A letter:
My name is Kathy Esposito, and I’d like to share with you how I processed all that HPU has to offer. As a parent with four children, two current HPU students and two HPU graduates, I have some “veteran insights” that might alleviate some of your worries after going on tour. I work in customer care in New Jersey. My customers don’t have time for 15-page documents, so I’ve tried to keep this concise and to the point.
As we drove away from our first visit with my oldest son, all he could talk about was the dorm room and the Slane Center workout space.
Don’t worry! They are still kids, after all! Yes, they love the campus and all it offers outside the classroom, but their Success Coach, their professors and even their peers will keep them focused on learning. My son Nick talked about HPU dorms for two weeks after we visited. He’s now gone on to graduate from HPU and even earned two master’s degrees, one in Business Administration and one in Business Leadership and Communication. He was heavily involved with organizations on campus. Nick served as the Director of Greek Involvement, the Director of Philanthropy for Beta Theta Pi, a Peer Mentor for incoming freshmen, the Vice President of Toccatatones (HPU all-male Acapella group) and the President of the Inter-Fraternity Council. Nick is currently a territory manager at Legacy Studios. My daughter Ruby completed a double major in Nonprofit Leadership Management and Education Studies. During her time at HPU, she was able to launch “Reading with Ruby,” a YouTube channel where she read her favorite books to children and parents who tuned in. With the outstanding support from her professors and peers, she was able to finish up her student-teaching internship at Fairview Elementary School despite the pandemic that was impacting the entire nation. She now serves as a customer care manager at Nationwide Studios. Currently, the two of my youngest sons are at HPU living their best lives. Cosmo, Class of 2024, recently graduated with a major in Business Administration and a minor in Philosophy. During his time at HPU, he was elected to be the SGA representative for Big Brothers Big Sisters and was a member of the Beta Theta Pi fraternity. Cosmo will continue his education at High Point University and attend HPU’s new Kahn School of Law which will welcome its inaugural class in fall 2024. Mac, Class of 2025, is also a Business Administration major at the Phillips School of Business. He is pursuing a minor in Entrepreneurship with plans to pursue his MBA from High Point University after finishing up his undergrad studies. Mac is involved with the Entrepreneurship Club and Beta Theta Pi fraternity. As you can probably gather, my kids fell in love and continue to fall in love with HPU and everything they have to offer.
Bottom line: HPU students succeed in academic pursuits and professional development AND still enjoy a campus that offers so many benefits.
HPU students and parents are part of a unique group that have discovered the education HPU offers is highly relevant in the real world — and difficult to find in other college environments. You may be thinking, “It all looks so amazing. What’s missing?” I get it. I thought that, too. I began to research what employers want in employees and thought about what I look for. The more I uncovered, the more I recognized that HPU’s First-Year Seminar on Life Skills led by President Nido Qubein and some of his most influential friends and many of the other mentoring programs that HPU fosters are directly answering the needs of modern hiring organizations. Name another school where a parent receives a text from their son, a Business Administration major, saying he and his fellow classmates are heading into a meeting with Apple Co-Founder Steve Wozniak. I’ve received that text, and let me tell you, there’s no other school.
Bottom line: HPU truly DOES provide an extraordinary education.
What struck me immediately after the tour was the culture of the school. It was different. We could see and hear the attention to detail on campus and the emphasis that was placed on teaching real-life lessons in not just the classroom, but also through the way they live on campus. As a parent, I felt that HPU was the perfect place for students to grow – lots of space for independence in the transition to adulthood, but with caring oversight and accountability from faculty and staff to ensure they don’t get lost or miss out on opportunities along the way. It took me a while after the visit to nail it down, but after touring so many other colleges, it finally hit me: HPU has an intentional culture. They want my kid to live an intentional life.
Yes, HPU grads enjoy a 99% placement rate for employment or continuing education within 180 days after they graduate.
Yes, HPU has an impressive network of parents and alumni who help lead to that outcomes data point.
Just as important for me, HPU instills the values of service, generosity and gratitude in their students. They are not afraid to tell students their faith is important. In fact, I’ve heard Dr. Qubein speak about his belief in God and that being a patriot doesn’t mean you agree with everything your country does. Instead, you actively appreciate living in a nation that abundantly offers opportunities. I didn’t see this type of conviction and intentionality on any other college campus.
The campus environment teaches students to take pride in their surroundings. The campus is beautiful, but it’s instilled in the students to keep it that way. It teaches them to strive for greatness in everything else they do: their work, the way they treat others, the kind of person they become. The environment at HPU sets the standard and instills a great lesson for how they treat their workplace and their home in the future.
