Today, Thursday, September 27, 2007 Penn Foster celebrated 50 years at its current location. Dignitaries from all over Northeast Pennsylvania were in attendance including the Mayor of Scranton, the Lackawanna County Commissioners, the Deputy State Director as well as members from our local chamber of commerce and the media. The keynote speaker for the event was Jane Gallucci, the 2006-2007 President of the National School Boards Association. It was quite the event honoring Penn Foster for its past, present and future commitment to Scranton and Northeast Pennsylvania.
Today we paid tribute to Penn Foster for its commitment and dedication, but what exactly does that mean? How can a school demonstrate these qualities?
Commitment: the act of pledging or engaging oneself.
Dedication: complete and wholehearted fidelity.
There are numerous definitions for the words commitment and dedication but the basic principles are the same: assurance, dependability, and loyalty to something or someone. Penn Foster has proven over and over again that its level of commitment and dedication to its students, its faculty and staff, and its community are surpassed by none. It prides itself on being one of the oldest and largest distance learning institutions in the world. And with 117 years of experience, its mission of providing quality at-home education to students all over the world is evident.
Now, I’m sure you’re starting to wonder if this is some sort of commercial for Penn Foster and, well, you’d be right … sort of. When your child achieves a personal milestone they’re awarded and praised by family, friends, teachers, coaches – you name it. When an employee nails the presentation they’re encouraged and praised for a job well done. With those analogies in mind, I’m here to praise and acknowledge Penn Foster for the commitment to its students and the dedication to the Scranton community for over 100 years and, in specific, the last 50 years at its current location.
So on this day – September 27, 2007 – I commend Penn Foster on a job well done and offer my congratulations on the last 50 years … Here’s to 50 more!