Testimonials:

“Having seen your live presentations in the past, I was in awe of how you delivered your message virtually with the same passion and enthusiasm. It was an engaging and powerful evening for all families and staff who attended!”

Jayme Fitzpatrick

Deer Valley Unified School District

“Our K-12 school district staff and community were captivated and inspired by Mark’s dynamic presentation. His virtual keynote was as good as, or even better than if he had been here in person. It was a powerful and compelling message that resonated throughout our entire organization and inspired us to take decisive action.”

Tod Kline
Superintendent at Waynesboro Area School District

“Appreciated the passion and enthusiasm he exhibited.”

Carolyn Lee
Community Development/Relationship Manager at Huntington Bank

“We reluctantly pivoted from our live, face-to-face event to a virtual one. We were skeptical about the change, and had a hard time believing it would be as engaging or effective as the “real thing”. However, Mark confidently assured us that he would provide us with a dynamic and engaging virtual experience unlike any other.

After months of cautious planning and uncertainty, the day finally came and, honestly, we were absolutely blown away! Mark has an incredible way of pulling the viewer in and making them feel like he is physically in the room. He welcomed individual teachers as they entered the call, as if he were standing in the doorway of a brick-and-mortar building. It was as if Mark was having a one-on-one conversation with each and every one of the 65 attendees on the call. He began the first day with a keynote address, then a Q&A session, followed by other engaging activities and discussions for the remainder of the seminar. Every teacher was engaged—for hours. Our teachers were connected to every aspect of Mark’s program from beginning to end, and the time flew by. After two robust days of professional development, most people would be dragging, but our teachers were energized and motivated to continue the work. As Mark wrapped up, many teachers commented in the chat about how much they LOVED the seminar and how appreciative they were to have the opportunity to work with him. In the days following the event, we were still receiving emails and messages from the attendees expressing their gratitude and appreciation for such a successful event.”

Ron Weston and Nick Mugridge
Career Technical Education, Riverside Unified School District

“This virtual presentation re-affirmed my belief that education and workforce development and economic development are all part of the same system!”

Peter Geise
President at FocusCFO

“Mark Perna delivered an incredibly dynamic and impactful presentation to my staff — virtually. It felt like he was actually here and speaking directly to each person. My staff are inspired and reinvigorated by what they learned. His powerful message kept us engaged for more than two hours. He made a significant, positive impact here!”

Amy Stafford
Principal, Kohala High School

“With just a few dynamic virtual sessions, Mark has made a significant impact by inspiring my staff during a stressful time. My entire group was engaged, motivated, and excited to get back to their students and implement fresh strategies to help them build their competitive advantage…and it’s working!”

Will Sarett
Director, Career & College Readiness, Yakima School District

“Thank you again! I was such a skeptic about online presentations initially and you were totally funny and engaging and I loved the content. I told my partner who was offscreen, this guy is funny. Aloha!”

Nadine Kulberg
Kohala High School

“I like the perspective shift and language that I can use to articulate that shift. Very engaging speaker, with so many great stories to share! I love the way he presents virtually and that this message is spreading! This is what EVERYONE needs to hear!”

Shelby Greene
Math Educator and Department Chair

“I now understand why kids ask why.”

Amber Corrales
Social Studies Teacher

“Thank you so much, this was my second time seeing you. I saw you at the CTE conference where you were the keynote. I am so grateful to hear you speak again virtually, it was so inspiring. In your words, feel good about how you are changing the world, because you are just as much as us teachers are. Thank you so much!”

Jacqueline Meggs
Teacher

“Thank you for your time and energy!! Would have loved to see you in person but you made a virtual presentation very enjoyable!!”

Ross Pagat
Community School Manager

“If the “Want To” is strong enough the “How To” will come! Mark was awesome! I’m part of Gen X, his virtual presentation was very engaging and helped me to understand how Gen Y and Gen Z think. I look forward to reading his entire book, “Answering Why.” It’ll make me a better mom and teacher.”

Florene Kaai
Secondary Teacher

“WOW WOW WOW! Loved every speeding minute of it! Kept wishing I could share it with others. Thank you. This is a game changer.”

Minerva White
Paraprofessional

“I thoroughly enjoyed the virtual presentation and want to get his book. It has made me look at transition in a very different light.”

Tracy Suddreth
Special Education Teacher and Coordinator

“The virtual presentation was wonderful! Mark was very engaging and had a lot of good information. I enjoyed his keynote address very much (and I went and bought his book on Amazon)!!!”

Kara Quevi
SpEd Teacher

“This is an excellent way to shift our paradigm, especially in the virtual realm.”

Russ Goddard
Vocational Rehabilitation Specialist

“This was my 16th “opening day” event and today’s [virtual] speaker was the most inspiring I’ve ever seen here.”

K. Grantham
Sr. 3D Animation Instructor

“I would love to see in person, and have more interactive opportunities. Over all best virtual speaker I have seen this year (and there has been a lot!).”

Joe Kalfus
Program Director, HRM, Culinary, And Baking

“This has been the best presentation I have ever seen in my 10 years in education. And you did it through a computer screen — there’s not much better motivation than that! THANK YOU!!”

Mary Harkins
Prince William College

“Thank you, Mark! This [virtual presentation] has been the best CTE Secondary Keynote we’ve had in my 16-year career! Awesome!”

Christina Mullins
Prince William College

“This [virtual keynote] has been the best presentation I’ve ever experienced! It is so motivating and makes me so glad that I chose to come to CTE!”

Gayle Gonzalez
Prince William College

“This [virtual] presentation was great and really helped me to understand what’s most important to the different age groups. I can also apply these techniques when I’m teaching my colleagues as well. Thanks again.”

Veretta Parker
Simulation Instructor

“Was very pleased with the content of this [virtual] presentation — very inspiring in a year which begs to be un-inspirational.”

Joe Magrini
Digital Cinema & Television Production Instructor

“You are a very engaging presenter! Most zoom presentations have been boring but this was great!!!! Thank you!”

Sandra Owen
Instructional Assistant