You’ve discovered a unique school that is extremely relevant in our world today. I hope my reflections help you on this college selection journey. I hope to meet you at an upcoming HPU Parents Weekend.
Bottom line: HPU promotes the same values that I’ve attempted to instill in my children. Why would I voluntarily pay to have that value system actively dismantled?
Top Six Unique Experiences That Transform HPU Students
They major in a variety of fields, join different clubs and find unique passions. But one thing all HPU students have in common is time spent The First-Year Seminar on Life Skills with President Qubein and Friends. During the course, Dr. Qubein uses his life experience as an entrepreneur, leader and esteemed communicator to impart real-world wisdom to all freshmen. Taking the course during their first year allows students to view the rest of their coursework through the lens of practical application. After graduating, alumni often cite the class as a catalyst for their personal and professional transformation.
HPU’s Access to Innovators program has evolved into a robust lineup of change agents who come to coach, mentor and work with students. Students across campus learn from global leaders such as Apple Co-Founder Steve Wozniak, HPU’s Innovator in Residence; Netflix Co-Founder Marc Randolph, HPU’s Entrepreneur in Residence; ABC “Nightline” Co-Anchor Byron Pitts, HPU’s Journalist in Residence; Dallas Mavericks CEO Cynt Marshall, HPU’s Sports Executive in Residence; and famed sportswriter for “The Boston Globe” Bob Ryan, HPU’s Sports Reporter in Residence, just to name a few.
LIFE SKILLS As The Premier Life Skills University, HPU not only instills necessary Life Skills in students, but also provides opportunities across campus to test those skills. Executive boardrooms throughout campus allow students to practice their business pitches in a corporate setting. 1924 PRIME, Alo and Kazoku, HPU’s fine-dining learning labs, educate and test students on formal dining etiquette and international cuisine — skills put to good use beyond graduation when business deals and interviews are conducted over dinner. Inside Cottrell Hall is the International Student Concourse, home to the airplane fuselage — the profile of a plane’s interior that teaches students how to turn everyday encounters into networking opportunities.
Whether it’s an encouraging phone call, a congratulatory email, a high five after landing that dream internship or a much needed closed-door meeting, mentorship matters at High Point University. HPU takes a cohesive approach to creating an ecosystem of support on campus. Students are connected with Success Coaches, a freshman-year personal advisor who assists in transitioning each student by plugging them into best-fit classes and organizations across campus. Mentorship continues with faculty mentors, peer mentors, academic advisors, career advisors and so many more. Support services such as an on-campus, full-time medical doctor, resident directors, counseling services, religious life staff and more are plentiful to ensure students feel at home. HPU surrounds students with caring heroes, models and mentors who connect with students as they prepare them to become future leaders. Successful HPU graduates note that the easy to find support offered at HPU propelled them to their dream job.
EXPERIENTIAL LEARNING At HPU, 25% of classes have an experiential learning component that stretches students and pushes them to find out firsthand what “real” means. Whether it’s education majors conducting a reading program with local elementary students, physics students hosting community members for HPUniverse Day or strategic communication majors running an on-campus public relations firm that services local nonprofits, students are encouraged to put their skills to the test. When students see an opportunity to expand their experience, HPU is there to help. Emmy Beck-Aden, a 2022 graduate, and her peers produced the Train concert during Family Weekend on the Jumbotron and other video screens inside the Qubein Center. Beck-Aden is currently a production coordinator for CNBC.
If you don’t stand for something, you’ll fall for anything. HPU is committed to instilling values in its students. HPU is a God, family and country school. Values are important —personal initiative, generosity, gratitude, civility and respect, among others, are treasured. Not only are they treasured, they are practiced by each and every member of High Point University faculty, staff and students. By modeling these values, students learn the importance of being grateful and giving back, as demonstrated by the 500,000 hours of community service students accumulate each year. Not only that, but the physical campus environment reinforces HPU’s values. Hundreds of American flags fly, inspiring quotes are etched in the sidewalks where students walk to class and sculptures of notable historical figures are found lining the Kester International Promenade. Students understand how to pave a path to success framed with significance, and they graduate grounded in strong beliefs.
Parent Perspective
My family and other HPU families appreciate HPU’s commitment to values-based learning and living. Watch as HPU families and students, including my husband and I, explain why HPU was the right fit.
If your student has not yet granted you access to view their application information through your Parent Panther Page, be sure to nudge them to do that ASAP.
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