Online trailblazers: How two brothers hit the books while hitting the road

The Roehr Brothers

Online Bachelor of Science in Business Administration

The pandemic has changed the way we live, work, and function. But Logan and Bailey Roehr saw through the challenges and discovered an opportunity to live and learn in an exciting new way.

Bailey and Logan Roehr, both students in the Maryville Online bachelor’s in business administration program, decided to hit the trails while they hit the books. The brothers embarked on a socially distant road trip through 13 national parks across 15 states on a journey spanning roughly 9,000 miles. And they did it all while logging on to learn in America’s most scenic places like Yellowstone, Redwood, Glacier, and Zion National Park.

“I think a lot of people always have a dream of going on a crazy trip like this — and people kind of just wait for the perfect opportunity to fall into their lap,” says Logan. “With the quarantine going on, I realized there’s never going to be a perfect time.”

• Show/Hide Transcript

  expand_more

  Bailey: I had taken some time off from college and was working like in project management and account management for over a year before I decided to go back to school full-time.

  I was in my capstone business policies course during the trip, so then I loaded up the second term so for the first term I was just in the one business policies class and then the second term I was in two more and that’s what I really like about the online format is if you’re planning on doing a trip like during one of the terms you can kind of load up the other term you’re not taking a super packed schedule and I even took some classes over the summer just so I could focus on one really important class while I’m on my trip and then do another couple in the second term.

  Logan: My favorite place was when we climbed Half Dome, that was something that will always stick with me. Like just overcoming something that my body and my brain is telling me I shouldn’t do and like you’re not capable of this which that’s the kind of experiences I think Bailey was talking about, like those are things you can’t learn in a classroom you have to actually put yourself in an uncomfortable situation.

  As more and more time goes on there’s way too many options for students than to just go spend four years on a campus and then graduate and get a job. And I think that more people are starting to recognize that and people our age are starting to realize like, I can really do whatever I want, I can create my own path and I don’t have to do what the people before me did. Which I think is really cool and really important. Which is exactly what Bailey and I did, we didn’t want to go the traditional path and this was a perfect opportunity to explore that.

  Bailey: I really like the idea of getting to bring your education with your life and letting education follow you wherever you’re going to go you.

The Roehr brothers both credit Maryville’s flexible online learning platform for helping to make their travels possible and enabling them to balance schoolwork with exploration.

Having the ability to learn from anywhere gave them the freedom to take a trip of a lifetime.

The brothers quickly garnered national attention for their unique remote learning style, mixing adventure with coursework. They shared their journey across social media and YouTubeExternal link:open_in_new, and eventually inspired a ForbesExternal link:open_in_new article and an interviewExternal link:open_in_new with a local St. Louis NBC news affiliate.

Logan and Bailey planned how to make their education disruption-proof by downloading their assignments ahead of time so they could continue working even when Wi-Fi wasn’t available. They also took turns studying in the car as they drove from one park to another.

“Traveling and studying together on the road has been an extraordinary opportunity for us, which would have been impossible without the flexibility of Maryville’s online program,” Bailey says.

Indeed, the ability to grow their skills and build industry knowledge while enjoying breathtaking views is an experience they’ll never forget.

What started as a wild idea transformed into a reality — but not without planning, saving, working, and budgeting. The brothers both worked to earn money for their trip, as well as strategized a strict budget for their adventure. Logan and Bailey say they ate simple meals like eggs and peanut butter and jelly sandwiches to help accommodate.

The Roehr brothers have redefined the possibilities of remote learning and are hoping to inspire other students to do the same.

“Despite the curveballs COVID threw us this year, we were able to explore 13 national parks in 15 states this fall and never really missed a beat with our classes,” Bailey says. “We’re sharing our story about what we refer to as our ‘untethered education’ so other students are inspired to rethink where their college experience can take them.”

Traditional and remote classrooms offer different benefits to different kinds of learners. For those open to remote learning, an online option provides the most flexibility to determine your schedule and create your own path. Maryville’s online format allowed Logan and Bailey to stretch their schedule and coordinate their coursework with their travel plans. Most importantly, they were able to stay on track with their goals and graduation.

“It’s something to look at as another opportunity. It’s a pretty disruptive world out there once you graduate,” Logan says. “There are going to be things thrown at you that you did not expect, and this trip is just another opportunity to get used to that and really embrace it and run with it,” Logan says.

If you’re ready to see how Maryville Online can help you be brave and pursue your educational and professional goals, we’re here for you. Check out our online bachelor’s degrees, master’s degrees, and doctorate degrees, or schedule a call with an advisor today.