Personal Trainer

Three-Time Rice Award Winner Carl Kaster Helps Biology Students Take
‘The Next Step’

Carl Kaster’s father wanted him to be physician.

“When I was a college under-
graduate, if people asked me what I wanted to do when I graduated, I always said ‘medicine,’ ” he said. “If I said medicine, I didn’t have to talk about it any more, because they all knew what that meant. You wanted to be a physician.”

In fact, after working as an extern at an internal medicine private practice for a couple of years, he was ready to enter medical school at the University of Louisville.

“I met with the medical school dean,” Kaster said. “When we got through with that interview, he gave me the best advice I had had at that point. He said, ‘Stop thinking about doing what your family wants you to do. Do what you want to do. … You don’t want to be a physician, you want to be somebody who is training physicians.’ So here I am.”

Rising Stars

“Rising Stars” is a regular feature in Reflections. It profiles Siena Heights alumni who have graduated within the past 10 years and who excel in their careers, occupations or community service accomplishments. To be considered for “Rising Stars” in an upcoming issue of Reflections, fill out the online form at www.sienaheights.edu/risingstars. Those who are selected to be included in an upcoming issue of the magazine will be contacted by the Reflections staff.

Rob Hemmig

Graduation year: 2007, 2009/MA.

Current title/position: Corporate Partnerships Executive, Michigan International Speedway, Brooklyn, Mich.

What Rob is Doing: He works at Michigan International Speedway alongside many other SHU alums. His role is to find ways for companies to utilize MIS’s assets when it comes to entertainment, marketing and activation. He started as a ticketing intern in 2007 and has worked his way up to his current position.

My favorite moment/story while a student at Siena Heights was: “I think my favorite memory outside of baseball would have to be seeing the students I recruited while coaching complete their degrees from Siena Heights University.”

My favorite person at Siena Heights was: “There are so many to pick from, but Joni LeMay and Melissa Growden were always there to make sure that things were going in the right direction.”

My ultimate goal in life is: “Be successful and happy.”

My best piece of advice for SHU students is: “Create your own experiences at SHU, don’t just follow the group. Each person will and should have a different experience while in college. Get involved in activities that you normally wouldn’t do. You never know, you may find a new passion.”

Collaborative Creativity

SHU Nursing Program Teams Up with Social Work, Theater to Earn National Innovation Award

SHU Director of Nursing Dr. Sue Idczak (second from left) as well as SHU nursing faculty member Kelli Kusisto (second from right) and SHU theater faculty member Mark DiPietro (far right) accept the Innovations in Professional Nursing Education Award Oct. 26 from American Association of Colleges of Nursing representatives during AACN’s fall meeting in Washington, D.C.

Siena Heights University’s nursing program was the recipient of the Innovations in Professional Nursing Education Award from the American Association of Colleges of Nursing.

SHU earned the honor in the Small Schools category. The awards program recognizes the outstanding work of AACN member schools to re-envision traditional models for nursing education and lead programmatic change. Innovation awards, including monetary prize of $1,000, are given annually in four institutional categories: Small Schools; Academic Health Center (AHC); Private Schools without an AHC; and Public Schools without an AHC.

According to Dr. Sue Idczak, SHU’s director of nursing, the program was honored for a unique series of live training simulations conducted in 2013-14 that involved students from nursing, theater and social work programs. Under the faculty’s guidance and supervision, specific scenarios involving the care of older adults were recreated.

“Inter-professional education is becoming such a big thing,” said Idczak, who credited SHU Assistant Professor of Nursing Kelli Kusisto for the creation and development of the simulations. “It really brought liberal arts into the nursing field.”