speaker Kurt Berning
By Vince Teresi
“What you do now…matters,” Kurt Berning emphasized during a recent 40-minute presentation to the Kennedy High School student body.
A 2008 valedictorian, Berning was in town for a brief visit with family and friends before continuing his globe-trotting adventures that have spanned six continents.
After graduation from the University of Portland, Berning received a prestigious Fulbright scholarship to continue advanced studies in the United Kingdom in pursuit of a master’s degree. His bachelor degree was in the area of finance and business.
The Mount Angel native, son of Herb and Bernice Berning, said, “The best thing you can get from traveling is perspective. You look beyond the small town of Mount Angel and see it as relative to other places.”
Berning said travel is beneficial; otherwise, one tends to become insular or “narrow-minded in your outlook on life.”
In answer to a student’s question about whether he needed to have a perfect 4.0 grade point average to be granted a Fulbright scholarship, he said, “No. What they are looking at is: What did you do? Who you are…where you’ve been.”
He urged students to develop the quality of self-discipline during their high school years. He explained that Fulbright scholarships are available in three ways: to teach English; to do research work any place in the world; to pursue a master’s degree in your choice of study. Berning chose the latter experience and attended the University of East Anglia in England.
He said he really didn’t do what he would consider as “cool things” while in high school. But, he was team captain of the cross country team, a member of the school band, an officer in the FBLA (Future Business Leaders of America) organization and an all-league basketball player. He emphasized the value of becoming involved in school activities and to “push your classmates toward a goal, to be willing to fail, and to improve yourself each day.”
Berning’s message to the attentive audience was impressive. He said that “Kennedy students can really do cool things if you get passionate about your goals, are supportive of one another, and persist in your efforts to reach that goal.”
Berning told the students that taking small steps in high school are important.
“…reaching a little further each time and expanding your efforts,” he said. “Doing different things are not really a risk, because each step you take now will be useful after leaving high school.”
He told the students not to listen to any “put downs” and to support one another in their goals.
Berning’s casual, at times comedic, presentation held the audience’s attention. He pointed out that high school provides some good preparation for the journey through life, “…like your formation of friendships; your grades and attendance; the sports and extra-curricular involvement; your relationships with others; the forming of some good habits.”
And yes, Berning admitted, he also experienced those romantic breakups that commonly occur during high school years.
He also confessed to selling Snicker Bars out of his locker (for which some classmates made fun of him!)
But, he felt he was delving into the “feeling of being an entrepreneur.” Berning said he started “getting involved in things” as a sixth grader.
He once attended a Parent-Teachers meeting and thought about running for a student body office. He then became president of the FBLA organization at Kennedy.
He’s had a whirlwind of travel adventures from living in Australia for five months, being in an entrepreneur program in China; living in Kenya, Peru and Honduras and studying at University of East Anglia in England.
Looking back on his travels, Berning said, “About the nicest place I lived was in Kenya. The prices are low and the people are very friendly. In Perth, Western Australia, the hourly minimum wage is $20. In Ecuador, they take advantage of you for money, and you really have to protect your passport at all times!
“In China, the people have a passion for travel. And I loved the food in the United Kingdom, where they serve up some spicy Indian food!”
Berning has also found time to co-found a non-profit organization “Global Ade” that has raised about $20,000 annually for humanitarian causes, striving to build and strengthen education in Cambodia and other developing countries.
When asked what teachers at Kennedy High may have contributed to his accomplishments, Berning named English teacher Bruce McDonald from whom he learned the art of writing. Also, he mentioned retired teacher John Kuppenbender who told him, “To be successful in the classroom, you have to be part-teacher and part-entertainer!”
When the assembly bell rang, the Kennedy High School student body returned to their classes with a more positive outlook on their daily school life and an inspired attitude about life . They came to realize that “What you do now…matters.”
