By TYLER ELLYSON
UNK Communications
KEARNEY – For the Rauert family, the University of Nebraska at Kearney has never been just a college campus.
It’s a gathering place, a launch pad, a source of friendships and, perhaps most importantly, a second home.
Ask the family to describe their connection to UNK and a common theme quickly emerges.
“A home away from home,” said Jenna Rauert, who earned a bachelor’s degree in communication disorders this spring and is now pursuing a master’s in speech-language pathology.
Around a table inside the Nebraskan Student Union, heads nod in agreement.
For more than three decades, the university has been woven into the fabric of the Rauert family’s story.
The tradition began with Jodi (Rickert) Rauert, a Wood River native who arrived in Kearney in 1989 to pursue a business degree and a future in finance.
“I started working in a bank when I was very young, so I knew I wanted to get a business degree and go into finance,” she explained. “All of my siblings went to school in Lincoln, but I was the baby of the family and I wanted to stay close to home.”
She graduated in 3 1/2 years and built a successful career in banking and wealth management, eventually becoming a financial adviser with FNBO serving clients in Grand Island and Kearney.
Years later, all three of her daughters followed her to UNK.
Jessica (Rauert) Huston arrived in 2016 and balanced academics with athletics and leadership opportunities. She spent two years on the track team, served as president of Gamma Phi Beta sorority and was a Panhellenic recruitment leader and residence hall assistant before completing her nursing degree through the University of Nebraska Medical Center’s Kearney Division.
Jocelyn (Rauert) Childers came next, studying elementary education while spending a year on the track team, serving as president of Gamma Phi Beta and participating in Chancellor’s Ambassadors and the Teacher Scholars Academy. Today, she teaches second grade at Meadowlark Elementary School in Kearney.
Then came Jenna, who played volleyball for a season and built one of the most decorated student leadership resumes on campus. A member of the Honors Program and Chancellor’s Ambassadors, she served as a Loper Leader, Panhellenic recruitment leader, Gamma Phi Beta executive member, student liaison for the Nebraska Speech-Language-Hearing Association and president of Greeks Advocating for Healthy Lifestyles. She was voted homecoming queen in 2025 and received the Mary Jane and William R. Nester Student Leadership Award and UNK Sorority Member of the Year honor.
Their majors may have varied, but the sisters found many of the same things at UNK.
“I never felt pressure to come here,” said Jessica, now a registered nurse at CHI Health Clinic in Kearney. “They took me wherever I wanted to go on college visits. But I feel like I always knew I was going to come here and wanted to come here.”
Jocelyn explored other options, too, but the decision always seemed inevitable. Because she’s the middle sister, she attended UNK at the same time as both her siblings.
“It was always here,” she said. “I looked everywhere else, but it was always going to be here. I wanted to be with them.”
By the time Jenna started her college search, she had already watched two older sisters build lives and friendships in Kearney.
“I saw their experiences and thought, ‘I want the same thing,’” she said.
Where Everybody Knows Your Name
The Rauerts repeatedly return to one word when describing UNK – connections.
And they begin at the highest levels of the university.
“We’ve really appreciated the opportunity to get to know Chancellors Doug Kristensen, Charlie Bicak and Neal Schnoor,” Jodi said. “Each of them has been an advocate for our girls and all students at UNK.”
She recalls former Chancellor Kristensen writing a letter of recommendation for Jocelyn as she searched for her first teaching job.
“I told her, ‘Frame that,’” Jodi said with a laugh. “That is something that you don’t usually see happen. And I think that’s what Kearney is about, that’s what UNK is about. It’s tight-knit.”
Jocelyn sees those connections everywhere she goes.
“I found a person in every area I’ve been involved who knows my family, knows me through something or we make a connection,” she said. “I think that’s huge.”
Jodi credits the university for intentionally creating this kind of atmosphere.
“They’ve done a nice job of making everyone feel really important and calling everybody by name,” she said.
