Synthesis Essay Joseph Vincent Paterno - 1407 Words

Synthesis Essay – Joseph Vincent Paterno MSgt Allen W. Hewitt Air Force Senior Noncommissioned Officer Academy September 10, 2014 Instructor: MSgt Travis Pyle Joe Paterno Picture this, walking down a tunnel into a stadium with 106,000 fans screaming we are PENN STATE! Joe Paterno lived this every Saturday for 46 years. Joseph Vincent Paterno was born 21 December 1926 in Brooklyn, NY. He attended Brown University where he majored in law, while playing football as a quarterback and cornerback. Upon graduation he was on course to become the lawyer that he father wanted, but Penn State University came calling with a coaching offer. They saw the leadership qualities of a visionary and because of†¦show more content†¦Let me now call an audible to the visionary leadership of the man they called â€Å"Joepa†. Visionary Leader Joes vision was to build a powerhouse university program. He took over a not so great football program, but as a visionary his role was to be innovative in educating, mentoring, and guiding young adults who are searching for meaning and purpose. He started with turning the student athlete graduation rate around, using individual consideration, where leaders treat others as individuals with different needs, abilities, and aspirations in just 5 years he took the rate up 10 percent and maintained a 80 percent graduation rate throughout his tenure crushing the NCAA standard of 67 percent. Next was creating an organized group to work together, a team. He took the names off the back of the jerseys and left the helmets plain white promoting the team aspect, teambuilding not me building. Now to build a fan base, he developed and articulated visions from the future. He looked out the window and saw a stadium that barely held 30,000 people in 1968. Joe held a 75 percent winning percentage over 46 years, 37 bowl appearances, and 2 national championships. His inspirational motivation created the second largest college stadium seating 106,157 fans. He spoke at multiple clinics, banquets, and charities extending his knowledge to diverse groups. In 2000 Adam Taliaferro was paralyzed on the first play of