On January 25, 2018, Shorelight Education celebrated its fifth anniversary. In honor of reaching this milestone, the organization hosted an anniversary event with an array of luminaries from Boston’s innovational economic, education, and political worlds in attendance. Speakers included Tom Dretler, CEO of Shorelight; Basil Cleveland, Executive Vice President of Shorelight; Lauren Jones, Director of Business Strategy for the City of Boston; and Jesse Mermell, President of the Alliance for Business Leadership. The program also included a special field degree lesson demo by Bryan Polivka, Senior Director for the Field Degree program. Sharing the day with team members, students, partners, and friends, Shorelight reflected on its remarkable successes over the last five years.

“We made a pact when we started the company. We were going to bring students to the United States and bring great American Universities to students. We made that commitment together,” said Dretler.

After five years, Shorelight shines with a unique opportunity to make a difference. Shorelight has seen growth in every aspect of the business. 500 team members have successfully nurtured 15 university partnerships and connected thousands of students with their American educations.

Fulfilling their mission of opening American universities to the world and creating life-changing experiences, Shorelight continues to prioritize their students first and foremost. Shorelight is thrilled to report that their student retention and satisfaction rates exceed 90 percent, making them among the very best in U.S. higher education. As the organization has expanded, Shorelight has assembled an all-star team across the globe that has touched the lives of thousands of students worldwide, affording them the opportunity to thrive in world-class college campus settings, graduate from leading U.S. institutions, and succeed as globally minded alumni.

Recognized for its awarded-winning corporate culture, Shorelight is dedicated to cultivating a prosperous workplace for all. The extraordinary company culture encourages collaboration and empowers its employees to make meaningful contributions to its corporate purpose of educating the world. Shorelight’s team members are the heart and soul of the mission-driven organization. This year, Shorelight Education was named one of The Boston Globe’s Top Places to Work. Looking to the future, the organization will continue its commitment to provide a purposeful, collaborative, and healthy workplace for its nearly 500 team members.

As Shorelight continues to evolve as an organization, the team will continue in its pursuit of finding innovative ways to best serve students and reinvent the international education experience. Looking ahead to the next five years, Shorelight hopes to expand its global reach, positively impacting the educational journeys of even more students and continuing to serve students and ensure their ultimate success.