A President's Reflections

A Student Letter

Posted on August 17, 2009

I returned from vacation today and in the mountain of snail mail awaiting me I found a lovely letter from one of our Online students.  Let’s call him Ken.  Ken is from Virginia ,has Muscular Dystrophy, and is confined to a wheelchair.  Respiratory illnesses pose a particular danger, so studying from the safety of home is important.  Ken has completed his first two years of his undergraduate degree. 

He finally came up to visit his university with his parents.  He loaded up with souvenirs, met staff and faculty, and toured the campus (and helpfully pointed out where we might improve access).

He wrote:

“I wanted to write so that you would know what a great impact SNHU has had on my life.  It is a true blessing to study here.  My fellow students always amaze me with their dedication to earning a college degree.  I’ve studied with wounded veterans, active-duty soldiers, those working two jobs, and parents caring for multiple children.  although I’d never been to NH before July, I’ve made several great friends during my time at SNHU.  I don’t know whether or not most students write to you only when they are unhappy, but I can certainly report that I am very pleased with my program.  My family and friends are very impressed with SNHU, as well.  (I’m even trying to convince a couple of them to enroll!).  You all (or “ya’ll” as we might say here) have a definite following in my hometown of Clintwood, VA.

So, thank you for offering the education you do in a format that’s perfect for a student like me.  I’m proud to wear my SNHU apparel, apply an SNHU sticker to my van, sign into Blackboard with my mouse atop an SNHU mouse pad, write my name with an SNHU pen, and warm up under my new SNHU blanket!  I look forward to my remaining two years of undergraduate classes.  Then, who knows, maybe SNHU graduate school — if I can afford it!”

Ken cites by name people like Hyla Jaffe, Jennifer Owens, and Nicholas Marks.  As he said, “I can honestly say that everyone I visited at SNHU was extremely kind and helpful.”

In many ways, the much of SNHU’s value system is reflected in Ken’s letter: our history of reaching out to underserved populations; warmth and support, diverse students population, innovative and high quality delivery of education.  What a nice way to start back to work!

One thought on “A Student Letter

  1. Jason Mayeu says:

    That’s great news Paul. What a great letter. It’s students like Ken, that have overcome odds to get an education at SNHU, that should be at the top of our list in regards to getting the SNHU value system noted, highlighted and promoted. Ken shows us, once again, that although any education can be valuable, the true value of an SNHU education, aside from the high quality education itself, is the relationships, support and innovative delivery that sets us apart from others.

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