Hard work and perseverance are defining a new presidency at a university that rose from an abandoned motel and gas station off U.S. 13 and now enrolls more than 20,000 students, the majority of whom are adult learners who work either full- or part-time.  Wilmington University (DE) President LaVerne Harmon, who became the first African-American woman to lead a Delaware college or university when she took the helm in July, has a lot in common with the students the institution has dedicated itself to, she said. She's not only a first-generation college student but worked fulltime while getting her bachelor's degree, master's degree and doctorate.