Monmouth College Senior Profile: Ganon Greenman
Standout business student from Alpha is scholarship winner, Deere and Company intern
Monmouth, IL (12/18/2024) — Before he officially enrolled, Ganon Greenman had a pretty good idea what Monmouth College was all about, thanks to his brothers Ridge Greenman '19 and Briar Greenman '22.
And yet, there were still surprises in store for Greenman, who's now halfway through his senior year.
"It's been more than what I hoped," he said on a December afternoon, the day after finals ended. Greenman was seated in the Huff Athletic Center, where he watched the women's basketball team defeat Dominican.
The professors make the difference
"I knew about the small class sizes, which are awesome," said Greenman, who came to campus from AlWood, a high school with an enrollment of 111 students, where his mother, Brandy, serves as the principal's assistant. "But more importantly, it's the professors. They make it easier to learn. They really care about you. I've formed a relationship with a lot of them, and I show that I care about that relationship by caring about their class."
In particular, Greenman cited a trio of business professors - Mike Connell, Richard "Dicky J" Johnston and Tom Prince - as major influences on his academic career. Coincidentally, but predictably, all three professors were also in the gym that day, watching the women's victory, a fact not lost on Greenman.
"When we made the playoffs my sophomore year, they all came to our tournament game," he said.
In basketball, reaching the playoffs that season was Greenman's collegiate highlight - at least so far - as the Fighting Scots rebounded from a down year his freshman campaign. But even his rookie season was a highlight, as Greenman shared the court with one of his brothers.
"Getting to play here with Briar when I was a freshman was special," he said. "That's something we didn't get to do in high school. When he was a senior and I was a freshman, I just played on the JV."
The brothers posted a similar stat line in the 2021-22 season, with Briar notching 109 points and Ganon scoring 104, which included a collegiate-best 21-point outburst versus Grinnell.
"Ganon is a tremendous person who is extremely well-respected in our basketball program and across campus," said his coach, Todd Skrivseth. "He helps set our standards everyday with his work ethic and program-first approach. He's an impressive young man with a very bright future, and it's been an absolute pleasure getting to coach him the last four years."
"Coach Skrivseth was very supportive during the recruiting process," said Ganon. "He'd text me after my games and check in with me."
Greenman's prep career included 51 points in a single game and 1,750 for his career to finish as the leading scorer in the history of the Ridgewood co-op that includes AlWood.
The two-sport college athlete also stepped up in a big way for the Scots' golf team in the last meet of his junior season, carding a two-under 69 in the final round of the three-day SLIAC championships at Metamora Fields.
Scholarship winner, Deere intern
His athletic experience has been solid - including "the friendships I've created outside of basketball with these guys" - but Greenman also appreciates the personalized education he has received. Earlier this year, he was one of two recipients of the college's prestigious Tom Johnson Scholarship, awarded to a junior who best exemplifies the work ethic and values of Johnson, a successful local businessman.
Students are judged on academic performance and other factors, including work ethic and leadership. Life experiences in which the applicant struggles and overcomes long odds against success are also considered.
For Greenman, that struggle was losing his father, Todd, to cancer during his senior year of high school.
"He meant the world to me," said Ganon. "He was the first person I would call - basically for anything - my whole life."
The scholarship, he said, "was something I didn't even know about until I got an email from Dicky J, telling me that he thought I'd be a very good candidate for it. And that's what makes Monmouth special. The professors are always looking out for the students, and they all know us by name."
Greenman gave another example, which also involved Johnston.
"One of the other things I do here is tutor, and Dicky J will ask me how that work is going. He really cares for the students who are struggling."
A regular Dean's List student, Greenman is on the opposite end of that spectrum. He parlayed his strong academics into an internship with Deere and Company, an opportunity that could lead to a full-time position.
"When I was thinking about college, I wanted to go into ag, but that's something Monmouth didn't offer," said Greenman. "So I went with business, because there's lots of different things you can do with it. It's very broad. You can go down any path you want, and there are options down the road."
But thanks to the Deere internship, Greenman's focus is right back on agriculture. Deere offers a three-year plan where employees work three different jobs within the company and can then pick which one they want to begin full-time. He hasn't committed to that offer yet, but says it's a possibility.
"My time at Deere has been very eye-opening to me," said Greenman, whose brothers also work in western Illinois. Briar has a position at the Rock Island Arsenal, while Ridge works for G&M Distributors in Galesburg.
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