Fall 2011 - Urbana University

The first time rich Ebert was on campus, he was two
weeks old. His father and mother, Harry and Jan
Ebert, were both faculty members at Urbana and his mother
is often quoted saying, “I don’t think anyone ever leaves
Urbana. It becomes part of your soul.” With the message
ingrained in rich, he graduated from Urbana High School
in 1989 and with a performing arts scholarship in hand,
sealed the deal on his decision to attend Urbana University.
rich was a “very big fish in a small pond” in college.
rich said, “The friends that I met were great. Socially, I
excelled. I loved playing in the pep band.” However, when
rich began to work full time, he started to struggle with
attending class and the freedom college provided. He said,
“It quickly became an issue.” Many were surprised when
rich made the decision to withdraw from campus.
Life didn’t stop for rich when he left college. He got
married, fathered two children, and changed jobs several
times. rich found success in the workforce, but wasn’t
satisfied. When his children were at the age when they were
bringing home schoolwork, he found himself facing some
challenging life decisions. “I couldn’t tell them that higher
education was very important if I didn’t have a degree,” said
rich. He was out of excuses for not completing his degree
when he started working with a company that had tuition
reimbursement; the future became a little clearer for rich
and his family.
rich enrolled in Urbana, for the second time, in 2005 at the
age of 34 and began the adult and Continuing Education
program. Taking one class at a time and six years later, rich
is a 2011 graduate with his bachelor’s degree in business
Management/Human Services. With an honest approach he
will tell you, “I could have gone online; I could have gone to
Wright State, a bigger school. but I chose Urbana. I chose
it because it was close and I knew that I needed the social
interaction. I needed to be able to ask the questions and
RICH
ebert
this time be able to put my nose to the grindstone. I enjoyed
the learning and I definitely enjoyed the discussions; the
exchange of ideas between students and faculty. The adult
program is where I learned the most. It helped to have
faculty who have been in the business world. They were a
great advantage to the program.”
“It took me more than six years to complete my degree,”
rich muses without regret. The degree completion has
impacted his family, too. His wife, Lisa (pictured above,
right), is currently enrolled at Urbana and is working
towards her degree in education. Most importantly, his
children appreciate what rich and Lisa have gone through
as adult learners. He is confident in his decision to finish his
degree at Urbana and is proud that he serves as an example
for his children. ■
Featured alumni in this issue independently contacted
the Office of Alumni Relations to share their
experiences.
Want to tell us your story? Contact (937) 484-1282
or email alumni@urbana.edu for story or spotlight
consideration.
If this issue of Urbana Update is addressed to someone in your
household who has moved, please notify Alumni Relations at
(937) 484-1282 or alumni@urbana.edu.
Urbana Update | Fall 2011 | 5