Cubs second baseman and Olivet alumnus Ben Zobrist to serve as partnership ambassador

Olivet Nazarene University today announced a new partnership with the Chicago Cubs that makes Olivet the official education partner of the Cubs organization. Ben Zobrist, Cubs second baseman and a member of Olivet's class of 2004, will serve as the University's spokesperson.

Zobrist will appear in a series of promotional communications highlighting Olivet's new ONU Global initiative, a program that oversees the University's School of Graduate and Continuing Studies and administers non-traditional learning.

"We could not be more thrilled to announce this partnership with the Cubs organization and to find such an outstanding partnership ambassador in Olivet alumnus Ben Zobrist," said Ryan Spittal, ONU vice president for strategic expansion. "Ben is a man of faith and an outstanding example of a friend and teammate, and we are so glad to have him as an ambassador for Olivet and this partnership."

Zobrist, 34, was drafted in 2004. He played nine seasons with the Tampa Bay Rays and won a 2015 World Series ring as a key position player with the Kansas City Royals.

A native of Eureka, Illinois, Zobrist attended Olivet for three years. He played three seasons on the Tigers baseball team at pitcher, second base and shortstop before transferring to Dallas Baptist University for his senior year.

"I would not be where I am today without Olivet and the education the University provided," said Zobrist. "With the flexibility and variety in programs offered by Olivet's School of Graduate and Continuing Studies, now everyone can advance in both career and life by letting Olivet take them from where they are now to where they want to be."

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