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James “Frank” Huff knew he wanted to complete his college degree to better position himself for advancement in business and out of a sense of personal fulfillment. However, he didn’t know just how motivated he was until he found himself “sitting on a nothing mattress” in a hot, cinderblock dorm room in Fayette back in…
James F. Odle graduated from UIU’s Self-paced program in June 1980. Jim was made aware of this program by a co-worker while he served in a civilian capacity for the Air Force at Ramstein Air Base in Germany. He had previously earned an Associate Degree at Weber College, Ogden, Utah in business administration and a…
Phil Matthews ’83 looks back with pride at a journey that took him from being born a “poor country boy” in Durham, North Carolina to a nearly 40-year career with stops around the world in the early days of the modern telecommunications industry. Matthews began his long career with General Telephone & Electronics, once the largest…
After eight years toiling in the “computer room” at John Deere’s Quad Cities location, Merlin Sebastian ’76 knew that a college degree would be necessary to reach his goal of working in the company’s systems department. Originally from Postville, Sebastian was aware of Upper Iowa and took classes via UIU’s Correspondence program from 1974-1976, including…
Like many of the thousands of students who entered Upper Iowa University as adult learners, Todd Baird ’94 enrolled at UIU’s Des Moines center in 1992 with earned college credit on his transcript. But Baird’s route to UIU may be one of the more circuitous in UIU’s long history of supporting working adults in their…
Two-time UIU alum plays leading role at Wisconsin’s #1 ranked hospital Robert “Bob” Flannery ’88, ’99 credits a blue-collar work ethic developed as a youngster growing up in small-town Wisconsin, two UIU degrees, and a willingness to learn from others as a few reasons why he now serves on the executive team at Wisconsin’s #1…
We spoke with Bonnie Sadler, Vice President for Business Development at NuCara Pharmacy, about how getting her BS in marketing in 1998 via Upper Iowa’s self-paced Degree Program made an impact on her life and career. “My degree was life-changing. I was in a job, very secure, government job. I chose Upper Iowa because of…
Despite an already established career and no shortage of experience, Robert “Bob” Williams ’76 found himself passed over for promotion again and again while working in Delaware’s state government in the 1970s. Describing himself as “highly qualified except in the area of education,” Williams’ frustration eventually turned to motivation and his sights were set on…
After many years spent working for others, Reinald Carter’s motivation to earn a degree as a non-traditional student stemmed from his desire to sit for the CPA exam and start his own accounting firm. Upon researching options as to how a working, married, father of three would also find the time in the day to…
Who knew air-conditioning could be so important? For Ed Spring ’76, a desire to get out of the sweltering Jacksonville, Florida heat turned into a 50+ year career in aviation. Spring was stationed as a Marine in Jacksonville in 1954 and wasn’t sure what his military assignment might be. When he was shown an airport…
