The week after Commencement, we shared a video showing some of the event highlights from the perspective of students and the audience. But today, we want to give you a behind-the-scenes look at the ceremony from the point of view of two people who helped make the event happen: Ajeenah Nuriddin Little, Dean of Student Support Services, and Shannon Begley, Assistant Dean of Academic Advising and Registrar.
Shannon and Ajeenah joined Sara Nugent, a blogger for Peirce Connections, for a Q&A session where they talked graduation preparation, advice for the graduates, and more!
Sara: Hi! I’m Sara Nugent, a blogger for Peirce Connections. I’m joined by Ajeenah Nuriddin-Little, Student Support Services, Assistant Dean, and Shannon Begley, Academic Advising and Registrar, Assistant Dean. Today, we’re going to be recapping the college’s 149th Commencement Ceremony. Shannon and Ajeenah, thank you so much for being here today.
Tuesday, June 24, 2014
Tuesday, June 17, 2014
Looking back on Commencement 2014
Posted by
Rita Toliver-Roberts
on
Tuesday, June 17, 2014
It has been just over a week since our graduates walked across the stage and into their futures, and we are still celebrating! For many of our graduates, commencement is a special evening filled with self-reflection, family, friends, and celebrating. We wanted to capture and share some special moments from the ceremony.
Monday, June 16, 2014
Calling the Peirce community! Help a special student reach his scholarship goal
Posted by
Robyn Dizes
on
Monday, June 16, 2014
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CLOTHING DRIVE: Help Pritam Das reach his goal. |
This is a great way to use your discarded clothes from any spring cleaning you’ve done to support a fellow member of the Peirce community! Good luck Pritam, and keep up the good work!
Friday, June 13, 2014
Peirce College during World War I
Posted by
Bart Everts
on
Friday, June 13, 2014
This month marks the 100th anniversary of the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria, an event which would trigger one of the bloodiest wars in history, the First World War. When conflict broke out in Europe a few months after the assassination, in August 1914, most Americans seemed unaffected by the distant event. The administration at Peirce was finalizing the purchase of the Delancey School building at 1420 Pine Street, and preparing for the upcoming school year. Yet, by 1916 many Americans believed entry into the conflict was unavoidable. Col. Leonard Wood, gave the Class of 1916 commencement address, which focused on the need for preparedness and when the United States entered the war in April of 1917 the students, alumni, faculty, and administration mobilized.
Tuesday, June 10, 2014
Unveiling the College’s new website!
Posted by
Lisa Paris
on
Tuesday, June 10, 2014
You might have noticed a difference when you logged onto Peirce.edu today!
For the past year, the Peirce College Web Team has been working tirelessly to create a dramatically improved website experience for the College community. Our new site has been optimized to focus on prospective students and will also continue to serve and inform other members of the Peirce community about the many exciting things happening at our great institution.
Some of the new features include:
Leave a comment and let us know what you think of the new site below!
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WEBSITE UPDATE: The team here has worked hard to build an exciting and informative new site. |
For the past year, the Peirce College Web Team has been working tirelessly to create a dramatically improved website experience for the College community. Our new site has been optimized to focus on prospective students and will also continue to serve and inform other members of the Peirce community about the many exciting things happening at our great institution.
Some of the new features include:
- The program finder tool. This feature allows students to easily find the right path and program for them based on where they are in their lives and their interests.
- Read success stories from students who have taken the plunge and either came back and graduated, as well as students who are currently enrolled.
- Quick clips.Quick clips are short videos placed throughout the site that offer insight into our application process, financial aid, and all of our different programs.
- The checklist. This tool will help you create a personalized enrollment plan to help make the process as quick and as simple as possible.
Leave a comment and let us know what you think of the new site below!
Education through the years: One student’s decades-long journey to obtain his degree
Posted by
Michael Schirmer
on
Tuesday, June 10, 2014
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FATHER AND DAUGHTER: Kevin and his daughter are now both Peirce grads! |
Kevin "KC" Drayton, Contact Agent for the U.S. Department of the Treasury, is an example of this. His higher education journey began in the 1980s and culminated last night when he graduated Magna Cum Laude and with Delta Mu Delta International Society honors, receiving his Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration with a concentration in Management.
KC's path to his degree has included service to our country, cultivating a happy family life, and experiences in travel and volunteer work that are worthy of true admiration. Read KC's inspiring story below:
Life moves fast and so does the business world. I realized that I had to continue my education in technology and business policies in order to remain gainfully employed after becoming a husband and father in the 1980s. Although numerous family matters and social issues derailed my college education, I persisted and am so excited to have graduated. My journey as a student and professional was not a traditional one, and life took me to many unexpected places before leading me through the doors of Peirce College.
As a teenager in the late 1970s attending Mercy Vocational High School (a.k.a. Mercy Tech), I became familiar with what was known then as Peirce Junior College after being awarded The Urban League of Philadelphia’s Good Citizenship Award. It never occurred to me then, that many years later my daughter would attend what is known today as Peirce College and complete her paralegal studies certificate with a 4.0 GPA in 2006. She often told me how supportive and understanding the faculty, staff, and administration had been in helping her achieve her goal of a paralegal certificate.
As long as I can recall, I have always harbored a desire to be a professional and effective leader that provided a unique service. That goal instilled in me the importance of earning a college degree. However for one reason or another, even as my career progressed and I managed to succeed in the professional world, my goal to earn my college degree continued to elude me.
