Barbara Sewell Beach

Barbara Sewell Beach hails from Louisville and was the first person in her family to attend college. She graduated from WKU in 1966 with a bachelor’s degree in business education. While at WKU she was a dorm counselor in State Hall and active in the Baptist Student Union.

Upon graduation, Barbara taught high school in the inner city of St. Louis, Missouri for three years. She then spent two years as an officer in the Women’s Army Corps where she met her husband, Karl, a career army officer. After leaving the army she taught for an additional year but concluded a career in teaching was not conducive to frequent moves around the country. Barbara then proceeded to attend Texas Tech University and received a Master of Public Administration degree. She then began a career in financial management working for the U.S. Army and the Department of Defense from which she retired.

Barbara credits the time spent at WKU to broadening her perspective on life beyond Kentucky and instilled in her a desire to travel the world. As an army wife, Barbara moved often and she and her husband have traveled to all seven continents.

By funding this scholarship Barbara hopes to enable another student to move forward through education and achieve their dream.