“Most people don’t know how to pronounce Rauert,” she added. “It always makes me smile when people here know the name. It’s fun to come to campus because the girls always run into someone they know. They were able to make lasting friendships, and that really shows.”
Jumping Right In
Growing up in Wood River, involvement was simply part of life for the Rauert sisters.
They arrived at UNK with the same mindset: jump in, join a group and make the most of every opportunity.
“Being from a small town and being at a small school, we were involved in everything growing up,” Jessica said. “That just carried over into college life. That was my way of getting to know everybody.”
The leadership positions, student organizations and athletic teams expanded their circles even further.
“I got to know so many amazing people and professionals who work here,” Jessica said.
Jocelyn still keeps in touch with many of her professors and now works alongside some of them as they place aspiring teachers in her classroom for field experiences.
“It’s been really cool to be able to talk to them and stay connected over the years,” she said. “Now they’re more colleagues. That’s been fun.”
Jenna describes involvement as a natural extension of who the family has always been.
“Once you start getting involved, it really opens doors in every area,” she said. “It opens doors for leadership and friendships and connections.”
Their parents helped shape that approach. Jodi and Ron Rauert have modeled community involvement throughout their lives – at church, in school and by serving with various organizations. Currently, Jodi is a member of the Wood River Rural Schools Board of Education and CHI Health St. Francis Foundation Board of Directors, and she recently completed a 10-year stint on the Heartland United Way Board of Directors.
“It would be almost weird to come to UNK and not do extracurriculars and be involved,” Jessica said.
Ron, who works as a production supervisor for Nova-Tech Animal Health in Grand Island, enjoyed watching his daughters embrace those opportunities.
“They went above and beyond what we ever thought they would have done in college,” he said. “They’re so involved in everything. I’m really happy they chose UNK.”
Sisters Times Two
Another shared experience – Gamma Phi Beta – strengthened the sisters’ bond with campus and each other.
The first to join, Jessica initially viewed sorority membership as an opportunity to meet new people.
“I went through recruitment and I loved it,” she said. “I think Greek Life does a lot for everybody. It teaches you just as much as a lot of the classes do.”
For Jocelyn, who remains involved through the alumni board, joining the same organization as her older sister provided an immediate sense of comfort.
“I felt the most at home with Gamma Phi Beta,” she said. “Maybe that’s because she was there, too.”
Jenna talks about the sorority with the same sentiment.
“For me, it became another home away from home,” she said. “They’re people you knew you could count on all the time.”
“A lot of people go into sorority life thinking they just want to find friends, and I found a lot of great friends, but it’s more than that,” she added. “I grew a lot as a person and gained leadership skills. I don’t think I would have been involved as much as I was if it wasn’t for GPhi. It really pushed me to get out there.”
The friendships and leadership experiences were important, but sharing them as sisters made them even more meaningful.
“We always say we’re sisters times two,” Jessica said. “We’re sisters together but then also sisters in GPhi. It just means more that we all three share it.”
The Tradition Continues
Several degrees later, the Rauert family’s UNK story is still being written.
Jessica and Jocelyn both married fellow Lopers – Matt Huston and Tommy Childers – who were also involved on campus. Everyone lives along a 30-mile stretch of U.S. Highway 30, allowing them to gather regularly for birthdays, holidays and other events.
“Family is everything,” Jessica said, “especially with ours. We do everything together, and we love it that way.”
The next generation is also becoming familiar with the blue and gold. Jessica’s two young sons already wear Loper gear and attend football games with the family.
At Meadowlark Elementary, Jocelyn is doing her best to inspire even more future Lopers.
“I have a Loper sign in my classroom, and I tell all my students and parents at the beginning of the year that I was a Loper,” she said. “I absolutely love the college. I feel like I advocate for UNK all the time because I had the best experience here. It means the world to me to be a graduate and wear the blue.”
When reflecting on her time at UNK, Jenna returned to the same idea that surfaced at the start of the conversation. Being a Loper is about much more than earning a diploma.
“It means knowing that you always have a place to call home,” she said. “Being able to call UNK home – and meaning it.”
