Robert E. Ritschel, Ed.D.

Welcome to the Spoon River College website. As you begin to look through the many pages, you will soon discover that we are a comprehensive college offering courses and programs of study that will challenge your thinking, increase your learning, and fulfill your goals. If you are looking for an experience that will assist you in the workplace or aid you in preparing for a bachelor's degree, you will find it here at Spoon River College.

Although it may be difficult to determine by reading just a few web pages, you can be certain that at Spoon River College our faculty and staff are dedicated to ensuring your success. In addition to our mission in the classroom, we are also dedicated to the communities we serve. Through our two campuses in Canton and Macomb, our centers in Havana and Rushville, and our many courses available online, we have developed close associations with the public schools to assist committed high school students in earning college credit as well as business and industry in training their workforce.

College will be an opportunity for you to discover and discuss new ideas, an experience that can and often does result in a life-changing experience. It is our hope that you will take advantage of all the college experience has to offer - not just the credit courses for a degree or diploma but also the many clubs, student activities, performing arts events, seminars and workshops. You have probably heard it said that these can be the best years of your life - and it's all available here at Spoon River College!

Robert E. Ritschel, the seventh president of Spoon River College, assumed this leadership post on August 1, 2005. Prior to this appointment he was Campus Dean at Colorado Mountain College in Steamboat Springs from January 2000 to July 2005.

Dr. Ritschel is a career educator having been associated as a teacher or administrator in both community colleges and four-year institutions in Arkansas, Colorado, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, South Carolina and Texas. A native of Tulsa, Oklahoma, he received a Bachelor of Arts in Education from Northeastern Oklahoma State University, a Master of Music from the University of Texas at Austin, and a Doctor of Education from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Dr. Ritschel has taught students from junior high to graduate school and has published several articles in regional and national educational journals.

He currently serves as President of the Canton Rotary Club, and is a member of Phi Delta Kappa. Additionally, he serves on several community organizations within the Spoon River College district.

He and his wife, Sharyl, have been married for 40 years and they have two grown daughters and three grandsons. Mrs. Ritschel is an early childhood specialist and has a Master of Early Childhood Education degree from the University of Illinois with additional graduate study at the University of Missouri at Columbia.