No matter what he’s doing, Dublin graduate Jack Harper is always motivated by his desire to continue growing as a person. “I wake up and always want to do better than I’ve been doing and figure out how to bring the most value into whatever it is that I’m involved in that day,” he said.
Harper graduated from Dublin High School in 1999. While in school, he’d been active in cross country, track, basketball, FFA, UIL and other extracurriculars — ”the typical good small town opportunities to do a little bit of everything,” he said.
“When I was coming out of high school, some of the most influential people on me were the coaches that were there through my time,” he said. “So when I went off to school, I figured I’d follow that path and get into teaching and coaching.”
He went to Texas Tech in Lubbock to study exercise and sports science. “As time went on and I got more involved with recreational sports and officiating sports and things like that, I decided I could go and take a different path,” he said. “Instead of teaching and coaching, I started to go down the recreational sports path.”
He graduated from Texas Tech in December 2003 with his bachelors, and went on to Oklahoma State for a masters in leisure studies. He worked in the department of recreation as a graduate assistant, helping out with intramural and rec sports.
He graduated in 2006, and found a job at Southern Methodist University in Dallas. “I was running the intramurals and sport club programs at SMU,” he said. “It was interesting, living in the big city and everything that goes along with that. And it was a really good way to learn how to work for other people, how to do things a little bit differently, and I really learned customer service and how to deal with a broad range of people.”
Although he no longer works in the field, Harper’s experience at SMU set him up for success in the future. “A lot of things that I do now are based on the skills that I found while I was working there on campus — conflict resolution, communication, organization, all of those things,” he said. “I was able to spend a whole lot of time managing employees while I was there and training people on different skills in order for them to be successful and help me within the program.”
Harper stayed at SMU for eight years, then decided he wanted a change. His father, Dr. Alfred D. Harper, was the founder of Dublin-based Veterinarian’s Outlet, and Harper mentioned his interest in getting into the agriculture field. “Shortly after we had that conversation, he had one of his sales guys quit, and so he called me up and offered me the opportunity,” Harper said.
Harper asked that he be placed in the Texas Panhandle, so in 2014 he moved out to Vega, Texas, and started working with the dairy farms nearby. “Vega is 30 miles west of Amarillo, and most of the dairies are up and down the highway that runs right through Vega. I’d spend my time [providing supplies] for dairies in the Texas panhandle and eastern New Mexico. It was a good central location for me and where my customer base was.”
In 2020, he switched to working with Diamond V. “We sell feed additives for many species, but I focus on the dairy additives helping digestion and overall gut health of dairy cows,” he said. “As I transitioned to my new position with Diamond V, I was able to keep a lot of the same relationships and then get an even larger territory, diversify what I’m able to do and what I’m able to provide those dairies on a day to day basis. That way we can go out every morning and try to bring value to our customers and just see how we can help dairy cows be happy.”
An average day’s work varies for Harper, but he spends most of his time out on farms offering feedback on how the farmers feed their cattle. “Most of what I do is centered around looking at the feed wagons, watching the guys mix feed and deliver feed to the cows,” he said. “I’ve got a drone that I do a whole lot with. I’ll fly the drone around, watch the mixers, watch everything on that dairy and provide feedback to the dairyman on feed availability in front of the cows.”
He hopes to continue working at Diamond V for the foreseeable future. “I want to just keep on developing and finding new ways to bring value,” he said.
Harper remains connected to Veterinarian’s Outlet as a part owner. “I try to remain as silent of a partner as I possibly can,” he said. “Myself and my siblings inherited that business, and we have some very good people in place that allow the business to be very successful, and we do what we can to support them and then trust them that they’re making the best decisions for the greater good of our customers and our employees.”
When he’s not working, Harper enjoys refereeing basketball. “I referee high school basketball right now,” he said. “For a while I was working some small college games. I spend a lot of time in the late fall and winter working those games.”
He also enjoys spending time outdoors. “I like hunting, fishing, any of those fun things, and just trying to have a good time,” he said.
His girlfriend, Emily Ham, has three children. “We spend a lot of time trying to keep them happy,” he said.
His advice to Dublin graduates is to never do anything half-heartedly. “Anywhere you go, make sure you go and get involved,” he said. “Take the opportunities that present themselves. Don’t just do the bare minimum; if you go to college, don’t just go to class, find organizations and find places to go, get involved, and don’t be afraid to step outside your comfort zone and try new things. Expand your network and go out and meet new people.”
Editor’s Note: This column chronicles what Dublin graduates have done since high school. If you have any suggestions for other grads, email publisher@ dublincitizen. com.