As everyone is aware, the coronavirus pandemic has impacted our lives and lifestyles in many ways and has caused us all to take a close look at what is really important. This new world of face masks and social distancing requires us to find creative ways to live lives that reflect our deeply held values. The Principles of Success leadership team determined that this program is of such importance to us and the people we serve that we needed to find a way to continue our program.
With the full commitment and involvement of our POS men and with the enhanced support and participation of the parents, I am pleased to share that we successfully conducted our first virtual session on Saturday, July 11, 2020! Our 2020 Principles of Success class has twenty-eight participants, which includes twenty-two first year participants and six alumni participants.
For the last year or two, members of our leadership team have discussed how we might expand our POS program to serve more young men. This year, because our sessions are being conducted virtually, we have been able to expand our program beyond the Los Angeles area as we have one participant from Massachusetts, one from Texas, two from Lancaster, California, and one from Irvine, California.
While the subject matter that makes up the POS program required some modifications, the basic content continues to be our foundation. We have modified all areas of the POS program with including reducing the duration of our meetings (normally six hours), but increasing our meeting frequency. The mentoring