Student-athlete Kobe Ward is so busy that he doesn’t have time to waste. Yet, waste is a reason why he is so busy.

Ward is president and majority owner of Ward Waste and Recycling Services in Danville, Ind.

He also keeps very busy as full-time student, a Red Wolves basketball player and a volunteer for a business financial literacy program.

The junior is pursuing a bachelor’s of science in Business Administration and a minor in finance at Indiana University East.

His role as a guard for the Red Wolves entails hundreds of hours each year of conditioning, practices, meetings and games. Constant travel is a reality for Ward, who turns 21 on April 22: Think long bus rides and regular 200-mile car trips back and forth between his apartment in Richmond and his family home in Danville.

Even his volunteer work with the award-winning Cash Equals Opportunities program added to his travels this semester. He and two other basketball players – Colt Meyer and Bailey Shepherd – visited New Orleans in March to give a presentation about the CEOs program at the Academy of Business Research’s International Spring Seminar.

“We presented in the Management and Marketing Session, winning the Best Paper Award,” said Tim Scales, who is director of the IU East Center for Entrepreneurship.

Scales founded the CEOs program to help teach financial literacy in schools and in communities that are served by IU East.

Ward expects the pace to pick up even more for his travels back home this summer.

“It’ll be a grind,” he said. “It’s going to be challenging.”

Ward heartily accepts the challenge as he anticipates big entrepreneurial successes, especially after he graduates in 2025.

“I want to really hit this hard then,” he said. “I am hoping to build it beyond what people can imagine.”

Ward Waste and Recycling Services was incorporated in the spring of 2023.

He’s been building some business by mingling and making connections. One recent connection, in particular, helped land his first rental contract in Richmond. It happened at the portrait unveiling celebration for new Chancellor Dennis Rome last semester.

During social time, Scales introduced Ward to Brian Ballenger, who is president of Whisenhunt Construction.

“I was new to making connections like that,” Ward said. “He gave me his business card and said I should contact him because he might be able to help me out.”

He did, indeed: They met a few days later at Ballenger’s office and the result was a rental deal for two 30-yard waste rolloffs for Whisenhunt.

Ward admits: “I was just looking for ideas when we originally met. Then I thought I should call him.”

Ward and Bellenger related the upbeat community-connections story during the recent annual meeting of the Wayne County Chamber of Commerce.

“This is one example of how engaging students with our community helps with educating students and learning to network,” Scales said. “Bringing people together: That’s how business works.”

Ward said his business model has strong appeal because the waste market is dominated by big-name companies and he can provide services faster, cheaper and with more of a personal touch.

“It’s a good time to get in the market,” he believes. “There are so many different directions we can go.”

Ward started the business with Luke Vlasic, a high school friend and neighbor who attends Purdue University. They share duties in making sales and rentals, doing the invoicing and even the recycling and waste pickups.

Ward hopes to get startup help from Minority Business Enterprises, a program run by the state of Indiana.

“We have to be in business for two years. That’s perfect timing with graduation,” he said. “Hopefully, that unlocks some other doors.”

The state-sponsored MBE program’s goals, according to its website, are:
– Creating a fair, competitive, and equitable business environment;
– Providing networking opportunities to clients;
– Working to increase utilization;
– Monitoring and enforcing program compliance.

Ward wasn’t focused on business when he started as a freshman at IU East.

“l took a lot of science classes because I thought I wanted to be a nurse.”

He knows now that business is his calling.

Other experiences this school year have helped Ward build his confidence.

“Going into this year, I wasn’t the most outgoing,” Ward said. “I have made great strides in getting outside my comfort zone. That’s good. It could help me become a better business owner.”

Ward praised Scales for being a great mentor to him and other student-athletes at IU East.

“He’s always wanting to do something, having ideas. He’s a good person to get around,” Ward said. “All the athletes know him. Every sporting event, he will be there.”