[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 138 (Thursday, November 13, 2014)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1563-E1564]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




              HONORING THE LIFE OF JOHN GLEN SPERLING, PHD

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. NANCY PELOSI

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, November 13, 2014

  Ms. PELOSI. Mr. Speaker, today, I rise to celebrate the life and 
legacy of Dr. John Glen Sperling, the visionary educator, entrepreneur, 
and University of Phoenix founder who passed away in August at the age 
of 93.
  Sperling embraced education as the foundation for living a full 
life--and as a resource for overcoming poverty and creating new ladders 
of opportunities for fellow citizens to fulfill their potential.
  Throughout his life, Sperling drew wisdom from the wellspring of his 
own experience. Coming of age in rural Missouri during the Great 
Depression, Sperling struggled with childhood illnesses, physical 
abuse, and learning disabilities. When he received his secondary school 
diploma, Sperling was still illiterate.
  He decided to join the U.S. Merchant Marine, where he would finally 
learn to read. After the U.S. entered the Second World War, Sperling 
joined the U.S. Army Air Corps. His service made him eligible for the 
educational benefits of the G.I. Bill.
  The affordable education made available through the G.I. bill 
unlocked previously unimaginable possibilities for Sperling. He 
discovered a passion for learning, receiving his Bachelor's from Reed 
College and earning a Master's in history from the University of 
California at Berkeley. He capped his studies with a Ph.D. in 18th 
century mercantile history from the University of Cambridge.
  Education had lifted the sharecroppers' son to attend one of the most 
august institutions in the English-speaking world, and Sperling was 
determined to help other non-traditional students realize their full 
potential.
  So began the passion for education that would become Sperling's 
defining legacy. As a professor at San Jose State University, Sperling 
made a point of working with police officers and other educators who 
aided teenagers with behavioral troubles--championing the value of 
flexible, patient, and non-judgmental teaching for students struggling 
to find their way forward.
  Sperling knew there was an opportunity and a need for an institution 
dedicated to people reaching for education at all times of their 
lives--a place that recognized the circumstances of students already 
juggling the demands of work or a family.
  As he wrote in his memoir, Sperling found himself a ``Rebel With a 
Cause,'' working to put higher education within the grasp of working 
adults. In 1973, Sperling started what

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would become the University of Phoenix, one of the largest institutions 
of higher education.
  Sperling created an institution that has empowered thousands of 
working adults with the tools needed to provide a better quality of 
life for themselves and their families. His enduring legacy of 
innovation and entrepreneurship in education has inspired new thinking 
and a renewed focus on non-traditional students across all of academia.
  John Sperling inspired so many Americans to see--and seize--the 
opportunities in their lives. We hope that it is a comfort to son, 
Peter, his family, Joan Hawthorne, his companion, and all of John's 
loved ones that so many share their sadness.

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