unlocking potential
triston francis ’08

 

Triston Francis ’08 is a firm believer in giving back. A loyal donor to The Peddie Fund, Triston has chosen to designate his current-use gifts for financial assistance, helping others gain access to the kind of education he and his brother, Tymon ’06, received at Peddie.

Eaglebrook School. Peddie. The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. Harvard Business School. Triston attended an impressive lineup of schools, but the journey along the way was not easy.

When Triston was in elementary school, his brother, Tymon, was accepted into Prep for Prep. The organization helps students from underserved communities gain access to independent junior and secondary schools to improve their preparation for college and life. Tymon went first to Eaglebrook, a junior boarding school in Massachusetts, and then to Peddie. Triston was not invited to be part of Prep for Prep, but his resolute mother made a personal plea to Eaglebrook to take a chance on accepting him.  

Peddie was a transformative experience for me which set me up for success.” Triston Francis ’08

 

Having arrived at his new school with limited skills and never having read a book cover-to-cover, Triston knew he had his work cut out for him. The 11-year-old tackled reading as if it were the assignment of a lifetime, reading before school began and after study hall, while learning to live independently in a new community far from home.

After Eaglebrook, Triston followed Tymon to Peddie. But Triston struggled to keep up with Peddie’s rigorous academic programming, work that often kept him up well after study hall hours. Then the insight of an especially attentive Peddie teacher changed the course of his life.

Triston’s 10th-grade geometry teacher, Mark Sawula P’17 ’22, noticed his strong work ethic and fierce determination to succeed. Mark encouraged Triston to meet with the school’s educational support team, which diagnosed him with dyslexia and taught him strategies that improved his outlook and performance in the classroom.

Other keys to his success at Peddie were Triston’s inordinate ability to seek extra help and always be willing to improve. He balanced a heavy workload of academic and co-curricular activities, including serving as a dorm prefect and Blue Key Tour Guide, playing basketball and participating in the Multicultural Alliance. 

Triston Francis '08

From left: Triston ’08 and his brother, Tymon ’06

The new approach to learning Triston developed at Peddie positioned him well for his years at Wharton and later at Harvard Business School, where he was joined by Peddie friends Jarrid Tingle ’09 and Paul Ampofo ’10. A decade later, Triston told Director of Alumni Relations Brian Davidson, “Peddie was a transformative experience for me which set me up  for success.” 

After beginning his career in banking, in August 2019, Triston’s wanderlust took him to Singapore as a consultant for the Boston Consulting Group. Within weeks of his arrival, he was a featured speaker at Peddie’s first-ever admission reception in Singapore. His riveting depiction of his educational journey and the lasting influence of Peddie’s faculty made a strong impression on the audience.

In a Forbes online feature on leadership that focused on Triston, he expressed his gratitude to others. “As a first-generation college student, none of what I have accomplished would have been feasible without the support of countless mentors. I am excited to pay it forward.”