Bob Stubbs, who made sure family members earned college degrees, finally makes his commencement walk

Jun. 14—LA GRANDE — The fall of 1957 is best remembered by many as the time the Russians launched Sputnik I, the first Earth satellite, a step that ignited the space race between the United States and the former Soviet Union.

That autumn of 1957 also has personal meaning for Robert "Bob" Stubbs. It was when he started his post-secondary education, enrolling at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio. The credits Stubbs earned then proved timeless last weekend.

Stubbs, 83, was formally conferred a bachelor of science degree in interdisciplinary studies with an emphasis on information systems and business administration from Eastern Oregon University at its graduation ceremony at Quinn Coliseum, La Grande, on Saturday, June 11. Credits he earned at Miami University and many other educational institutions over the course of five decades, including those granted via work experience and earned as an online student the past five years at Eastern, allowed him to earn his degree.

Stubbs, an Air Force veteran, will never forget his commencement walk.

"It thought it was great. It was very emotional for me. I think I even cried a bit," said Stubbs, who was accompanied at graduation by his wife, Kidd, their two daughters, Amy and Heidi, and their son, Andy.

Amy Stubbs said her father, who lives in Jerome, Idaho, was most deserving of the diploma for many reasons, including his selfless devotion to helping others get a college education.

"He basically put us all through college," said Amy Stubbs, who lives in Stanley, Idaho.

Heidi Dohse, Bob's oldest daughter, agrees.

"He has spent so much of his life working to make sure that all of us graduate from college. Today, it was his turn," said Dohse, who also lives in Stanley.

Bob Stubbs began his drive to get a degree from Eastern five years ago when he enrolled as an online student. At the time, he had already earned nearly enough credits for a degree from a four-your university, Amy Stubbs said. Those credits were from Miami University, the U.S. Air Force, Portland State University, Cal State Fullerton and Saddleback College, a community college in Mission Viejo, California.

Still, he needed more credits in specific areas to meet degree requirements. Stubbs was doing well in his pursuit of an EOU degree when his uncommon story took another twist.

Honorary alum

Stubbs was sidelined by a series of health issues. Some of his advisers feared Stubbs would not be able to recover to the point that he could continue taking classes.

As a measure of respect for his efforts, Eastern awarded him an honorary EOU alumnus. The honorary degree was presented to Stubbs by Eastern President Tom Insko via a Zoom teleconference. The gesture touched Stubbs deeply but he still longed to have an actual degree from a four-year university. So after recovering, Stubbs continued his pursuit of a degree, putting in countless hours.

"He was tenacious. Every time I visited, he would be studying," Amy Stubbs said of her father, who has worked with technology and information systems his entire career.

Kerry Thompson, Eastern's Pendleton-Hermiston Center director, played a critical role in making it possible for Stubbs to graduate, according to his family.

"He was super instrumental," Amy Stubbs said, adding that Thompson was so impressed with her father that he took it upon himself to get him named an honorary alumnus.

Kevin Clark, an associate professor of business at Eastern, is also credited by Amy Stubbs with playing an influential role in getting her father to graduation.

Clark spent about 30 hours examining Stubbs' transcripts and determining what could be accepted by Eastern and apply toward his degree. The business professor said that a number of Stubbs' credits earned long ago were for computer systems that are now outdated.

Clark attended EOU's June 11 graduation ceremony and said that seeing Stubbs graduate was one of the day's biggest highlights for him.

"Being able to watch him graduate made all that work worth it," he said.

Back in fashion

Stubbs hopes to put his degree to good use by possibly working for a company as a COBOL manager. COBOL is an English-like computer programming language designed for business use.

The language is now being used with increasing frequency by the U.S. government for projects involving significant information storage.

Amy Stubbs said that her father learned COBOL many years ago before it lost the popularity it is now regaining. Today, he is among a relatively limited number of people who know COBOL well.

"He has lived long enough to see it come back into fashion," she said.

Regardless of whether Bob Stubbs decides to join the workforce again, he will remain a role model for those striving to overcome obstacles on the path to higher education.

"Bob is an inspiration to me and I use his story with all of my students that are struggling. Don't give up," Thompson said.