143 of 365 is an exclamation for graduation in #inkscape #design

Graduation by John LeMasney via lemasney.com

I’m taking part in the graduation ceremony at Rider University today to publicly celebrate my successful acquisition (with honors) of the Master of Arts in Organizational Leadership with a concentration in Communication that I acquired in December of 2009, and I thought it would be fun to explain how that began. In 2007 I had a short conversation with one Kathleen Pierce, a very good friend and a major influence, who suggested that I should pursue my MA at Rider. I said that I wasn’t sure what it would do for me, and that I wasn’t necessarily interested in any of the graduate programs I knew about at Rider. She asked me if I knew about the brand new MA in Organizational Leadership with concentrations in communication and technology, and I said that I didn’t. She handed me a brochure and went on to convince me that it was a very good fit for me, and would benefit me greatly in the long run. I want to take this opportunity to say thank you to Kathleen for giving me a gentle but firm nudge. It was just the thing I wanted, and I just didn’t know. I’ve learned so much, and my life and thinking has been thoroughly altered. I’d also like to thank Liza Watson, the chair of the MAOL program, who has become a good friend, and who inspired my love for research. I’d like to congratulate all of my successful cohorts, like Ayo, Watts, Jillian, Michele, Laurie, and the rest. Best to you in your endeavors! Finally, I’d like to thank my wife Dawn and my family for allowing all the late nights of writing, studying, and reading, as well as their encouragement.