Siena Heights Will Be Ready and Waiting for You

Well, that didn’t turn out the way I thought it would.

That probably was the collective feeling of us all entering the year 2020. As the chair of the Centennial Committee, I was looking forward to the end of Siena Heights University’s 100^th anniversary year with a slew of events and activities, culminating with Commencement Weekend.

Instead, you all know what happened. A worldwide pandemic shut down almost everything in its path, including the best laid plans at Siena Heights.

In fact, since the Adrian campus closed in mid-March, I have only been on campus twice since late July. For the past few months, my new office has been the patio room of my home. My new office mate is my cat, and thankfully, he sleeps on the job most of the time.

During the early stages of my mandated stay-at-home work order, a phrase came to mind that our president, Sister Peg, has said many, many times over the years: Siena Heights is more than just bricks and mortar; it’s about the people.

These last few months have been proof positive of that idiom. We didn’t have in-person classes, athletics, student activities or alumni events in the traditional sense this spring. But Siena Heights University continued. We have now all become experts in video conferencing. Virtual events like our new Siena Shares Series have engaged our community in new and innovative ways. And using our nationally ranked Online Program as a guide, many of our Adrian campus faculty and courses are ready to go remote if necessary.

In fact, due to the circumstances, we made the decision to not produce a printed Reflections Magazine this summer, and are offering this issue completely online. This allows us to offer some multimedia content (like our Centennial documentary and Legacy Speaker video series) that we would not be able to offer in print form.

In getting an up-close look at the now 101-year history of Siena Heights before and during the Centennial year, I’ve learned that it has been very resilient when it needed to be. From the decision to move to a coeducational institution to the addition of online courses, Siena Heights has adapted while remaining true to its mission.

This current crisis, too, shall pass, and when it does, Siena Heights will emerge stronger and smarter because of it. And because many of you who read this magazine have a Siena Heights degree, I am confident you will, too.

And when all of this is all over, Siena Heights will be here, ready and waiting for you.

Doug Goodnough
Editor