Alumni & Friends

Alumni Spotlight - Larry Williams '91

Larry Williams '91 knows the value of an adult education program.

Williams, vice president of sales and marketing at ADM Alliance Nutrition Inc. in Quincy, Ill., completed his degree at Culver-Stockton College 26 years after graduating from junior college.

" I was not ready for the rigors of more study after graduating from junior college in 1965," Williams said. "So I took a job traveling the country with the railroad."

Williams and his wife of 38 years, Susie, married in May 1967, and he began his career with ADM (then MoorMan Manufacturing Co.) as a salesman in August of that year. He advanced up the career ladder to district manager in 1969, sales manager for Kansas territory in 1975, corporate sales training manager in 1977, vice president of sales in 1984 and a member of the company's board of directors.

While a successful member of the team, something was still missing for Williams—a college degree. Williams said he had a two-fold reason for going back to school.

"First, I wanted to set a good example for my two boys who were 14 and 10 at the time," Williams recalled. "I would talk to them about how important an education is and they would say, 'but Dad, you don't have a degree.'

"Second, I did it for my own self-satisfaction. And nobody but my wife, sons and manager knew I was doing it."

In 1984, after doing much research into degree completion programs, Williams chose Culver-Stockton College and became one of the first students in the Extended Studies program.

Williams credits Dr. Harry Mitchell, co-founder of the Extended Studies program and a professor in the business division, for helping him make the decision to finish what he had started 20 years earlier.

"I wanted to finish at a place like Culver-Stockton," Williams said. "I didn't want a degree from some place on the back of a match book. I wanted a degree from a place that I cared about and cared about me."

But earning a bachelor's degree was not easy for Williams.

He had to balance attending classes in Canton, Mo., with work and family obligations both in Quincy.

"I came to Canton on Saturdays and evenings for classes and was able to take just one class per semester," Williams said. "I was going to class while working 60-plus hours per week.

"I'd spend weekends studying and writing papers."

In 1991, seven years after he started, Williams finished the program and earned his bachelor's degree in business administration.

"Culver-Stockton College had the foresight and vision to start the adult education program that helped me to achieve my goal," Williams said.

The degree has also been beneficial to Williams in his job.

"Having a degree has opened my mind to additional ideas and has made me a better person in my work community, whether it's marketing, human resources, economics or psychology," Williams said. "Plus, some courses, such as religion classes, simply made me a better person."

That's why Williams was especially pleased to see the college re-start an adult education program (the Connected Campus) in January after the Extended Studies program ended in 1993.

"It's a wonderful opportunity for working people to complete their education," Williams said.

Williams believes that learning is a lifelong experience and he has since earned a Master's of Business Administration degree and plans to continue his studies after his retirement.

Williams is also proud to have worked for MoorMan's and now Archer Daniels Midland for 38 years. "I am grateful for becoming a part of this top Fortune 50 Company," he said. "At ADM, being resourceful by nature is what we do, it is who we are, and most of all, it's just good business."

So were his sons impressed by Williams' advice about the importance of education?

Chris, who lives in Tampa, Fla., graduated with a double major in finance and international business. He returned to school to become a chiropractor and has been in practice for six years. Scott earned a degree in business and lives in San Francisco.

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