Fostering Conversations

Congratulations to Joseph Brooks, one of our 2023 Graduate of the Year finalists! Joseph struggled early on with school due to his mental health and anxiety. Determined to do well, Joseph enrolled in James Madison High School. JMHS helped him more accurately measure his strengths and develop proper habits for success. Graduating with a 3.5 GPA, he is already getting a head start on his college cou...

Congratulations to Hannah Alfonso, one of our 2023 Graduate of the Year finalists! Since the age of 10, Hannah struggled with anxiety. Her small, private high school lacked the resources she needed to progress successfully, so she enrolled in James Madison High School. The ability to complete courses at her own pace provided the advantage of a less stressful environment, which in turn gave her the...

Congratulations to Sarah Sand, one of our 2023 Graduate of the Year finalists! Because Sarah spent her early years struggling in school, she faced years of feeling insecure in her professional life. Tired of feeling like an imposter, she enrolled in Ashworth College and earned her bachelor’s degree in early childhood education. A first-generation college graduate, Sarah uses her skills as an Educa...

Congratulations to Jeremiah Williams, one of our 2023 Graduate of the Year finalists! Jeremiah wanted to move up in his construction job, but traditional colleges weren’t cutting it. He enrolled in Ashworth College, learning new project management skills on top of sharpening his soft skills. Before he knew it, he was offered a more advanced position with a better salary, and now feels more in cont...

Congratulations to Garrik Haynes, one of our 2023 Graduate of the Year finalists! Growing up, Garrik never saw the need for college. At the end of his military career, he became a police officer. Wanting to move up in the ranks, he quickly realized that education would be the key to his success. After earning an associate degree in Computer Information Management, he realized he was capable of eve...

Congratulations to Dana Perea, one of our 2023 Graduate of the Year finalists! Inspired by her 11th grade world history teacher, Dana always dreamed of becoming a lawyer. Though life initially took a different turn, she found Ashworth and realized she could reach her goals. After earning her paralegal certificate, she started working at a law firm and pushed forward. She continued to her bachelor’...

Congratulations to Jailey Hall, one of our 2023 Graduate of the Year finalists! Jailey struggled to find a challenge at her local school. After much research, her parents agreed to enroll her in Penn Foster so she could complete her studies at a pace that worked best for her. She finished her high school degree in just seven weeks with a 3.95 GPA. This fall, at the age of 14, she will be enrolling...

Congratulations to Rachel Delgado, one of our 2023 Graduate of the Year finalists! After graduating high school in 2015, Rachel wasn’t sure what her next step would be. She took a few different jobs over the years, finding her passion working in the medical field. Rachel enrolled with Penn Foster to earn her Medical Billing and Coding Career Diploma and has already seen her life change.

Congratulations to Sydney Zaremba-Woodward, one of our 2023 Graduate of the Year finalists! Sydney started her online high school journey after moving to Poland with her family. Here, she found a love of travel and performance art. Penn Foster’s flexible scheduling allowed her to pursue her passions, while providing the right elective classes to help her earn a place in medical school in Poland.

Congratulations to David Pennington, one of our 2023 Graduate of the Year finalists! David is a First Sergeant in the US Air Force. In his 23 years of service, he has traveled the world ensuring his commanders and team are mission ready. Enrolling in Penn Foster’s Small Engine Repair course helped him make the most of his time away from family at his last posting in South Korea. He now brings his...

Congratulations to Lynn Blake, one of our 2023 Graduate of the Year finalists! Lynn always had a love of animals, so it was only natural for her to find her way into the veterinary technician field. Penn Foster allowed Lynn to follow her dream while working full-time and raising her infant daughter. She is now Fear-Free certified and manages a 45-person team at a 24/7 emergency veterinary practice...

Laurel Popolizio always had a passion for biology, finding fascination in the care of animals. Inspired to work in veterinary medicine, she began her career as a veterinary assistant at Banfield Pet Hospital, but knew she needed to further her education to make her dream of becoming a veterinary technician a reality. “I had to become licensed and have the experience needed to match the qualificati...

