When Robert Wofford, professor of economics and business, thinks back on his 41-year teaching career at University of the Ozarks, it’s his students that come to mind first and foremost.
“Knowing that I played a small role in their career success or in their life makes me happy,” said Wofford, who is retiring from Ozarks this month. “The interaction with students is something I’ve always enjoyed and that’s one thing I’m going to miss.”
Wofford, who was given professor emeritus status by the University’s Board of Trustees in the spring, has been associated with his alma mater for more than 50 years. As a teenager, his family moved to nearby Hartman from Tulsa, Okla., and he learned about the University from one of his high school teachers, Leonard Reynolds, whose wife, Dr. Ruby Reynolds, taught biology at Ozarks.
At Ozarks, Wofford would end up with multiple majors and minors in history, education, public administration and business on his way to graduating with Magna Cum Laude honors. After a stint working for the U.S. Department of Justice in human resources for a prison in Texas, he returned to Arkansas to earn an MBA from the University of Central Arkansas. As he was completing his degree, one of his former Ozarks business professors, Dr. James Perrett, invited him to return to Ozarks as a professor. He began teaching at Ozarks in the fall of 1982.
“I remember one of my first classes had over 100 students in it, so that was somewhat overwhelming,” Wofford said. “I also remember it took some time to figure out how to take what I learned in graduate school and teach it to undergraduates. It was a bit of an adjustment.”
Wofford quickly discovered that the classroom was his calling.
“I had initially planned to teach maybe four or five years and then enter the business field, but I found that I really enjoyed teaching,” he said. “I loved the interaction with my collegaues across campus. It was one large family and there was a lot of cohesiveness. I also enjoyed getting to know the students and watching them grow and develop during their times here. It was very satisfying to watch them start as freshmen and then go on to graduate school or great jobs.”
While Wofford taught a variety of business classes during his time at Ozarks, he specifically enjoyed teaching economics and statistics.
“I tell my classes each year that nearly every major decision you make in your life involves economics,” he said. “It’s so important to understand the basics of economics because it plays such a large role in our lives. As far as statistics, it also plays an important role because the world is made up of numbers and the more you can understand and work with numbers, the better off you will be. I’ve had so many former students come back and say to me how much they appreciated my statistics classes and how it made a monumental difference in their careers.”
Another lesson Wofford tried to instill in his students was the importance of punctuality. Often arriving to campus by 6:30 a.m. each day, Wofford was known for his many early-morning classes and for locking the classroom doors once class began.
“I tried to teach life skills in my classrooms and one of the most important life stills is being on time and showing up ready to go,” he said. “When these students graduate, they will need to show up to work on time and do their best, and those are the types of life skills I tried to emphasize. A lot of students probably didn’t appreciate it at the time, but they would often come back later and thank me for holding them accountable.”
Dr. Angela Spencer Wheeler, a 1998 Ozarks graduate and an associate professor of accounting at Oklahoma State University, said Wofford remains one of the best professors she has had.
“I was a student of Professor Wofford over 25 years ago; however, in my 23rd year as an educator, I still regard him as a pivotal influence and mentor,” said Spencer, who is the interim head of the School of Accounting at OSU. “While he was initially intimidating, at least to me, his teaching balanced rigor with a fierce passion for learning. He pushed us to our limits, yet always aimed for our success. His approach was not just about challenging us, but also igniting our curiosity. Wofford’s contributions have greatly enriched Ozarks, and his retirement leaves a significant void that will be hard to fill. I am profoundly grateful for the knowledge and guidance he has imparted to me and so many others over the years.”
Lee Whitaker, a 1993 Ozarks graduate who has had a successful career in business and management, is still close to the former professor he calls “Pops.”
“One of the things that I and others love about him is his sense of humor,” Whitaker said. “He could tell a joke, captivate you, and make you laugh all at the same time. The most amazing thing about Pops is his genuine and caring nature. It doesn’t matter what background you come from, what part of the world you come from, or anything, he cares about you as a person. That is why so many of us know and love him.”
Wofford, who received the University’s Bagwell Outstanding Faculty Award in 1988, said that despite the accolades from his students, it was him who often benefitted from being around students.
“In a lot of ways I probably learned as much or more from my students as they learned from me,” he said. “They’ve taught me about how the world has changed and continues to change, about different cultures and countries and about life.”
Shane Werling, vice president of sales for D6 Inc., and a 1993 Ozarks graduate, said he appreciated how Wofford approached his classroom lessons.
“Rather than just teaching out of textbook, Mr. Wofford had the ability to apply the lessons to real life business situations to make the lesson come to life,” Werling said. “You didn’t realize it at the time, but once you entered the business world the lessons made the transition from student to work a much easier transition because how he delivered it came from true experiences. He was one of the best professors that I had throughout my college tenure.”
Wofford’s wife, Debbie, along with several of his former students, surprised him with a retirement party during Homecoming in September. The party was attended by more than 50 former and current colleagues and students.
“I don’t get surprised easily, but they got me good on that one,” Wofford said. “It was very special to see so many former students and friends there. That’s a night I won’t forget.”
Wofford, who served as director of the University’s Small Business Institute for numerous years, has used his skills and knowledge to service as a business consultant for several small and large companies, including Fortune 500 companies. He has also volunteered his time to conduct economic impact studies for various communities. In the last few years, he has helped out area electric cooperatives with economic studies. In addition, he’s been one of the longest-serving marshal of ceremonies in the college’s history — from 1986 to 2023.
He has served under five different University presidents and a dozen different provosts, vice presidents and deans. He has seen the campus grow from around 400 students to nearly 900 and evolve from numerous World War II-era pre-fabricated buildings to modern facilities.
“It’s definitely been exciting to watch how the campus has grown and expanded into what it is today,” he said. “I’ve had a front-row view of some great changes on campus.”
Wofford said his plans for retirement include a long list of home improvement projects, working on his family’s cattle farm, lots of fishing and golf and “still getting up early, but doing things on my schedule.”
“I’m going to miss a lot of things about Ozarks, especially the students,” he said. “I’ve learned to go by the old saying, ‘Never say never,’ because I’ve seen freshmen who you might think at the time will never make it through college, go on to run their own businesses, become vice presidents of leading companies or go on and earn their Ph.D. To me, there’s nothing better than seeing them become successful.”
Topics: Business Administration, Economics, Faculty Spotlights