• W.E. Manning Memorial Scholarship Recipient •

Alexander Tibbitts does his homework, and he knows how to pick a winner.

The day he was interviewed for this article, Tibbitts noted that the University of Arkansas degree program he’s enrolled in – supply chain management – was ranked No. 1 for the second time in a row in North America by leading global research firm Gartner, as announced by the university that morning.

With his experience in online education, Tibbitts knows the importance of communication. He scans the Arkansas News headlines every day for anything of interest to his education and his future. Tibbitts has extensive experience as a self-starter and independent learner from his days being home-schooled through 12^th grade and his associate’s degree in general business from Tulsa Community College, a degree delivered online.

Receiving the W.E. Manning Memorial Scholarship Award is helping Tibbitts, 23, of Skiatook, Oklahoma, continue his education in the only supply chain management degree program at the U of A. He will be a junior this fall in the Sam M. Walton College of Business and plans to graduate in spring 2024.

“I was very honored and humbled to get the scholarship,” Tibbitts said. “This is tremendous for me to achieve my goals. Any financial aid goes a long way for me to pay tuition and buy books. It works wonders.”

Tibbitts said he would like to work in marketing or supply chain management. Tibbitts also hopes to launch an e-publishing firm that would reproduce the historical public domain works about the doctrine of the Remnant Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints in an electronic format.

He was drawn to the U of A for several reasons, Tibbitts said, including that he could pay in-state tuition regardless of where he lives because he knew he would be moving to the Kansas City area while in college.

“That was a major factor, but the Walton College also has an excellent reputation in business, so it sounded like a perfect fit for me,” he said. “And the online program allows me to get a full-time job while pursuing a degree. The in-state tuition and online structure are two very big factors for me, which U of A provided.”

In doing an internet search of colleges and universities in adjacent states, he found the transfer planning guide, course equivalency database and other tools on the U of A website helpful.

“It was very user-friendly, showing which courses fill which requirements,” Tibbitts said.

He is taking some introductory classes in the Walton College this summer and said adviser Matt Willingham was very helpful in mapping out the fall semester with him. They used Microsoft Teams to meet and Tibbitts received a PDF of his plans after every counseling session.

Tibbitts already has the daily life of an online student down pat.

“Day-to-day, I get up early and work on things and get them done,” he said. “I know they’re done and out the way. I like to be able to work ahead. It’s a big advantage to have the option to work ahead because you never know what going to pop up down the road.”

He also said the U of A does a good job of making sure students studying in online degree programs feel included.

“We’re all Razorbacks; they do try to really make you feel like a Razorback,” he said. “I absolutely would recommend this program. You need to make sure you are a self-starter and develop strategies of what works well for you. Meet hard deadlines, learn to reach out to classmates, to your professors if you are struggling. You’re not in it by yourself. You have the support of others.”