Ronald DeBarr - Class of 1999
I first came to Walsh in the mid-1990s. I originally took the road of "education through life experience" and moved to Berlin, Germany, just after high school. At 19, living in Berlin before the wall came down was a challenge for an American who couldn't speak German. I found work in management right away in the civilian sector of the U.S. Army and Air Force. I took some basic language courses through a Berlin branch of the University of Maryland and taught myself German in less than a year by reading books and newspapers on the train to and from work. Those years in Berlin were both an education and a career at the same time. My experience was what was carrying me into a successful career.
When I turned 25, I decided it was time to return to the U.S. Reading the Akron Beacon Journal one day, I saw an ad for Walsh’s degree completion programs (then called the School for Professional Studies). With a growing career and family, I seemed the perfect candidate for a program that would allow me to complete my degree without interfering with my current responsibilities. I was familiar with Walsh and decided to look into it. I came to the North Canton campus and first met with Brother Jerry Lessard. Not surprisingly, I tested easily out of a foreign language requirement with my German.
Walsh also had an impact on my spiritual life. In my religion classes, you could tell the professors really felt what they were teaching. It was hard to sit in class and not leave inspired. That is why I credit my time at Walsh for helping to ground me professionally and spiritually. The year I graduated from Walsh was also the same year I completed my RCIA courses and became a member of the Catholic Church.
Receiving my formal degree did not end my time with Walsh. It continues even today.
Ronald (Ron) W. DeBarr currently serves President & CEO of Town & Country Property Development, LTD, (TCPD) a limited liability company established in the State of Ohio. TCPD provides expertise to client companies with regard to Foreign-Trade Zone development and other international trade matters. Prior to establishing TCPD he was President & CEO of the Northeast Ohio Trade & Economic Consortium (NEOTEC), where he served from May 2001 to March 2018. He has served on the Business Advisory Board at Walsh University, where he received his B.A. degree in Business Management. Professional affiliations have included the National Association of Foreign-Trade Zones (NAFTZ), where he had served as Vice Chairman to the Board of Directors and received certification as an Accredited Zones Specialist.