, I promise you, because that's part of their curriculum,' she says. 'I believe it's changing our family in a generational way."
'It's been beautiful to see all the friends that Grace has made,' Jim adds, as Beth details that their daughter is in the same sorority that her sister and sister-in-law were a part of at Clemson, and she is also the manager of the softball team.
'And they love her,' Jim explains.
Beth is now encouraging parents of children with special needs to start researching college programs when their kids are young, so they can best understand the requirements necessary to apply.
'I think if Jim and I had known that there were LIFE programs, we would've changed things earlier and worked a little bit more diligently, thinking there was hope outside of our home,' she tells PEOPLE.
And while they're proud of Grace's graduation, Beth emphasizes that students with special needs don't need to finish college or get special certifications in order to feel successful.
'We want to celebrate all their accomplishments, all of our students that learn differently," she says.
Jim estimates that he shook close to 6,000 hands during commencement week. He says he was touched by the students who shared how much Grace means to them. (In fact, there's now a scholarship at Clemson University in her name.)
'One that stayed with me was, 'Thank you for sharing Grace with us,' as a student crossed the stage,' Jim recalls.
Looking back at the onstage fumble between Grace and Jim, Beth admits she was initially worried they might both be injured, but she says it was meaningful to be able to see her daughter have so much joy.
'When Grace was getting diagnosed with several different things, I felt like we were letting go of certain dreams like marriage and prom and college, and then came to find out this exists,' she says. 'Clemson LIFE exists, as well as others. God restored a dream and let her go.'
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