Rip Roberts ’08, ’09 had a nose for football and a heart for leadership.

A former defensive back at Shenandoah, Roberts once recorded a two-interception game during his junior year. When he wasn’t turning over opposing offenses, Roberts was busy turning over ideas on how to accomplish things on campus.

“Sometimes leadership roles just kind of find me,” said Roberts, who has both an undergrad (2008) and master’s degree (2009) from Shenandoah in business administration. “It sounds weird, but I’ve always had this thought of ‘if not me, then who? If we’re going to do this, I’m certainly willing to put myself in an avenue to be helpful. We just need to make X, Y and Z happen,’ and I’m not even thinking about being a leader.’”

It’s no surprise then that Roberts was a central figure in the launching of Shenandoah University’s Black Alumni Network.

“The opportunity just found me,” Roberts said. “I’m just trying to be a servant to everyone involved.”

‘Feels Like a College’

For Roberts, choosing Shenandoah University was largely a football decision.

The Hornets weren’t asking him to redshirt, as one Division II in the state was asking him to do. The defensive coordinator at that time, Coach Brooks, made quite a large impression on Roberts literally. And a friend has convinced him to join him at Shenandoah and help win a conference championship.

What sealed the deal, however, was the campus.

“As we were driving out there, I felt like I was driving out to a different country and different time,” Roberts said. “The scenery is what did it for me. I know it sounds random, but it was just that drive out there. I was like, ‘This feels like a college. When you’re going away to college, this is what it feels like.”

Roberts did get that conference football championship as a freshman, and he also had a huge impact off the field. As an undergrad student, he was president with the Black Student Union. As a graduate assistant, Roberts helped create a grant-funded program for first generation college males.

“I didn’t want to re-create a fraternity so to speak, but I wanted to create a space where people felt connected to each other,” Roberts said. “I really feel like people want to be part of something bigger than themselves.”

The program was created with an intentional mentorship aspect.

“We took upperclassmen and paired them underclassmen to create the mentor-mentee relationship,” he said, “and then we took those who were being mentored to the Boys & Girls Club, and they became mentors there.”

Still Leading

Roberts has an entire lifetime of good memories from Shenandoah.

The more he reflected on his formative college years – which included meeting his wife Emily at chapel – the more he felt the need to reconnect with the university.

“It had been on my mind, especially with everything that was going on in the country with racial issues and police brutality issues,” Roberts said. “I was thinking, ‘What if we did a black student alumni type deal?’ I just had this thought of needing to be more engaged with the university. I’ve had a kid, and I’m working, but I need to plug back in.”

Again, a leadership position would find him.

It started with a phone call with Dr. Yolanda Barbier Gibson, Shenandoah University’s Vice President for Student Affairs.

“We had a really good conversation,” Roberts said. “She told me everything that was going on. From that conversation, she talked to Emily Burner, and she (Emily) reached out to me saying, ‘Hey, we’re thinking about a black alumni affinity group? Would you be interested in being part of it?’ I was like, ‘The timing couldn’t be better.’”

Roberts imagines the Black Alumni Network as a place where people can share everything from business tips to birth announcements.

“We want to create that environment where people can plug back in,” Roberts said. If they want to get back involved with SU, here’s an avenue.”

Written by Chris Lassiter ’98
Member, Shenandoah University Black Alumni Network