Reginald Spears (BS Biology, ’85) and Lenita Sims-Spears (BS Biology, ’85)
College of Arts and Sciences Spotlightby GRACE HEIMERL
Roosevelt is home to a community of students and alumni who offer unique, engaging stories about their path to Roosevelt and beyond. Alumni Dr. Reginald Spears (BS Biology, ’85) and Lenita Sims-Spears (BS Biology, ’85) both found individual success in their careers — and a successful marriage — because of their journey at Roosevelt University.
Reginald Spears (BS Biology, ’85) and Lenita Sims-Spears (BS Biology, ’85)
After Spears graduated from high school in 1974, he took an unorthodox path to his current role as a family physician. “I wasn’t ready at the time for college, I couldn’t find steady employment, so I joined the Army in ’77,” he said. “I initially trained to be a military policeman, but I couldn’t pass that test, so they found me a job as a medic. Because I tested well as a medic, I received advanced medic training.”
Spears admitted he knew little about applying for college, but he wanted to be a doctor because of his applied medical experience in the military. Upon his retirement from the Armed Forces, he went to apply to a local Chicago medical school but was promptly denied because he didn’t yet have an undergraduate degree.
“I remembered my dad had taken classes at Roosevelt, so I just went up the road and applied.”
— Reginald Spears
(BS Biology, ’85)
“My eldest brother was the only one who had gone to school, and I figured I could just go to medical school,” said Spears. “I remembered my dad had taken classes at Roosevelt, so I just went up the road and applied.”
While enrolled at Roosevelt, he met his future wife, Lenita. They were able to develop a relationship because they shared biology classes and participated in the same student organizations.
“Because of the classes we shared, I got involved with the Black Student Association,” recalled Sims-Spears. “I remember doing that because, well … that’s where Reginald was!”
After graduation, Reginald decided to attend the Southern Illinois University School of Medicine to become a physician. Lenita applied her biology degree as a research technician at the University of Illinois, which helped her segue into a career with Abbott Laboratories. During her tenure with Abbott, Sims-Spears acquired her law degree from John Marshall Law School, all while juggling a promotion, international travel and raising her new family.
“I was going to law school at night while I worked full time. I did it all because of Reginald’s support”
–Lenita Sims-Spears
(BS Biology, ’85)
“I was going to law school at night while I worked full time,” she said. “I did it all because of Reginald’s support.”
Today, the couple continues to embody the spirit of Roosevelt’s community and values. Sims-Spears practices as a regulatory food lawyer and teaches at the John Marshall School of Law. Spears maintains an internal medicine practice that seeks to compassionately educate the community it serves. Both run nonprofit organizations that benefit young students, including the Chocolate Chips Association and Cornerstone Educational Foundation. They also have three children: a teacher, a nuclear technician and a senior at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago.
While Lenita and Reginald asserted their support and love for one another are major sources of stability in their lives and careers, they also credited Roosevelt for giving them both the catalyst they needed for their success.
“Roosevelt was so supportive of the dream Reginald had since he was seven because they were willing to wrap their arms around him, and Roosevelt gave me grounding to get that permanent position with the University of Illinois, which helped my career.”
–Lenita Sims-Spears
(BS Biology, ’85)
“Roosevelt was so supportive of the dream Reginald had since he was seven, because they were willing to wrap their arms around him,” said Sims-Spears. “And Roosevelt gave me grounding to get that permanent position with the University of Illinois, which helped my career.”
This dynamic couple is a charming example of the power of the Roosevelt community and how its core values positively impact both its students and the greater world.