JGBS Series – Ben Albers

Submitted by Isabella Schultz, Thomas More University student

When someone first meets Ben Albers, they may think he is like every other student-athlete at Thomas More. An athlete who eats, breathes, and sleeps their sport. But, by talking to Albers for a couple of minutes, someone would find out quickly that he is more than just his sport of volleyball.

    Albers, a native of Cincinnati, Ohio, and an Elder alumnus, is a senior outside hitter on the men’s volleyball team. Albers has earned many accomplishments on the court, including being the men’s volleyball program’s all-time leader in kills. But he wants people to know that he is more than his volleyball accomplishments and that those feats are not the only things that define him.

    Albers is a full-time biology student, a medical assistant at OrthoCincy, and a student-athlete, but on top of that, he is also a proud member of the James Graham Brown Scholars. A scholars program for the most well-rounded and virtuous thinkers at Thomas More University. With being in the scholars program, Albers has to make time to complete 90 service hours per year for JGBS in his hectic schedule.

    To complete these service hours, he introduced the Red Cross blood drives to Thomas More. Albers was first introduced to the Red Cross as a sophomore when his volleyball coach told him about an internship called the Red Cross Collegiate Leadership Program.

    “I got accepted [into the internship] out of the couple thousand applications,” said Albers. “There were 12 of us, and we worked at the Red Cross National Headquarters in Washington D.C., a block from the White House.”

    During his summer in Washington D.C., Albers had the opportunity to learn from those who work at the headquarters while also interacting with Congressmen and regional managers. Albers then took what he learned in Washington D.C. and applied it back home to JGBS, where he impacted the community at Thomas More.

    To Albers, the JGBS community has helped him strive as a student-athlete and navigate through all of his commitments and responsibilities. On the volleyball side, Albers hopes to make a deep run in the IVA tournament.

    “I’m very excited for our season,” said Albers. “I think we can really make an impact in the IVA tournament… I hopefully can make a good impact on my final year here. I want to leave the program on a good note and hopefully continue to excel the program in the right direction.”

    Ben is a great athlete, but also an extraordinary student. After he graduates from Thomas More, he hopes to be able to continue his schooling in medical school. The JGBS program has helped advance Albers throughout his years at Thomas More. The connections he’s made will last a lifetime, and even though it is demanding, JGBS has been his lifeline in his past four years at Thomas More.

James Graham Brown Scholars Series – Overview

    The James Graham Brown Scholars program is an honors program that recognizes and challenges students to become well-rounded leaders and citizens in the world. Along with a scholarship, the students selected for this rigorous program participate in special seminars, experiential learning in their communities, and the opportunity to participate in research. This program is hard enough to excel in, but adding the layer of being a student-athlete is even more challenging.

    In this series, those student-athletes will be sharing their experiences as accomplished students in the classroom and also outstanding athletes on the field and court. The sports that the JGBS student-athletes compete in within this program range from soccer to football to volleyball. These student-athletes do the unthinkable and persevere throughout their daily lives. They always go the extra mile, whether that is on the court or in the classroom. To learn more about the James Graham Brown Scholars Program go to: https://www.thomasmore.edu/info-for/new-current-students/academic-opportunities/james-graham-brown-scholars-program/