Throughout his experiences working with colleges and universities, Wabash College Trustee Ted Grossnickle ’73 has come to appreciate the uniqueness of the College. In his Chapel talk he explored the difference and what that means for Wabash men in the greater world. Click here to listen to the podcast of his entire Chapel talk.
Grossnickle began his talk reminiscing about meaningful events in his life that took place in the Chapel. He stated to him the Chapel represented the “timelessness of the College.”
Grossnickle is Chairman and CEO of Johnson, Grossnickle, and Associates (JGA), which provides counsel to colleges, universities, and other non-profits. It is through this work that he really began to notice Wabash standing out among the crowd.
He posed the question, “What causes alumni to interact with and give to their respective schools?” He stated that between 30 and 38 percent of Wabash alumni make financial contributions to the College where most other schools are fortunate to get 20 percent of their students to make a gift. “Why is Wabash different?”
For him, it’s a matter of trust. “Wabash trusts its students. Everyday regardless of where you live, what you study, or where you eat, from the moment you arrive to the moment you walk off campus, you are trusted to follow just one rule.”
Given that level of trust, he concludes gives one “enormous control over his own destiny. He begins to act differently and he starts to think about what could be rather than what is currently.”
“That trust is distinctive, different, and incredibly powerful. It is Wabash.”
