Rawls Valentine: Emily White and Michael White

Emily and Michael White were married in August 2002 and both earned their degrees in accounting.

Rawls College   |   February 14, 2023

What is your couple's origin story?

EW
Mike and I met when we were in high school. We went to different schools, but we both worked at JC Penney's. Our departments were next to each other's, so we would talk, and he eventually asked me out on our first date.

MW
Emily and I met at JC Penney's in Plano, TX when we were in high school. We became best friends, and that turned into a relationship. I asked Emily out for our first date. We decided to both go to Texas Tech University and got engaged our sophomore year of college and married our junior year. After I changed my major a couple of times, we were fortunate to share many of our last couple years of school together in many of the same classes. We both worked as assistants for different professors while we were at Tech and continued our education through graduate school. We remained close to Dr. Ricketts over the years, well after graduating, to keep our ties close to Tech.

What was your partner like as a student?

EW
Both Mike and I were accounting students at Tech. We had nearly all our classes together for our final years at Tech. The last few years, we even had to share a car, so our schedules had to line up. We both were teaching assistants in Rawls for part-time jobs.

MW
Emily was an amazing student and helped me, as I was a terrible student. Thankfully she was a good tutor for me and several other students in the accounting program. I finished my degree with Emily in the MSA program in accounting, so we got to take many graduate courses and some of our senior courses together. During school, we were both fairly intense about getting through school since we were both paying for school ourselves.

In what ways has your partner changed since you were students?

EW
College was not always easy for Mike, but he is an amazing entrepreneur and businessman. He is great at seeing the big picture. He hasn't changed in that he has always been the most caring person I have ever met.

MW
I don't know that Emily has changed much from when we were students. She is as passionate now about people and experiences as she was when I met her. Our interests as we have grown up continue to evolve. Emily still takes great care of me and those friends around us while continuing to be a brilliant sounding board tutor as she always was. We have been incredibly fortunate in this life and have continued to take on the world's challenges together.

How did attending the same business college impact your relationship with one another?

EW
I think by both of us majoring in accounting helped us by always having a study partner. I know I was intense in college about studying and getting good grades, but I know that it helped Mike to have that even if he didn't like it. After graduation, Mike eventually started his own business, and he is extremely intense and serious about his work and clients.

MW
For me it was everything. I went into school thinking I wanted to be an engineer, but seeing and hearing about Emily's early classes had me pivot to a new profession in finance and accounting that I would have never experienced. That change has led us to an amazing life of starting several businesses and ventures along the way.

What is your favorite memory of Rawls College with your partner?

EW
A group of us in the master's program would study in the tax library in the old tower. It would be when your schedule had that weird time, not long enough to go home in the middle of the day between classes. Mike and I would enjoy hanging with them and studying and having lunch.

MW
It was the BA rotunda in the old business school building. We had a study group of friends that Emily and I met with, and we would laugh, hang out and share stories while studying for our next assignment. We met some dear friends that we are still connected with today.