DEAN MERDER NAMED REND LAKE COLLEGE FOUNDATION 2022 ALUMNUS OF THE YEAR
INA, Ill. (November 21, 2022) — Some would say humility isn't a valuable quality when motivating and leading others. Dean Merder — the 2022 Rend Lake College Foundation Alumnus of the Year — would humbly disagree.
From overcoming a childhood illness, playing college basketball, reaching c-level executive leadership heights, and defining success as being surrounded by friends and family, it is no surprise that the college chose Merder for its highest honor.
He grew up a Hoosier in Dubois County's seat of Jasper. The town was on the smaller side, consisting of about 12,000 people at the time. "It was a great life," he said with a reminiscent laugh. "I didn't know we didn't have anything."
The son of a truck driver father and stay-at-home mother who handed down a strong work ethic and the oldest of four siblings, Merder's childhood memories are filled with sports — any sport. "Sports were everything to us. We didn't go on vacation. We just played ball."
A severe illness at the age of six sidelined him from sports for nearly four years. In hindsight, he credits that for sparking a mission to drive harder — as if to make up for the lost time. " know God gave me … a little bit of a gift to play basketball. … In high school, my only goal was to play college basketball. It was that simple. I wanted to attend college. I knew basketball was the only route."
(L-R) Mother – Marlene Merder, Mitch Haskins, Dean Merder, High School Coach Rex May, Father – Tony Merder.
He gets emotional thinking of the impact RLC had on him, especially when he recalls the moment his life's trajectory changed.
"A man who was incredibly important to me was Coach Mitch Haskins. He is the one who recruited me to play at Rend Lake College, and it was the best thing that could have happened. This moment, without question, was the turning point in my life. College would not have happened without Coach Haskins recruiting me." Merder continues, "I was the first in the family to go to college, so I had no idea what to expect, and no one in the family had the experience to help me with them. Moving two and half hours away was a big deal for me, and luckily I navigated the college side well."
Confident God was putting him in the right place, Merder set his goals at earning a degree in business administration and helping Haskins and the Warriors win.
"I came in during the fall of 1982 and instantly meshed with the basketball players," Merder said. "We had a young team and a lot of new guys. The impact of being on this team was so significant. … Coach [Haskins] was a tough man, somewhat of a father figure, that got work done. He is what we all needed at the time. It was simply a really great two years."
In addition to Haskins, Merder said Jim "Hummer" Waugh and Wayne Arnold were also big influences on his success as a student-athlete at The Lake; and he made lifelong friends with teammates Tim Wills, Travis Helm, and Jamie Raley.
"If Rend Lake College were a four-year school, I would have stayed. I did not want to think about going elsewhere. It was such a great school."
Merder transferred his basketball skills and business degree to Oakland City University in Indiana.
"I figured I was done playing basketball and would finish up my degree. However, Coach Haskins called … Oakland City … and they asked me to come over and play with them. I let them know I was pretty well done with basketball. However, coach felt I wasn't done, and he was right. After playing with them for a night, I accepted a scholarship to play for my last two years at Oakland City. It was fantastic and was where I would eventually meet my wife."
"It is all God — how Mitch found me out of all the kids available, going to a university where I would meet my wife. You never know the 'whys' at the time. Just go with it."
Dean graduated from Oakland City in 1986 and returned to Jasper, where he began an entry-level customer service position at Kimball International, a large furniture company. He had worked there through the summers in college, so returning to something familiar was a good first step out of college.
"I had no intentions of staying there long. But 34 years later, I was still there," he laughed. "Kimball was fantastic to my family and me. They allowed me to travel the world multiple times. I progressed through the organization quickly."
He started at Kimball International at 22 years old, and by 23, he was promoted to management. They saw leadership qualities in him that he probably didn't see in himself, he admitted. Every few years, a new opportunity would come along that allowed him to explore new areas of the business. He went from customer service to project management, to sales operations, and then to a director position. Once Kimball began acquiring other companies, Merder was asked to be part of a team that went through the acquisition processes. Finally, he became a member of two of Kimball International's leadership teams.
"I was very fortunate to receive all the training and education I did there. It molded who I am. I saw the opportunities they gave me and others as a blessing."
During his first international leadership class, an instructor asked, 'When did you know you had leadership skills?"
"It was Coach Haskins," Merder said. "He asked me to complete a challenging task that would improve our team's chemistry." That proved to be a pivotal moment in Merder seeing himself as a leader and believing in his abilities.
"When I was in my job for about a year, people saw something in me that I didn't even see in myself. They took a chance on me," Merder said. "So that is what I have been doing my entire career. Taking a chance on people."
"The most joy in business is seeing someone you helped mentor, advance, and reach their goals," he added. "To see them work hard and succeed, knowing that you had a small part in that, is rewarding."
In 2018 — 34 years after starting at Kimball International — a 'happy birthday' to a friend on LinkedIn would lead to the next chapter of Merder's exciting career. His friend had recently started a business just four years prior. He offered Merder a spot on its leadership team.
"I left a career I had been at for 34 years and joined this startup in pharmacy benefit management. I knew nothing about it," Merder laughed. "They knew I had leadership skills and needed someone to lead the company. It was a considerable risk, but it has been the best personal and professional decision I could have made. It has been an incredible blessing for my family and me."
TrueScripts is a prescription benefit management company. He started as Chief Experience Officer. Within two years, he was named the company's president and Chief Executive Officer.
"One thing I tell people all the time. Never forget where you came from, and treat people respectfully. I don't equate success to material things. I see success as being happy and healthy, surrounded by family and friends."
His family is a significant source of his happiness. He has a wife of 32 years, Donna Merder, a retired school teacher; a 27-year-old son, Devon (Married to Taylor), who is recently married and lives in Fort Wayne, Indiana; and a daughter, who is 24, Delaney (Married to Caleb), in Clarksville, Tennesse, who owns a women's boutique clothing store.
He has served on the Board of Directors for Crisis Connection for the past five years. This non-profit organization provides advocacy and support for those dealing with domestic and sexual violence. He said that he feels strongly about his support for this organization and will continue to support it as his professional career winds down.
He will be honored with the 2022 Rend Lake College Alumnus of the Year Award at the Foundation's Annual Dinner on December 8 at the RLC Event Center on the campus in Ina. RLCF Board Member Pat Kern made the call to let Merder know he was the guy — to which he humbly replied, "I don't deserve this. You've got to find somebody else."
For Dean Merder, a journey into a successful college basketball career, a lifetime of leadership opportunities, and a calling to pay opportunities forward started at Rend Lake College.
