President's Annual Report 2024 - 3

All Roads Lead Home
/// A FULL-CIRCLE MOMENT FOR INSTRUCTOR DAVID THOMPSON
After earning his bachelor's degree from Penn State
University and spending several years in the energy
industry, David Thompson '19 returned to Lancaster
County and decided to change careers.
As a nontraditional student in the then-new
Electro-Mechanical Technology program at
Thaddeus Stevens College, he fully embraced the
campus experience. He ran cross country and
competed with SkillsUSA. His Amazon internship
led to a full-time position at a fulfillment center out
of state where he managed maintenance techs and
eight miles of conveyances. He later transferred to
an Elizabethtown, PA facility-a relocation that led
him back to the College, this time as an instructor.
" I jumped at the opportunity to give back to the
school and to the next generation of students, " he
said. " The one word I used there was 'opportunity,'
and that's a word that is definitely true for all
students who come to Thaddeus Stevens College.
You see it when you enter the program, when you're
going through your internship, and getting your
job. You even see it after you graduate, with career
services for alumni and all the industry connections. "
As a National Novelty Brush Company scholarship
recipient, David benefited firsthand from those
connections. " That's one of the things I like about
our community. The local manufacturing companies
value the students' education. They value the
students who are coming out of Thaddeus Stevens
College, " he said.
He continues to see the impact of that generosity,
whether through donated equipment for capstone
projects, field trip experiences, or employment
and internship opportunities. A recent classroom
interaction brilliantly sums up his full circle moment:
" I had a student today, he said, 'Mr. Thompson,
I really feel like you guys care about me and my
education. I'm thankful for that.' And I thought, 'You
know what? That's the spirit of Stevens.'-And that's
what made it an easy decision to come back. "
Stevens
Stories:
ANDREW LAU, '22
"
" Thaddeus Stevens
College was able to
teach me things that I
would actually use, in a
manner that was relaxing
and interesting. My professors
were the best teachers I could
have ever asked for. "
3 : President's Annual Report
David Thompson, '19
Thaddeus Stevens College : 3
"
President's Annual Report 2024

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of President's Annual Report 2024
