Nick Ragland IV BMS ’83

Mackenzie-Sargent Distinguished Alumni Award

By Nancy Berlier

A nyone who has worked with Nick Ragland IV BMS ’83 knows he isn’t a person who likes to take credit.

“He doesn’t seek the limelight,” says former board chair Allison (Hiltz) Kropp ’93.

Former Head of School Rich Wilson adds, “For him, it’s not about who’s right; it’s about what’s right.”

Nonetheless, Mr. Ragland has proven to be a leader in the Greater Cincinnati community as well as The Summit. Head of School Kelley Schiess awarded him the Mackenzie-Sargent Distinguished Alumni Award at this year’s Founders Day celebration saying, “Nick’s fingerprints are all over the success of this school during the last 15 years.”

M r. Ragland joined The Summit’s Board of Trustees in 2007 and chaired it from 2009 to 2011. He has served on The Summit’s Foundation Board since 2012. With his wife, Joelle, also a former board member, he established the Nick and Joelle Ragland Scholarship Fund and, with his parents, the Ragland Family Endowment Incentive Fund. Nick and Joelle also co-chaired the Aiming Higher and Leading the Way campaigns which raised $41 million for the school. They also demonstrated their support for The Summit’s mission to develop Leaders of Character by gifting their children, Alex ’19 and Sydney SMS ’17 with Summit educations.

“Nick is like a bulldog,” says his dad, Nick Ragland III SBS ’58. “If he’s got a job to do, he won’t let go until he gets it done.”

H is mom, Martha, describes him as someone who “connects well with people” and “values others.”

Persistence and caring are just two traits of this Leader of Character that have inspired others.

“ When you’re asking for someone’s involvement, you’re typically asking for time, talent or treasure,” says Summit Board Chair Tom Neyer. “In the case of Nick, you get all three. For him to be willing to give so much of his time and his talent and his treasure over such an extended period of time is true generosity.”

I n addition to his work on behalf of The Summit, he’s also been successful in many leadership roles at Ragland family-owned Gorilla Glue Company and in service to many business and community organizations including Americraft Manufacturing Company, Cincinnati Regional Business Committee, the Cincinnati Reds’ Hall of Fame and The Children’s Home.

“Nick’s been important for our community because he’s been a pillar of togetherness,” says former Summit board member Josh Lorentz. “The values that he exemplifies in his daily life and his community work for the entire city of Cincinnati and for The Summit are a model for all of us to look toward.”

Current trustee Joel Stone agrees. “Nick has exemplified to all of us how to be engaged individually, how to engage your family and how to be engaged if you have the opportunity to be a trustee.”