Witteberg remains No. 1 in the heart of one 1965 alumnus

For years Eugene Miller, ’65, has hosted an annual party for Rochester-area high school students to try to attract new converts to his alma mater.

He wanted others in his town to experience what he found to be a special form of education. This year Miller decided he could do more to spread the word about a college he credits with much of his success.

He turned his sponsorship of NASCAR racing into a rolling calling card for Wittenberg. Miller’s No. 1 Wittenberg Tiger-red Chevy has raced in New York and Connecticut, generating favorable media attention in areas where the college has historically been successful in attracting students.

For Miller, a 27-year veteran of the auto racing game, who is also chairman and president of E.F. Miller & Company, a financial advisory institution, and Rochester Steel Treating Works, the idea came naturally — combine two of the things he loves best, racing and his alma mater, with the growing marketing muscle of NASCAR.

At the Pepsi 150 at Watkins Glen International Speedway, for instance, Miller had a chance to talk about Wittenberg to some of the 150,000 fans there.

In recent years auto racing has become increasingly popular among teenagers and has developed into a family-oriented activity, Miller explained.

The Busch North Series race was broadcast nationally on ESPN, and an in-car camera for the race was mounted in Miller’s car.

A rain delay pushed the television coverage into prime time, but just as the Wittenberg car, driven by Jerry Marquis, moved into the top 10 late in the race, mechanical problems forced it out.

Miller said he wanted to find a way to tell more people about the breadth of education at his college.

He said he enjoys telling people, out of his own experience, that a liberal arts education does not have to be the stereotype of the ivory tower. His own years on campus were an “awesome experience,” Miller said.

“Wittenberg prepared me so well from what I was, a kid with nothing, to a kid with confidence and a great academic grounding that made me well prepared for the business world.”

Miller went to Akron Green High School, the product of a family of modest means in which neither of his parents went further than the eighth grade.

Miller and his father, a mechanic, helped finance his education by repairing and selling old cars. Sports were also important in Miller’s college experience.

He played under both of Wittenberg’s College Football Hall of Fame coaches, losing only one game during his four years at Wittenberg (1962-65) and being part of two NCAA College Division Championship teams.

“This is a prime opportunity to give back a little of what Wittenberg offered me,” he said. “Being able to mesh my school with my love for motor sports is something that I have wanted to do for some time.

“My interest is getting the name out there,” Miller said. “Competition is fierce in higher education marketing, and name recognition is very difficult.

But once you get their attention then you must have substance, and selling Wittenberg academics and tradition is easy.” Miller’s enthusiasm for telling the Wittenberg story starts with his own college experience.

When Miller first visited Wittenberg in 1961, he was considering almost a dozen colleges. It was President Emeritus William Kinnison who sold him on his college.

“Kinnison told me college should develop the whole person,” Miller recalled.

“He said it should not just be an academic experience but give you a sense of community and spirituality that prepares you for any endeavor you take.

His words were absolutely borne out in my case — the faculty became absolute role models in my life. What Wittenberg said was going to happen, it made it happen.”

— Jim Dexter