Lauren Campion has always loved animals, having spent her entire life around them. She was raised with pets, worked in pet stores, and was always fascinated by the medical aspect of animal care. This interest led her to earning a biology degree from Widener University, followed by working in veterinary clinics as an assistant. Wanting to go further in her career, she knew she would have to gain th...

Vet tech graduate Julia Mensen loved animals since her teens. Though she wanted to work with and around them, she never thought she would want to enter into veterinary medicine. After years of working in pet stores and as a veterinary receptionist, she became more comfortable and wanted to expand her knowledge. As she became more confident and inspired by her peers working in the clinic, she decid...

Dwight LaVan worked in the Medical Billing and Coding field for years. Once he realized he hit a ceiling without a degree, he looked into accredited, self-paced programs and found Ashworth College. "I really felt like it was time for me to get my degree. I got tired of looking at job openings and hoping and praying." Though he struggled with imposter syndrome and essay writing in the beginning, he...

Dylan Benavidez knew he wanted to get a head start on his adult life. A high achiever, Dylan decided to enroll in Penn Foster to help earn his high school diploma more quickly, giving him more time to dedicate to his job and help his community, which has led to him running for public office this year. “Since a young age I wanted to work hard and get myself out in the working field. At my local hig...

After spending the pandemic planning her own wedding, she was inspired to turn it into a career and enrolled in the NYIAD Wedding Planner course. Finishing in just six months, she credits NYIAD with helping her land her dream job as a Wedding and Special Events Coordinator. Now spearheading all her resort’s events, Kathleen says NYIAD has truly changed her life.

Loving design from an early age, Jennifer spent much of her life improving the look of her surroundings. Through social media, Jennifer began receiving inquiries from friends, family, and real estate clients about hiring her for design projects. Afraid she didn’t know enough to design for paying clients, she enrolled in the Interior Design course at NYIAD. Here she was able to develop both her des...

Growing up in Australia, Sean dreamed of attending a Division-1 university in the U.S. He and his parents found that James Madison would offer him the most flexibility while helping him meet American education requirements. Completing the College Prep track, Sean will be attending Baylor University in the fall on an academic scholarship with plans to major in pre-nursing or go into ROTC.

Isabella found a safe and comfortable learning environment away from bullying with James Madison High School. Through her experience, she was able to further explore her interests and passions which she feels she wouldn’t have been able to do if enrolled in a traditional high school. Isabella plans on attending a four-year university next year, majoring in marine science with a minor in computer s...

Moving to the U.S. from Turkey during a coup, Fatih’s father struggled to find employment, so he and his brother helped him open his own used car dealership. With his extra workload, Fatih decided to enroll in James Madison High School so he could focus on school at his own pace while still helping his family. Graduating with a 4.0, he has been accepted to several universities with plans to attend...

Tiffany knew she had more to offer to her young students but would need to complete her degree to do it. Ashworth’s flexibility was the perfect fit for the busy schedule of a mom working full-time. Through many late nights, she earned her Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology and was promoted to be a middle school education therapist. She believes Ashworth provided her with the information and rigor nee...

Though Carren began her journey towards a degree in her youth but gave up only one final away from earning her Associate Degree in Business Management from Ashworth. This haunted her, so ten years later she re-enrolled, earning her degree with a 3.95 GPA. Since graduating, she has gone on to earn two career diplomas and is pursuing her Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration, all through the...

Nicole always had a plan to attend college right after high school, but life took her in a different direction. After four years, she decided to pursue her degree while she was pregnant with her second daughter. Balancing work, being a mom and wife, and then school was challenging, but she was determined to persevere and complete her program as the first person in her family to go to college. “It...

Meet Penn Foster's Graduate of the Year Finalist, Savannah Reed! When the Covid-19 pandemic hit, Savannah needed to reassess her career goals to determine her future. Encouraged by family and friends, she decided to pursue her dream of working with animals. She was able to find a job working at an animal hospital and, after some time, decided she wanted to learn even more. Knowing she had to find...