Name: Randall G. Sampson, Ph.D.

Hometown: Columbus, Ohio

Current city: Powell, Ohio

Graduation year(s): 1996 & 1997

College: Education and Human Ecology

Major(s): Human Development: Child and Family Studies (96) and Masters of Education K-8 (97)

Extracurricular activities: Golf, Running, Hanging out at the beach, Innovating new programs and Digital Media

What inspired you to create the Web site  www.ShareWhatYouWant.com? 

My two daughters were sitting at the kitchen table looking at an American Girl doll catalogue. They were very busy circling every single item, so I said “we can’t get every doll in the catalogue.” My youngest, who was 4 years old at the time, said “but that is what I want!” The idea hit me like a ton of bricks. Why not create a social shopping site where you can pick the gifts that you want; you have the choice! So I asked my daughters why they decided to circle all the dolls they said, “We are sharing what we want and we know you will get us something.” Immediately, I drew the concept on a napkin and started to develop the "Facebook of Shopping", or as I like to call it, the "Super Registry" idea. Kids know how to keep things very simple, which is the goal of the site, and the www.ShareWhatYouWant.com name says it all. As a parent, the site also helps me when my kids ask, “How does Santa know what toys and things we want?” I can now simply explain that Santa and the elves look at the Share What You Want Santa list made by all the little boys and girls. Their response, “Santa has an email address, that is cool!”

How can people use Share What You Want to help ease their holiday shopping needs?

I recently saw a TV advertisement of a lady doing push-ups, sit-ups and wind sprints as she was training for the Black Friday Holiday shopping blitz. Fighting through crowds and long holiday shopping lines is a thing of the past. On the Share What You Want site, there are thousands of stores and comparison priced items. These items are all readily available at your fingertips; it is a simple 3-step process. There is no need to fumble around in the dark, waking everyone up, as you dart out the house for the Black Friday 4 a.m. sales. Using Share What You Want, you will find the same sales or even cheaper because you receive comparison prices from multiple vendors across the country. Share What You Want has a “Tell A Friend” share button that allows you to Email, Facebook or Tweet your list to friends and family. Friends and family will be able see exactly what you want for the holidays, quickly buy the items online and ship them to your or their location. The quick buying process takes about two minutes per item, versus driving store-to-store in the cold or snow and standing in long lines for hours. Recently while attending a Buckeye football game, during a T.V. timeout I was able to purchase and ship my niece’s birthday presents by using my smart phone.

How can Share What You Want be of assistance during other times of the year?

Share What You Want serves two purposes: Personal and Social Good

1). Share What You Want is a super registry for personal events such as:

Birthdays, Weddings, Graduation, Back to School list, College Move-In Day (ship directly to the dorm), College Care Package, Baby/Wedding Shower, Super Bowl Parties, Halloween Party, Mother’s/Father’s Day, Religious Holiday/Celebrations, House Warming, Going Away Party

2). Share What You Want is also a super registry for social good events such as:

Food/Clothing drive, Adopt-A-Family, Adopt-A-Military Family, Adopt-A-Pet, Adopt-A-School, People involved in a natural disaster, fund raising, Church or Boy Scouts social good causes, Children's Hospital, College Athletics Departments can have athletes use the site to keep track of gifts received, and any cause you want to create/sponsor

What does The Ohio State University mean to you?

To me Ohio State means Disciplina in civitatem- Education for Citizenship. I was fortunate to have studied and applied both aspects of the Ohio State motto in both my undergraduate and graduate studies in the College of Education and Human Ecology. Share What You Want illuminates the American virtues of choice and social good. The Ohio State University has provided me with a strong foundation, as I seek to improve the lives and prosperity of Americans.

But for Ohio State…:

I would not dare dream of something different, nor have the courage to ignite my innovate spirit.

What was your most memorable moment at Ohio State?

I had a job working in the “guts” of the OSU library mailroom and book collection. The best part was the OSU book-giving program. Various people in Columbus would donate books to the OSU Library and we would drive to their homes to collect the book gifts. The personal pride the donors expressed by giving the gift of reading and knowledge has always stuck with me. Paying forward was not a big check or having their names on a building, their method of paying forward was the respect of knowledge and extending that to others. When I am on campus I always make it a point to go through the Library back door where all of the donated books are stored.  

Who was one of your favorite faculty members?

I would say it is a tie between College of Education and Human development faculty members Dan Hoffman and Anita Woolfolk-Hoy; for the same reason, personalization. My love and respect for both faculty members really kindled once I graduated and applied many of the learned theories to the schools, communities and students I serve. As an Alumnus, I feel fortunate that I am a phone call away from the brightest minds in the world and surprisingly they answer the phone every single time I call. Both faculty members are always encouraging me to develop new tools and ideas, but they always stress a focus on increasing the level of human efficacy through the practice of social good. Both, Drs. Hoffman and Woolfolk-Hoy, truly believe that the teaching and learning does not stop once a student receives a College of Education and Human Ecology diploma from The Ohio State University.

What was your favorite campus hangout and why?

My favorite campus hangout was Larkins Hall. At that time, the dark ages, it was the greatest exercise facility known to man. There was always a line to wait for the cardio machines, so you had to time it right when you signed up on the clipboard. How strange is it now that the top floors of Larkin or the entire building would be closed on hot summer days because there was no air conditioning. There was just one big 9-foot exhaust fan in the cardio room.