Behind every Salt Lake Community College scholarship is a
story about how and why the scholarship was created. With the Marlon Andrus
Scholarship, the story is about Marlon Andrus, a former professor in SLCC’s
Department of Finance and Economics.
Andrus, who died in January 2018, was more than a teacher to
many of his students; he was a mentor, a friend and even a father figure. He
connected with his students in the classroom, but he continued to support them as
they moved on to higher education and careers. As Ben Jones, one of Andrus’s
former students, explained: “Marlon really cared about every individual. If
people asked for help, he would always give it. He went out of his way to help
others.”
A Banker Who Became a Teacher
Before Andrus became a teacher, he had a successful career in
finance. He spent more than 14 years as a vice president and manager of First
Security Bank. Even though Andrus was highly skilled in the intricacies of
finance, the banking world wasn’t the best fit for him.
Andrus decided to give up his lucrative career to work as a
professor at SLCC, and teaching turned out to be his true calling. He taught at
SLCC for more than 30 years and earned many awards, including the National
Teaching Excellence Award from the Association of Collegiate Business Schools
and Programs.
Students were always Andrus’s first priority. According to
Rose Jansen, one of his former students, Andrus was always enthusiastic about
teaching finance. “He was an excellent storyteller,” she said. “He used stories
to connect the curriculum to the students’ lives. He gave students confidence.
He wanted to empower them with knowledge about finance so they could make
better choices in their lives.”
Some of Andrus’ students, like Ben Jones, pursued careers in
finance. As a teenager, Jones planned on becoming a professional snowboarder,
but a knee injury altered that career trajectory.
Fortunately, some new options opened for Jones. While
attending one of Andrus’s classes at SLCC, he met Roger McQueen, a former
managing partner at Northwestern Mutual Investment Services. Andrus encouraged
Jones to pursue an internship with Northwestern Mutual. As Jones explained, “He didn’t know it then,
but that was the exact moment that Marlon opened the door to finance as a
career option for me. But at the same time, he made it clear that it was up to
me to pursue it.” Jones took the internship opportunity, and today he is the
managing director and head of intermediary distribution at BMO Global Asset
Management.
Andrus referred many students to McQueen for internship
opportunities, and quite a few of those former students have successful careers
in finance today. “Marlon created opportunities for people,” McQueen said.
Andrus’ dedication as a teacher and mentor to students
inspired McQueen, along with some help from his company, to create the Marlon
Andrus Scholarship at SLCC in 2007. Many of Andrus’s former students donated to
the scholarship as well.
The scholarship provides educational opportunities and is the
perfect way to honor Marlon Andrus. “The scholarship was a life event for
Marlon,” said Jansen. “His students were his family.”
A Networker, a Friend and a Mentor
Andrus’ students were important to him, and he made sure to stay
connected to them after they left his classroom. He wrote countless letters of
recommendation for his former students, and he was always available to provide career
and life advice at a moment’s notice. “Marlon was a port in a storm for his
students,” Jansen said.
Andrus also hosted card game sessions for his students and
friends so they could get to know each other. He sent almost daily emails to
the people in his circle so they would stay connected. He also met his students
and friends for frequent lunches. “We would go to lunch at his favorite
restaurant, Red Lobster, where I would solicit his thoughts and opinions on
finance, life and work,” Jones recalled. “As my career progressed, I became
more aware of how impactful his mentorship had been to me.”
Toward the end of his life when he was sick with cancer, several
of Andrus’s former students decided to return the help and support he had
always given to them. They did yard work for him and other chores and remained
in close contact with him. “It was an honor for me to help Marlon,” Jansen
stated.
After Andrus passed away at the age of 79, only two years
after retiring from SLCC, Jansen helped to clean out his house and distribute
his personal items. In doing that, she found that Andrus collected many inspirational
quotes, and she found one quote from an anonymous source that she believes
describes Marlon Andrus perfectly:
“A good teacher is like a candle – it consumes itself to light
the way for others.”
If you would like to honor
the legacy of Marlon Andrus by donating to the scholarship in his name, please, click here.