On the Right Path

Rice Award Winner Julie Barst Leaves Career in Accounting to Teach English

By Doug Goodnough

A career in accounting just didn’t add up for Julie Barst.

After graduating from Central Michigan University with a degree in accounting and working as a successful CPA at one of the top accounting firms in the nation, Barst knew she wasn’t on the right path.

“I pretty quickly realized it wasn’t for me,” Barst said of her accounting job. “It wasn’t fulfilling me. It wasn’t making me happy.”

A mysterious debilitating back injury that laid her up for several months allowed her the time to reassess her career. When she recovered, she left her accounting position, returned to school, earned her master’s and doctorate in Literary Studies from Purdue University and started her new career in higher education.

Barst, who completed her seventh year as an English faculty member in Siena Heights University’s College of Arts and Sciences, was honored April 26 with the Eileen Rice Award for Outstanding Teaching.

Barst, an associate professor of English who also directs SHU’s Ethnic and Gender Studies Institute, said being honored with the award helps validate her decision to enter higher education.

Summer 2019 Campus News

SHU Nursing Program Achieves 96 Percent First-Time Pass Rate on
NNCLEX-RN Exam

The Siena Heights Nursing Program announced that its 2018 graduates achieved a 96 percent first-time pass rate on the National Council Licensure Examination for Registered Nurses (NCLEX-RN) exam. This is the second consecutive year the program has achieved the highest pass rate in program history. In fact, the program has averaged a 92 percent first-time pass rate on the exam for the past four years. This far exceeds the standards set by the Michigan Board of Nursing and the AACN-CCNE accrediting body.

University Announces Siena Tuition Advantage Program

Recognizing the national trend of rising tuition costs in higher education, Siena Heights University is taking a bold step to remain affordable for its students. On the heels of Siena Heights’ 100th anniversary, President Sister Peg Albert, OP, PhD, announced The Siena Tuition Advantage price certainty plan. The private Catholic university headquartered in Adrian, Mich., is locking tuition rates for full-time undergraduate students enrolled at its Adrian campus and many of its other programs beginning with the winter 2019 semester as well as for the 2019-20 academic year. In addition, SHU will phase in a two-year fixed pricing plan for all students in the College of Arts and Sciences, the College for Professional Studies and the Graduate College. The University has Michigan degree completion centers in Dearborn, Southfield, Benton Harbor, Monroe, Battle Creek, Kalamazoo, Lansing, Jackson as well as a nationally ranked Online Program.

From the President:

The “New Founders” of Siena Heights

As an Adrian Dominican Sister, I am well aware of the legacy the congregation has established at Siena Heights University.

Those women were indeed “valiant” in working to establish a college in Adrian more than a century ago. They had to overcome resistance from many circles, including the community, church leaders—even the farmer who refused to sell the land to the Sisters to establish the college because he was upset that St. Joseph Academy students were stealing apples from his orchard!

But those obstacles were eventually overcome, and today we are reminded of their efforts as we stroll through campus. What a legacy indeed!

To serve as President these past 13 years has been a privilege. I stand on the shoulders of those who preceded me in moving this institution forward. Now, on the eve of celebrating the 100th anniversary of Siena Heights, in many ways we all are the “New Founders” of Siena Heights.

Let me explain.