It takes tremendous focus, determination and talent to live a successful life and build strong character and relationships along the way.

Depending on personality and situation, success can have a multitude of meanings. It can mean love, money, fame or even strong faith. There is no right or wrong definition of success, only personal opinion based on experience.

Salisbury University, a public institution located in the city of Salisbury, MD in Wicomico County, nurtured and educated thousands of individuals, many of whom went on to gain successful work-world experience, and even a few who graduated and built a life of fame.

Five of the top most successful graduates of Salisbury University include:

1. Frank Perdue

Perdue was the president and CEO of Perdue Farms, one of the most well-known chicken-producing companies in the entirety of the United States. The Perdue School of Business was erected on Salisbury University’s campus in his honor.

2. Dan Quinn

Quinn, current head coach of the Atlanta Falcons, furthered his passion for sports at SU where he ran track and played football. He was inducted into the Salisbury University athletics Hall of Fame in 2005, and stands as a role model for athletes across the sports. Quinn also just led the Falcons to arguably the most entertaining and astonishing Super Bowls of all time.

3. Steve Bisciotti

Bisciotti is currently majority owner of Baltimore’s football pride, the Baltimore Ravens. He also founded a network of technical staffing companies known as Allegis Group. He graduated from SU in 1982 with a degree in liberal arts.

4. Byron Westbrook

Westbrook started his football career at DeMatha Catholic High School before attending college at SU, and went on to play in the NFL with the Washington Redskins as an undrafted free agent in 2007. He then took on coaching football at Bladensburg High School in Prince George’s County, MD, where he clinched the position of head coach.

5. Dale Midkiff

Midkiff graduated from SU having majored in Communication Arts and double minored in English and philosophy. His passion for acting roots back to high school where he was active in theater and won a drama award, and followed him throughout his life. His main highlights as an actor include his feature as Louis Creed in a horror film titled Pet Sematary, based on Stephen King’s novel and screenplay, and his role as Captain Darien Lambert in Time Tax, a science fiction TV series that first aired in 1993.

Every college and university has nurtured and produced successful individuals who learned in the same classrooms that the current college students do. They had to face the same course load and identity crisis, and overcame their hardships to build their success.

They didn’t get there on their own. So, look around, and let the successful graduates who have gone before you inspire you to follow your dreams and use the resources provided to you by the university.

Let your legacy live on beyond your college campus.