2010 Tillman Scholar

Richard Schumacher

Army
Park University
B.A., Criminal Justice

Rick enlisted in the US Army while still in high school, with a need to take control of his own future. As a Psychological Operations Specialist, he learned quickly the importance of being a servant-leader. Over 11 years of service as a cross-cultural communicator, he saw parts of the world ravaged by war, poverty, and disaster. These experiences instilled in him the need to do more to protect and serve the neediest among us, domestically as well as internationally. 

Working as a criminal investigator since leaving the military in 2004, a degree in Criminal Justice seemed like a natural progression for Rick. During his degree program, and is his subsequent graduate education, Rick has studied the interrelation between poverty, social vulnerability, criminality, and disaster risk.    

As a Tillman Scholar, Rick continues to work on projects that reduce social vulnerability in struggling populations. Currently serving as a compliance officer in a multi-national corporation, Rick hopes to look after the rights of under-served manufacturing workers in Africa, South America, the Middle East, Asia, and India.