From speech therapy to senior class president, Purdue alum and donor finds his voice in Department of Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences

Written By: Rebecca Hoffa, rhoffa@purdue.edu

Ken Rich’s dream on his first day on campus was to become Purdue University’s 1959 senior class president.

When Rich was 12, he was scared by his father having serious brain surgery, so he set his sights on achieving an “important position.” Rich’s goal to pursue student government started in high school when he read about a student who had overcome adversity to become president of his senior class at Penn State University — a position that sounded “important.”

However, as a first-year student majoring in electrical engineering, Rich was pulled aside his first day on campus during his physical examination and told he wouldn’t graduate from Purdue unless he improved his speech.

Rich, who had experienced speech difficulties and undergone speech therapy since he was a kid, began to work with a professor and graduate student in Purdue University’s Department of Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences (SLHS) and never let his sights waiver from his dream. Although clinical approaches have evolved since Rich’s days on campus, the M.D. Steer Speech, Language, and Hearing Clinics remain committed to providing evidence-based, person-centered services that support the communication and hearing needs of individuals across the lifespan.

“I don’t think I had ever really heard my voice before those sessions,” Rich said. “They would have me listen to my voice, and I remember they gave me words to say. The one I remember is ‘Pawtucket.’ I’d walk across campus, saying ‘Pawtucket, Pawtucket.’ The other thing I discovered was that some of my repetitive motions were slow, like tapping, which intrigued me that there was something causing the speech problem. But I never let it affect the rest of what I was doing at Purdue.”

Rich decided to try to get the backing of what is now Cary Quadrangle to run for freshman class treasurer.

“The one thing I remember is the political chairman of the hall said, ‘You’ve got to go around campus speaking in a lot places. How do you feel about public speaking?’” Rich said. “I swallowed and said, ‘Well, if that’s what it takes, I’ll do it.’ I had never done anything like that. In fact, probably other than in math classes, I was pretty quiet in classes.”

Rich was willing to take on the challenge. While he didn’t expect to win, Rich surprised himself by getting elected as treasurer after coming up with the campaign slogan “Strike it Rich.” Having name recognition within his class helped him become senior class president. In that position, he delivered the commencement address to fellow graduating Boilermakers.

Rich went on to Harvard Business School after graduating from Purdue and delivering the commencement address to fellow graduating Boilermakers. After working in a variety of business roles, he went back to earn his PhD at the University of Pennsylvania and pursued a career in academia and consulting.

Years later, when Rich learned that Lyles-Porter Hall was being built and that the lead donor was Marybeth Lyles-Porter Higuera, a fellow 1959 classmate and freshman class officer, Rich decided to give back to the Department of Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences by naming an adult speech therapy room in the building.

“I remember thinking I really got some help from the speech department,” Rich said. “I’ve never really worked as an engineer, so it makes sense to give to the speech department. I decided to donate the room.”

For Rich, his speech therapy at Purdue had a lasting impact. Not only did it help him achieve his goal of class presidency and delivering a commencement speech but also prepared him for future classroom teaching and public speaking.

“I think it helped give me some confidence,” Rich said. “The fact that I was able to wind up giving the commencement speech did have an impact. It helped me overcome any doubts that came my way. For instance, I found whenever somebody interviewed me for a job and asked me about my speech, I always got the job because I would tell them about my Purdue experience, and that went a long way.”