Strip, Hoppers, Leithart, McGrath & Terlecky Co., L.P.A.

I have been a life-long resident of the Columbus, Ohio, area. I spent most of my time in high school developing my basketball and softball skills, which would serve me very well in the intramural leagues and sports that I enjoyed during my time at Hillsdale. After taking one year off, I entered Capital University law school in Columbus, graduating in 1981. I have been in the private practice of law since then, and have been with my current law firm since 1983. I have a varied law practice, including the areas of civil litigation, real estate, and probate/estate planning. In addition to the practice of law, my wife, Denise, and I manage a portfolio of rental properties that are owned by my family. I have also served the City of Gahanna, where I have lived since 1983, in a variety of areas, including safety director, on the Charter Review Commission and on the Civil Service Commission. I have also been the treasurer for Jim McGregor's political campaigns, first when he was the mayor of Gahanna and currently in his position in the Ohio House of Representatives. Since 2001, I have been a certified agent for the National Football League, and have represented a number of fine young men in their efforts to become professional football players—one of them even made to the NFL. Each year I attend Agent Day at The Ohio State University, which gives me the privilege of meeting some great college football players. I am most proud of my family. Denise and I have been married since July 28, 1979.

My father provided me with an informal education in free-market economics and limited government under our nation's Constitution. At Hillsdale, I discovered that he was not the only person in the world who held those beliefs. The most important thing the College provided me with was an excellent basis for understanding that true freedom involves a free market, and that our Constitution was designed to limit the powers of the federal government and to free our citizens to live their lives and to accomplish those goals that they desired on their own. Our founding fathers understood that unrestrained government leads to misery and poverty.

My advice to prospective students is to realize that a Hillsdale College education is unique. For the most part, our popular culture and media present a view of our nation's history, culture and of current events that is not always as accurate as possible. Hillsdale College provides an education which emphasizes the wisdom of our founders, the beauty of our nation’s traditions, and the moral basis of our Declaration of Independence and Constitution. The College’s Web site states “The College values the merit of each unique individual, rather than succumbing to the dehumanizing, discriminatory trend of so called ‘social justice’ and ‘multicultural diversity,’ which judges individuals not as individuals, but as member of a group and which pits one group against other competing groups in divisive power struggles.” If you want to be treated as an individual, to have personal contact with your professors, and to be taught the truth about our nation, then I urge prospective students to strongly consider attending Hillsdale. A social life is also an important part of a college education. At Hillsdale, you will meet a variety of people from literally all over the world. My daughter became very active in her sorority and enjoyed the experience and friendships immensely. I was very active in sports—both intramural and informally with friends, and the athletic facility is first class. There are even opportunities to socialize with the professors. I can recall many afternoons and evenings where students and professors were together discussing topics of interest to them. Perhaps most important, since Hillsdale is free of federal government funding, it is also free to educate in the manner it deems best for its students—not in a manner dictated by a bureaucrat in some far-away location. Prospective students are the beneficiaries of this true academic freedom.

I was searching for a small school, far enough from home that I felt that I was on my own but close enough that I could get home without too much difficulty. I was also attracted by the fact that Hillsdale provided an education that was different from other colleges and universities, and I admired its stand against the federal government. Hillsdale also had a diverse student body even before “diversity” became popular. The professors and students were very friendly when I visited the school. Finally, being a life-long Ohio State fan, I thought I could see what Michigan people were really like. I never for an instant regretted my decision to attend Hillsdale College.

I left Hillsdale College far more mature and confident than when I entered. Although some of that was probably simply a function of the passage of time, I believe that it was mainly due to the education, the professors, the teachings of the College, the friendships and the variety of experiences that I encountered. Although I chose to become an attorney, I believe that my education at Hillsdale prepared me to be confident and provided the necessary foundation to deal with all the challenges that come to me.

It is difficult to relate “the” highlight, so I will mention a few. One was in Russian History, when an essay question asked me to describe the significance of someone, whose name I still cannot recall, to the Russian Revolution in 1917. I had no idea who the person was, yet I wrote for two pages, making things up as I went along. I got partial credit for my answer, and I think that is when I realized that I should be an attorney—I could go on for several pages about someone I knew nothing about. Several highlights relate to intramural sports. In my freshman year, I was on a basketball team that consisted of a rather uninspiring group of athletes. In an inspired performance, we defeated a team that had not lost in several years, and then celebrated at Martin's into the wee hours of the morning. Several years later, my softball team won the tournament, winning the semifinal game after being behind 10-0. A continuing highlight was taking courses and socializing with Madsen Pirie, a professor from Great Britain, who was an excellent teacher and conversationalist and had the typical wry, sarcastic British humor.

pwl@columbuslawyer.org