Before graduating from Mercy Tech in 1978, I enlisted and served in the U.S. Marine Corps Reserves until my honorable discharge in 1983. I enlisted in the Reserves in order to pay for my college education at Ohio Institute of Technology, known today as DeVry Institute of Technology in Columbus, Ohio. Unfortunately after my first semester, I was informed that the recruiter misled me and the rest of my college education would not be paid. The USMC Reserves offered me the option for a general discharge; however I declined that offer and decided to serve my full term and sought other ways to fund my education. Sadly, due to major family setbacks at home, I decided to relocate back to Philadelphia.
Later in 1979, my disappointment turned to joy when I married my high school sweetheart and that union created two wonderful children, Marlene and Kevin Noel. Realizing my responsibilities as a new husband and father in 1980, I purposely sought out a professional business career over my electrician’s training at Mercy Tech thinking, “when I get home from work, I did not want to have to take a shower, just to kiss and hug my wife and children.” That was a decision I never regretted!
My professional career started in 1981 at Aydin Monitor Systems as a Production Expeditor. There, I was able to advance to Jr. Buyer, Buyer and finally, Purchasing Agent. I continued to pursue a purchasing career as I moved forward in more challenging positions at various companies. At the same time I continued my quest for a college degree by attending Montgomery County Community College in the 1990s and Rutgers University at the turn of the century.
While working at Scientific Games, I was able to obtain a Certified Purchasing Manager (C.P.M.) certification and; designed and implemented a purchase requisition tracing system using the company’s intranet. Unfortunately, due to financial difficulty, Scientific Games had massive lay-offs in 2003 and I lost my position at the company.
Instead of allowing this to be a setback, I created an opportunity for myself, and founded StarBrite Housing & Community Development Corporation in 2003 to provide financial literacy training to potential homebuyers. StarBrite conducted financial workshops and seminars with a focus on credit report repair, opening checking and savings accounts; and basic negotiating skills for better pricing. Also during this time, I traveled on humanitarian trips to West Africa, South America, Central America and South Asia.
Regrettably StarBrite was not as profitable as foreseen, so I made a transition into the financial sales industry after being recruited by a business associate in May 2004. I began my mortgage sales career, but quickly discovered the industry wasn’t a good fit for me, and resigned where I was in 2006 just before the financial crisis. I then proceeded to improve my sales knowledge at a non-profit, faith-based organization named Crown Financial Ministries in Georgia. Crown teaches financial principles for a debt free life.
At this point, I had extensive professional experience in various industries. Still, I felt that earning my degree was an important accomplishment that I needed to conquer in order to meet my personal definition of success.
I returned home to Philadelphia in 2009 in order to become a caretaker for my ailing mother and handicapped older brother. All the aforementioned jobs, education and experiences have led me to my current position as a Contact Agent for the U.S. Department of the Treasury. Once I returned home, I recalled those comments from my daughter about Peirce College. Well, I can now speak from personal experience on just how supportive Peirce College has been in achieving my goal of obtaining a Business Administration degree with a concentration in Management in 2014.
Peirce College's support came through again this spring semester after I experienced my most difficult challenge with the loss of both my mother and brother within 11 days of each other. From the onset, Peirce responded to my inquiries and questions promptly, professionally and consistently. With the courses available online, accelerated schedules and flexible class options, Peirce College was ideal for this hard working business professional to realize my dream of achieving a degree in Business Administration- Management concentration by June 2014, with Magna Cum Laude and Delta Mu Delta International Society honors.
Monday, June 9, 2014
Introducing Analise Dennis of Peirce College’s inaugural Criminal Justice Studies graduating class!
Posted by
Bob Brzenchek
on
Monday, June 09, 2014
Earlier this week, we shared the story of Norman Watford, a Peirce student and Marine who is graduating on June 9 as a part of Peirce’s very first graduating class from our Criminal Justice Studies program.
Norman’s classmate, Analise Dennis, an aspiring member of the juvenile justice field, has also agreed to share her story with us by answering some questions about Peirce, the program, and her educational journey as a whole.
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CRIMINAL JUSTICE: Analise will graduate as a part of our inaugural class tonight! |
Friday, June 6, 2014
United in education: Peirce students and married couple Anthony and Natasha Williams earn their degrees together
Posted by
Michael Schirmer
on
Friday, June 06, 2014
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GRADUATION DAY: Anthony and Natasha Williams will cross the stage together on June 9. |
After attending West Philadelphia High School, Anthony joined the workforce and took classes in computer science until getting into the nursing field in 1999. In 2004, he joined the Army National Guard and he still serves currently.
Wednesday, June 4, 2014
Meet Norman Watford, member of the first-ever Peirce College Criminal Justice Studies graduating class!
Posted by
Bob Brzenchek
on
Wednesday, June 04, 2014
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INAUGURAL CLASS: Norman Watford is a member of the first-ever Peirce College Criminal Justice Studies graduating class! |
This 21st century Criminal Justice program focuses on the issues at hand today, is available to complete online, and provides a collaborative approach to learning that includes access to current industry professionals, allowing students to integrate directly into the field.
Tuesday, June 3, 2014
Meet Kathlyn Cease, our 2014 Commencement Student Speaker
Posted by
Ajeenah Nuriddin-Little
on
Tuesday, June 03, 2014
Commencement is not just about receiving a degree; it’s also about celebrating the unique journey of each Peirce student. Kathlyn Cease, who is graduating in June with her bachelor’s degree in Healthcare Administration, will share her story as the College’s 2014 Commencement Student Speaker.
To get to know Kathlyn a little better before the big event, we sat down and asked her a couple of questions:
To get to know Kathlyn a little better before the big event, we sat down and asked her a couple of questions:
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