Ohio Wesleyan University graduate Kara J. Trott, Class of 1983, is being inducted into The Ohio Foundation of Independent Colleges (OFIC) Hall of Excellence as a powerful example of the value of a liberal arts education.
Trott of Columbus, Ohio, is the founder and CEO of Quantum Health Inc., a first-of-its-kind consumer healthcare navigation and care coordination company that helps guide consumers through the sometimes daunting and disorienting healthcare experience. Since 1999, Quantum has helped over 300 regional and national businesses decrease their healthcare cost trend while increasing employee satisfaction. Today, the company provides a simplified, coordinated healthcare experience to more than 1.5 million plan participants across the United States.
A politics and philosophy double-major at Ohio Wesleyan, Trott is the 12th university graduate to be inducted into the Hall of Excellence since it was created in 1987 to honor distinguished alumni from OFIC-member colleges. As a Hall of Excellence inductee, Trott joins an elite group that includes national news anchor Hugh Downs, U.S. Sen. John Glenn, civil rights leader Coretta Scott King, and OWU’s own Dr. Norman Vincent Peale.
Inductees are selected based on a committee review of their “professional achievement; impact on society through service, leadership, scholarship, minority affairs, sciences, research, arts, or elected office; and service to their alma mater, all of which exemplify the value of a liberal arts education.”
In addition to her OWU Bachelor of Arts degree, Trott holds a law degree from The Ohio State University Moritz College of Law. Before founding Quantum Health, she worked as a corporate attorney with the law firm Bricker & Eckler and served as a strategic marketing consultant and project manager at RPA, an international consulting firm. In that role, she successfully designed and executed research-based consumer intercept strategies for organizations such as Citibank, Ford Motor Co., and Coca-Cola. She then brought her unique expertise to healthcare, making Quantum Health the first company in the industry to apply consumer behavior mapping strategies to self-insured employers’ healthcare delivery.
For her innovation, Trott has been honored with countless awards, and her company has been listed as an “Inc. 5000 Fastest Growing Company” 10 times since 2007.
As an Ohio Wesleyan student, Trott was a member of the Mortar Board national honor society, the OWU Senate, and the Delta Gamma sorority. As a graduate, she served on the Alumni Board of Directors from 1980 to 1989 and currently is a member of the OWU Board of Trustees. As a trustee, Trott is chair of the board’s academic affairs committee and a member of its executive, marketing, and organization committees. She also provides leadership for Ohio Wesleyan’s Connect Today, Create Tomorrow comprehensive fundraising campaign, including a 2019 gift of $2.2 million to support OWU’s $60 million Residential Renewal project.
Trott is a vocal and valuable advocate for a liberal arts education, previously participating in the Council of Independent Colleges’ national testimonial project. In that role, she said: ‘During my time at Ohio Wesleyan, I can say with confidence that I didn’t learn a specific job skill or a trade, nor did I come to discover the blueprint for what it takes to be strong at sales, how to land my dream job, or even how to become a CEO. Instead, what my professors taught me was immensely more valuable than I could have ever imagined during those formative years of my life: They taught me how to think critically. … That has proved to be an incredibly valuable insight.”
In addition to the Ohio Wesleyan Board of Trustees, Trott currently is a member of The Committee of 200, an invitation-only organization of the world’s most successful women business leaders. She also is the founding member of the Tiffany Circle Society of the American Red Cross, a member of the Women Presidents’ Organization (WPO), and a member of the National Council for OSU’s Moritz College of Law.
Throughout her career, Trott has earned awards including Columbus CEO Healthcare Executive of the Year, Ernst & Young’s Entrepreneur of the Year, The Stevie Awards Female Entrepreneur of the Year, Inc. Best Workplaces, C200 Luminary Award, Key4Women Achieve Award, Moritz College of Law Distinguished Alumna Award, SBA Business Person of the Year, Smart Business Healthcare Executive of the Year, Smart Business Smart 50, WPO 50 Fastest-Growing Women-Owned/Led Companies, and WPO The Mary Lehman MacLachlan Economic Empowerment Award.
Ohio Wesleyan President Rock Jones, Ph.D., said Trott is a perfect choice for induction into the OFIC Hall of Excellence.
“Kara is a remarkable example of the power of a liberal arts education,” Jones said. “She is innovative, entrepreneurial, and genuinely interested in improving people’s lives. She has set the standard for how healthcare should be delivered, using care coordinators to help people navigate confusing systems to get the treatment they need now and avoid catastrophic and costly issues later. I can’t think of anyone more deserving of being recognized for her achievements.”
Trott will be inducted into the Ohio Foundation of Independent Colleges Hall of Excellence during a special “Evening of Excellence” April 22 at The Grand Event Center in Columbus.
Ohio Wesleyan graduates previously inducted into the Hall of Excellence are:
- Carol A. Latham, Class of 1961, retired founder, president, and CEO of Thermagon, Inc., inducted in 2018.
- Gregory L. Moore, Class of 1976, award-winning journalist and former editor of The Denver Post, inducted in 2015.
- Jean Carper, Class of 1953, New York Times best-selling author and former CNN medical correspondent, inducted in 2014.
- Evan R. Corns, Class of 1959, co-founder and retired CEO of America’s Body Co., inducted in 2010.
- David L. Hobson, Class of 1958, retired member of the U.S. House of Representatives, inducted in 2005.
- George H. Conrades, Class of 1961, chairman of Akamai Technologies, inducted in 2001.
- Robert W. Gillespie, Class of 1966, chairman emeritus of KeyCorp, inducted in 1997.
- Sherwood Rowland, Ph.D., Class of 1948, Nobel Prize-winning research chemist, inducted in 1996.
- David Hamilton Smith, M.D., Class of 1953, physician, researcher, and author, inducted in 1995.
- Frank N. Stanton, Ph.D., Class of 1930, former president of CBS, inducted in 1991.
- Norman Vincent Peale, Class of 1920, pastor and author of the “Power of Positive Thinking,” inducted in 1989.
