Donor Spotlight: Bob Ashcraft ’80

Bob Ashcraft ’80 was a student-athlete pursuing a college degree when he was involved in a life-altering automobile accident on I-95 near Boston. Ashcraft was alone on the side of the road for several hours, paralyzed. The accident happened around midnight, but Ashcraft didn’t arrive at the hospital until 5:30 a.m. An experimental operation saved his life, and he was able to re-learn how to walk.

Eventually, Ashcraft returned to college, simultaneously focusing on academics and his own rehabilitation.

“I was a champion wrestler and cross-country runner,” he said. “My athlete background got me through my accidents, college, and work – and it enhanced my ability to succeed. The desire to win fostered a desire to do well with my life and businesses throughout the years.”

He credits his business degree from KU as the foundation of his life’s work. The principles he learned at Kutztown –specifically in Dr. Tommy Teeters’s senior seminar in business – still guide him at work today.

“Kutztown gave me my foundation for research and structure,” he said. “Today, many parents and youth think that college has no place in our current environment. That couldn’t be further from the truth. I come across many young people wanting to enter the workforce who either didn’t finish or even go to college. They are struggling in their jobs.”

In an effort to make higher education more accessible, Ashcraft created the Robert D. Ashcraft ’80 Athletic Scholarship. “Being able to support youth in their college career gives you the satisfaction that the world will be a better place,” Ashcraft said. “If everyone would just do a small part in helping our youth— our future – the world would become a better place.”