Moonlighting Leads to Gratifying Teaching Career for Rossmaier

When Joel Rossmaier decided to moonlight as an adjunct faculty member at University of the Ozarks in 2002, he quickly discovered that he had found his calling.

Rossmaier, instructor of accounting, will retire from the University at the conclusion of the Spring 2024 Semester after 22 years at Ozarks.

He was originally asked in the early 2000s to teach an evening class as an adjunct faculty member by his brother-in-law, Dr. Robert Hilton, who was the department chair at the time.

"I was working during the day and yet I found myself looking forward to the evening class more than the day job," Rossmaier recalled. "I did that for two semesters. At that point the full-time accounting professor left to pursue her graduate degree and I was asked to take her place until she returned. When she didn't return I was asked to stay full-time."

Rossmaier, who earned a master's degree in accounting from University of Arkansas, spent almost 22 years in private accounting, working as a plant controller and international audit manager, before joining Ozarks.

"I remember being terrified and wondering if I could do this," Rossmaier said. "Teaching an evening course was one thing, but being a full-time faculty member was another."

He said the most rewarding aspect of his career in higher education was "doing something I deeply enjoyed and that I was good at."

"I've heard the saying, 'Do what you enjoy and you'll never work a day in your life,' and that was not true for me," he said. "I worked hard at my job here because I wanted the satisfaction of doing a good job and because I felt I owed it to my students, my colleagues, and the University. There were a lot of late nights and weekend work; there was a lot of questioning, by me, as to whether a particular course of action was truly best for my students. So it was hard work. But it was never a burden."

Rossmaier taught at Ozarks while his three children - Jason, Jana and Jack - attended the University.

"For the most part, I tried to act like they weren't on campus," he said. "They shared no more with me than they would have if they had been at another college. I intentionally avoided getting involved in their campus lives, both academically and socially. I wanted them to have the fullest college experience they could. Fortunately, they were all three good students, so whenever I heard anything about them it was usually good news. I only had Jana in class, and again tried to treat her as any other student. Overall, I think they all had good experiences. Even today, I am occasionally asked by one their former professors how they are doing."

One of the highlights of Rossmaier's time at Ozarks was being on the graduation stage when his three children received their diplomas. He handed Jack his diploma in a brief rain shower during the 2010 Spring Commencement (see photo below).

"It was an amazing experience to be able to hand each of them their diploma, and I will always be grateful for the opportunity," he said. "I think it was the only time while they were on campus that I was a parent first and a faculty member second. I believe they enjoyed it also; at least they look happy in the photos."

Nicholas Bennett, a senior accounting major from Little Elm, Texas, said Rossmaier has been more than just his professor.

"Professor Rossmaier builds relationships with all of his students and wants the best for all of us," Bennett said. "With him also being my advisor, I feel like I've built a great relationship with him and even got to know that he is a big Dallas Mavericks fan like I am. When I go to his class, I know I am going to learn while also having fun and building relationships. He is also a professor you could go and talk to, and he would love to listen to you. He has been a great mentor to me here as I go on with my career in accounting. He always says, 'I'm not trying to scare you,' before talking about a subject and that just shows the type of man he is. Accounting is hard and he has really helped me understand it and still want to do it."

Roseanna Ketterer, a senior accountant for Walton Enterprises in Northwest Arkansas and a 2018 graduate of Ozarks, credited Rossmaier for helping her navigate a change in majors while at Ozarks.

"In the latter half of my college career, I changed my major to accounting, and the apprehension I felt related to this pivotal decision dissipated largely in part due to Professor Rossmaier," Ketterer said. "His profuse knowledge and passion for the subject in addition to his benevolence helped solidify my career choice. The knowledge that I gained from Professor Rossmaier laid the foundation for my success as a senior accountant, and I feel extremely grateful to have received his mentorship while at University of the Ozarks."

Rossmaier said the interaction with students is the most rewarding aspect of his career at Ozarks.

"Watching students learn and grow, gain confidence in themselves, and become excited about going on to graduate school or into the work world has been the greatest source of satisfaction for me," he said. "I do enjoy hearing from students after they have left. I still remember one student in particular, who reached out years later to tell me, 'I didn't realize how much I learned from you when I was at Ozarks.' This one was especially gratifying because I wasn't sure, when he graduated, if he understood how smart he was. Fortunately, he figured it out. I sometimes wondered about my best students-I often thought they would have been successful no matter where they went. But I like to think I made them just a little more successful."

Rossmaier was appointed interim dean of the Division of Business for the 2018-19 academic year and later served as dean of the University's Division of Social Sciences from 2019-2021.

"It's difficult to pick out just one or two of favorite memories of my time at Ozarks, but they all involve students," he said. "I enjoyed working with our co-curricular organizations, traveling to state and national competitions and seeing them do well against students from other schools."

Rossmaier said he has no firm plans for retirement other than spending time with his wife, Karen, and their family.

"Being able to travel on a moment's notice to go watch a grandchild's basketball game or choir performance and becoming a little more involved in my church are some of the things I'm looking forward to," he said. "I've often heard people say that they did not know what they would do in retirement. I don't know right now, but I will figure it out."

Topics: Faculty Spotlights