Meet…
I’d like to introduce you to Professor John Ulrich, or as we students (including myself) refer to him, Mr. “U.” He is currently my interpersonal communications professor, and I personally think he’s fantastic.
He makes the class fun and interesting (despite it being at 9 a.m.). He loves weaving stories into each lesson, and he is always cracking jokes!
Why He’s Interesting…
I chose to write about Mr. U for this edition of Tartan Spotlight because he is not only an excellent professor, but an admirable human being.
Mr. U has been teaching at Sinclair since 2004, and the first class he ever taught was a two hour long Saturday class. He has his master’s degree in communications from Miami University and has taught a variety of classes during his time at Sinclair. He has taught interpersonal communication, speech, journalism and many more.
When asked about his favorite thing about Sinclair, Mr. U told me he loves teaching and working with the students. He feels as though he learns as much from them as they learn from him.
I recall during my first week of class, Mr. U had a day where we could ask him anything we wanted to know about him. Some student decided to ask, “Who is your biggest inspiration?” and Mr. U told us his daughter was, followed by a story I will never forget.
Mr. Ulrich’s daughter was diagnosed with leukemia, and she tragically passed away as a sophomore in college, at only 19 years old. Mr. U lovingly describe her to me as a “free spirit”; a genuinely sweet and good hearted person. He also told me she was a fighter, with an open mind and a readiness to help.
“When I say she’s my hero, I mean she’s my hero.” Mr. U said. “When you ask me why here, why Sinclair, I would not have made it through those 60 days without the love and kindness of all of my classes. My students in that period of time were absolutely extraordinary. They let me be me. They let me have those days where I would tear up and they wouldn’t think less of me for it.”
Mr. U also has a scholarship sent up in her name, the “Robin Lauren Ulrich Dancing Angel Scholarship” for honors students. He hopes to put together a generalized scholarship in honor of her as well.
He also encourages donations to the leukemia/lymphoma society, and he emphasized the need for bone marrow donors. To find out more about donating to either, visit Here and/or Here
Mr. U is many things, an educator, a father, a cancer advocate and an all around admirable person. I am so honored to have had the privilege to sit down and have a deep conversation with him.
If you have the chance to take any of his classes, I highly recommend you don’t pass up the opportunity.
Thank you, Mr. Ulrich, for doing your part in raising awareness for cancer research and honoring the memory of your daughter. Thank you for your dedication to teaching all of us here at Sinclair.
Shaeli Spurlock
Reporter