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 high school, they didn’t have an accelerated program to graduate early. I wanted to grow up and enter the workforce, but it still was important to get that quality education and it was important to me to still have that high school diploma.” Listen to his story here.

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 design and professional skills, giving her the confidence and tools needed to work with a broad range of clients and projects.

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 science.

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 Villanova University.

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 needed to succeed in her dream career.

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 help of Ashworth.

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 a way to continue on her upward climb to reaching her goals in the vet profession, she enrolled in Penn Foster’s Veterinary Assistant Career Diploma Program to help her gain the skills to move up in her career. “It was easy to be able to maintain a fulltime job and do schooling at the same time… I was able to adjust my schedule and still be able to achieve what I wanted to achieve. If anyone is thinking about pursuing a veterinary technician degree, I would definitely suggest Penn Foster.” Listen to her story.

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 was always a personal goal of mine to finish, much less to be the first in my family, I can’t really explain how amazing it really is.” Listen to her story.