For one UofL College of Business graduate student, it will also mark the American Dream in action.

Claudia Lopez Rodriguez graduated in July from UofL’s Masters of Accountancy Program. Next week, she joins the inaugural class of the college’s new Masters of Science in Business Analytics.

A native of Mexico, she is one of eight children whose father worked in the United States picking crops. She and her family moved to the U.S. when she was eight, first living in Michigan and then moving to Louisville in 2006.

In 2010, Rodriguez enrolled as an undergraduate student at UofL, studying biology and Latin America culture. She soon became interested in community service.

“I was able to go to college, an opportunity many Latinos don’t have, so I felt it was important to give back to the Latino community in the city of Louisville,” she said.

While working on her undergraduate degree, Rodriguez and her friends founded the Latin American and Hispanic Service Organization, or LAHSO.

“We created this as a support network for other Latino students – to provide them with mentorship and service opportunities,” she said. Today, LAHSO is a Recognized Student Organization (RSO) on campus dedicated to celebrating Latin American and Hispanic history, heritage, cultures and traditions. It has grown to include hundreds of past and present members.

While on a study abroad trip to Panama during her undergraduate years, Rodriguez met her husband, Kevin Reh. The two have a 4-year-old daughter, Maria. Upon graduating with a double major in Latin American and Latino Studies and Spanish and a minor in biology, Rodriguez decided that she wanted to continue her education and develop new skills to help support her family.

“I gained great skills during my undergraduate (studies), but I felt like I needed to gain technical skills that could make me more marketable,” she said.

Rodriguez’s brother, who is a UofL undergraduate accounting student, encouraged her to get an accounting certiïŹcate. She did just that, while also working at UofL in the OfïŹce of Undergraduate Admissions.  

After earning the certiïŹcate over the course of two years and ïŹnishing with a 3.9 GPA, Rodriguez moved straight into the Masters of Accountancy program. Her second and ïŹnal master’s degree – UofL’s MSBA program – will enable her to develop the data analytics skills that RodrĂ­guez says are becoming more necessary for ïŹnancial auditors and regulators alike.

“I’ve put in so much effort with accounting; I don’t want to be caught off guard by not having the data analytics skills required in the audit ïŹeld,” she said.

Rodriguez said she has continued to return to UofL for quality instruction, but also because of the university’s emphasis on diversity.

“UofL has always supported a diverse student body, and that’s one of the major reasons I’ve continued to invest in my education here at UofL,” she said, acknowledging the fact that UofL’s current Student Government Association now has two Latino students serving in major roles. “At UofL, Latino student representation has signiïŹcantly improved since my freshman year.”

Her sense of satisfaction extends beyond UofL to the country as a whole. After growing up in Mexico and gradually becoming exposed to the possibilities present in the U.S., Rodriguez says she is thankful for the opportunities she has received.

“My family comes from a modest background; my parents gave me the opportunity to come to the U.S. and improve my quality of life, and I feel that acquiring not one, but two master’s degrees really plays into the idea of the American dream – something that many immigrants hope to accomplish when they migrate to the U.S.,” she said.

Information was included in the July College of Business newsletter.

UofL senior Kyle Abell earned the all-tournament total event. Kyle’s mom, Patty Abell, a program assistant senior in Physical Plant, has been the team’s adult sponsor since 2014. When UofL won, she described herself as “an overexcited sponsor, an elated confidant and, more so, a tickled pink mom.”

“The university should be excited and proud of these individuals who have devoted their time as students, maintaining the proper GPA in order to compete; as fundraisers, helping raise money to cover the cost of the tournaments and the hotel expenses; and as victors, because they never gave up on their school, their coach or their team,” Abell said.

The UofL bowling team is marking its 10^th season this year. It began with a limited season in 2007-08, when Daniel Palmer brought it to campus. He and his brothers bowled for St. Xavier High School and wanted to continue participating in the sport in a competitive environment in college.

Palmer is now a UofL graduate and is the nephew of head coach Bob Hillerich, who took over during the 2013-14 season.

“Daniel jumped through many hoops and spent countless hours of paperwork to get the team started. He is like the godfather of UofL bowling,” Hillerich said.

Hillerich’s son, Kiefer, is a current team member. Other than that, this is Hillerich’s only affiliation with the school. He is a technical consultant at Humana by day.

Though the sport isn’t varsity-level at UofL, it frequently competes against varsity teams around the region. There are currently nine bowlers on the men’s team. Each tournament competition has a maximum roster allotment of eight players, so tryouts are held prior to each event – usually 10 throughout the season.

Hillerich continues to coach because he enjoys seeing the players’ improvement throughout the season.

“I enjoy seeing their ‘light’ come on and their game go to the next level,” he said. “My favorite part is the camaraderie among teammates on and off the lanes and the vibe from the team during competition, especially when the team is firing on all cylinders.”

As the season draws to a close, Hillerich said this has been one of the most successful years for the team in its 10-year history. He hopes to bring that momentum into next season and beyond.

“The best chance to ensure continued success will be a consistent effort toward player improvement, attention to detail and creating a team atmosphere,” he said.

Women’s team 

UofL did have a women’s team during the fall semester, but participation whittled down when some members left for internships or changed their status from full-time to part-time student. Palmer’s original team was co-ed, which Hillerich said was unusual at the time, since bowling itself was so new to the school.

The mission of the Ville’ns is to “create, reinforce, and enhance the fan experience of Cardinals Athletics.” The group’s goal is to “create an exhilarating fan atmosphere where students and student-athletes work together toward achieving the common goal of winning championships while exemplifying the tradition of Cardinals pride.” 

The Ville’ns serve as spirit leaders during sports games and use banners – like the L’s Up flag that was unfurled at Papa John’s Cardinal Stadium during the football season – and other promotions to help cheer for UofL’s athletes. The Ville’ns can be found at athletic events all over campus and beyond, including at Cardinal Arena cheering on the volleyball team, hanging out at the KFC Yum! Center during basketball season, and even supporting club sports like UofL’s hockey team.

“We want Louisville to be the most feared destination on any team’s schedule in any sport and until we have that, we’re not going to quit,” said Jason Wyrick, a senior RSO Sports Administration major and vice president of the Ville’ns.

Membership in the Ville’ns organization is open to anyone with a valid UofL student ID. Students can become a member by attending a general interest meeting. Members are required to attend a certain quota of all UofL games.

“This is the most important time for this,” said Ian Kirk, a junior from Lawrenceburg and president of the Ville’ns. “I think everyone loves Louisville but nobody has had the torch to lead the way. We need something to unify us as a school and as a city. The Ville’ns is more than a student section, it’s a culture.”

In the future, the Ville’ns hope to make busing and transportation available for students to games held off campus. Upcoming promotions at basketball games include a Red Out, a White Out, a Neon Out, and an Ugly Sweater Night to celebrate the holidays. 

More information about the group is .