Class of 2021: Rebecca Groat

We celebrate the Class of 2021, what they have achieved during their years at Ripon and what they hope to achieve in the next chapter of their lives.

Rebecca Groat ’21 of Kimberly, Wisconsin, is majoring in psychobiology. After graduation, she will be working at Webshire Kennels in Larsen, Wisconsin, professionally training dogs to enter into hunting and field work. “I will be traveling the state of Wisconsin and the Midwest entering hunt tests to compete with personal and client dogs. I am also hoping to start training and competing in agility and dock diving and to continue doing research for Ripon College with Associate Professor of Psychology Julia Manor.”

She adds, “The most important lesson that I learned from Ripon College is to be willing to move yourself out of your comfort zone. You truly never know what you’re going to find and learn to love if you don’t try to be just a little uncomfortable sometimes. Because one day you’ll look back and wonder how something you love so much could have been uncomfortable before.”

She says her favorite memory from her time at Ripon College is her first meeting with Manor. “I was feeling like I was not going to school for the right major so I took a psychology class for fun. We bonded over being dog trainers during this meeting, and she told me that I should be majoring in psychobiology. She said I could do dog research, travel to the Association of Professional Dog Trainers Conference with her, and learn more about dog training. She made it all come true for me. I have done tons of dog research, we went to Portland, Oregon, and presented our research at the conference. I have learned more than I ever thought I could about dog training and animal behavior from her.”

To read stories about other members of the Class of 2021, visit ripon.edu/class-of-2021.