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From the Editor:

Doug Goodnough, Reflections Editor
Doug Goodnough, Reflections Editor

Who Made a Difference in Your Life at SHU?
Let Them Know!

Even with social media and its sometimes-exasperating ability to instan-
taneously connect with people anytime, anywhere, at times it’s still difficult keeping in touch with friends and others who have impacted your life.

Today’s college students have the tremendous advantage of using social media to keep in touch with classmates regardless of geographical distance, especially after they graduate. That certainly wasn’t the case for us “old-timers” of the pre-Internet era.

Most of the time, unless it was something like a Homecoming or a random phone call, it was extremely challenging to keep tabs on the people you once saw on a daily basis and who were a huge part of your life during the college years.

Then Facebook hit, and it all changed. Suddenly, high school and college classmates roared back into the picture in excruciating detail, giving me more than I ever wanted to know about their lives, families, careers and sports fan tendencies. I felt like more like a bystander actually, watching lives passing by, occasionally virtually “waving” to them.

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From the Editor:

Doug Goodnough, Reflections Editor
Doug Goodnough, Reflections Editor

Dominican “Daisies” In Bloom at SHU

“The memory of Mother Augustine Neuhierl lived on in the prophetic words spoken to the professed nuns gathered around her bedside during her last hours on this earth. She told them of the ‘daisy field,’ her vision of a peninsula in the West dotted white with Dominican foundations; and she reminded them that, though they were contemplatives, their active work would take them into the schools awaiting them.”
— From “Amid the Alien Corn,” Sister Mary Philip Ryan, OP.

I love history. I’ve learned from my personal and professional experience there are few things that put the present in perspective and help map the future better than studying the past.

So, not long after I arrived at Siena Heights, I had a chance to read “Amid the Alien Corn,” a 1967 work chronicling the history of the Adrian Dominican Sisters, which, of course, includes the founding of St. Joseph College, now Siena Heights University.

I found the above passage of Mother Augustine fascinating. The title of the chapter was aptly named “The Prophecy.” Her vision of this “daisy field” that she shared with her fellow Sisters, some of whom would eventually travel from New York to Adrian, Mich., has stayed with me during my time here. Even though I did not know very much about Siena Heights at the time, I couldn’t help but wonder if Mother Augustine was referring to—at least in part—present-day developments.

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From the President:

Sister Peg Albert, OP, PhD, President
Sister Peg Albert, OP, PhD, President

Reflecting on the Dominican Tradition

Recently, I attended the biennial Sponsorship Conference for all the institutions sponsored by the Adrian Dominican Sisters. While attending, I had the opportunity to reflect on leadership and what it means to be a university founded in the Dominican tradition.

The following are some of my thoughts:

Because we are part of a Dominican establishment, we are all family, we are all related. Each of us are leaders in our own way. How do we lead? Is anyone following? When St. Dominic formed the Order in 1214, he believed that the Prior of the Order or the Master General should realize that he was the first among equals. That’s also how I think leaders should see themselves today. When we lead, we must be servant-leaders, putting the needs of the institution/organization/community and the people we serve first.

How do we live the mission of Siena Heights University? Many of us have multiple interactions each day. What is the quality of those interactions? Do we speak with respect and listen with interest, or do we dismiss people as well as what they have to offer? Right relationships must be the foundation on which our mission is built. It can’t be assumed. It is an intentional act. If relationships are off-kilter, then it is difficult to sincerely live our mission. Mission is not something to be written on a piece of paper and tucked away. It is something that must live and breathe, grow and deepen each day.

Read more . . .