A Daughter’s Lasting Tribute

Jacob Jaworski, a graduate of Springfield Catholic Central High School and a student in the Raj Soin College of Business, is the first recipient of the scholarship funded by Rosemary Ramsey.

Like many children growing up during the Great Depression, Rosemary P. Ramsey’s parents had to quit school in order to assist their families financially. Yet they valued education so dearly that they insisted their two daughters receive a private education at Springfield Catholic Central High School. So her dad worked two jobs to make it a reality.

“I grew up very poor but didn’t know it because we weren’t poor in the important things,” Ramsey confided. “My dad was the smartest man I’ve ever known but without an education, he was limited. They wanted to make sure I didn’t have that limitation.”

It was these values instilled in her by her parents that drove Ramsey to be the first in her family to attend college—and she chose Wright State University. “Had it not been for Wright State, I don’t know if I would even have a bachelor’s degree,” she explained.

Ramsey didn’t know whether she would succeed at college, but the faculty and staff encouraged her and helped her succeed. She earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology and an MBA from Wright State, and later a Ph.D. in marketing from the University of Cincinnati.

“Wright State got me to where I am today,” she said. Today, she is a revered professor of marketing in Wright State’s Raj Soin College of Business, with a long list of credentials, awards, research, and scholarly publications. Before focusing her career on higher education, she gained valuable real-world experience as a systems sales analyst at NCR Corporation in Dayton, Ohio.

As a loving tribute to her parents, she established the Claude and Helen Ramsey Memorial Scholarship Fund. It acknowledges the three forces that have been so instrumental in her life: her parents, her high school, and Wright State. The scholarship is designated for Springfield Catholic Central High School graduates who major in any field within the Raj Soin College of Business.

Ramsey funds the scholarship through annual gifts. In addition, she has designated Wright State as the beneficiary of a life insurance policy to ultimately endow the scholarship, keeping her parents’ memory alive. This planned gift makes her eligible for membership in the Katharine Wright Legacy Society, named after the Wright brothers’ sister, who was an educator.

“This is the type of school that will use gifts wisely and this is the place where a scholarship can make a huge difference,” she said. “More Wright State students have to work their way through school. I’ve never seen students work harder.”

A professor at Wright State since 2004, Ramsey is known for her commitment to her students’ success and for challenging them to reach their full potential. In the classroom, she incorporates lively discussion, real-world applications—and high expectations.

“I want to be known for helping students be happy and successful, whatever their major is,” she said. Apparently she is succeeding, as evidenced by the number of students from all majors who stop by her office to seek advice from this valued mentor.