Grad Year: 2006
Hometown: Grundy Center, Iowa
Family: Married, Two kids (Jon 17, and Ana, 14), 2 dogs and two cats
Undergraduate Degrees: Bachelor's of Technical and General Studies (Psychology)
Current Position: Finance Program Chair and Assistant Professor, Ashford University
Past work experience: 9 years at General Motors working in Diagnostic Development. 16 years John Deere working in Diagnostic Development and then Consumer Research. I left John Deere 3 years ago to follow my passion and teach for a living.
What were your three biggest take-aways from your education at St. Ambrose?
There are three things that I distinctly remember from my time at St. Ambrose, and each of the three things can directly be attributed to three professors.
#1 - Dr. Judy Schreiber - To really understand something, you must first internalize it, or make it your own. I really didn't understand this until I started teaching. I now try to get students to make their learning part of themselves.
#2 - Dr. Monica Forret - "What is the construct?" When I review papers, or listen to presentations at conferences, I ask "What is the construct". What are we trying to understand?
#3 - Dr. Arun Pilluta - "What are the boundaries?" When I approach an unfamiliar situation or problem, I think back like it was yesterday to Dr. Pilluta asking me "What are the boundaries?" What he was saying is, what is in, and what is out? My take away was, focus on the core of the issue. Negate the stuff that does not belong. It is noise.
What gives you inspiration?
What inspires me is the belief that if I can dream it, it can be a reality. One of my favorite quotes is "The goal is to fixate on what you want to create" (Cohen, 2006). All my successes have stemmed from fixating on a goal, and then putting the plan into motion.
How do your advanced degrees help you in your job today? In your personal life?
My advanced degrees are as follows: Masters of Science - Finance - Walsh College of Business; MBA - University of Northern Iowa; DBA - St. Ambrose; Master of Teaching and Learning with Technology (in progress at Ashford University with a graduation date of August 1, 2016).
My job is all about developing and teaching Finance classes and programs, so my degrees have all supported this activity. Each degree makes a unique contribution to my professional success. The Master of Science in Finance sets the foundation for my financial knowledge. I leverage my MBA to run my programs like a business, and my DBA gives me the academic grounding to build successful programs.
As far as helping me in my personal life, the degrees have been an enormous asset. The Finance degree gives me great insight as to how to generate and allocate personal capital. As a household, we are like a micro-business where we need a cash stream in and have to allocate that money. As an MBA, I treat myself as a business entity. As an example, I am responsible for branding, product placement, economic assessment, and capital generation and allocation. In fact, I term this "Me, Inc."
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