Early days: Learning the value of college

0 Comments | USA TODAY, February, 2007 | by Kevin Maney

Q: What were your circumstances growing up?

A: My family had come from outside of Scranton, Pa., and that's where I grew up. Neither of my parents went to college. So, for me, very early on, I knew the value of education. And at times the family was financially challenged, and so I learned the value of hard work.

Q: What did your dad do?

A: He did water systems-type work. Worked a lot with his hands. Ran a family sort of hardware store for a while. And wasn't the best businessman in the world.

Q: If anyone then had said, "Wendell's going to be CEO of a Fortune 500 company someday"?

A: There could have been laughter. It was never a goal of mine.

Q: You went to Lehigh University and majored in?

A: Accounting...