Reflections Magazine Issue #80 - Spring 2014 | Page 11

Campus Feature

Bill Blackerby
4. What do your students, past and present,
mean to you?
It’s true what they say: as a teacher your
students should do better than you. They
should perform in their careers very well
and capably and move as far as they want
to. I think for me the biggest joy of teaching is seeing the development of students.
Whether they are 18-year-olds that transform themselves into young adults or the
learners who come to us through the College for Professional Studies or our evening
students here in Adrian. You see a lot of
growth and maturity there, too.
5. If you were starting a business today, what
would it be and why?
I would probably provide some essential service. Whether it was home improvement or landscaping, because the world
just screams for people who will come out
on time, give you an estimate, stick to that
estimate, do a good job and clean up. I just
think that that’s a great opportunity right
now. Low-tech, and there’s a lot of good
people out there who I could hire who
would do very well, and I could just sort
of fill in and organize the process.
6. If you could describe Siena Heights to
someone in business management terms,
what words would you use?
Siena Heights is and has been by far
the most mission-driven organization I’ve
ever come across. That’s been the constant.
A lot of people can tell you that it’s competent, purposeful and ethical, and can back

that up. I think that’s unusual, especially
when the founders of the institution, who
traditionally embody the mission, are no
longer with us. The other thing is that it’s
an organization that’s capable of a tremendous amount of self-sacrifice. We’re all
thinking today about contributions. How
much of the contribution should come
from students and the parents? How much
of the contribution should come from the
government and its aid? How much of it
should come from the institution itself?
While some people could argue about
whether we have the right financial aid
contributions, I don’t think many people
can question the amount of personal contributions. The other thing is the tremendous amount of interest in the students
on the part of the non-teaching professionals here and the staff. I mean they really
are interested and they want to help the
students. They’re not customers. They
get it. This is why we’re here. So when we
fight, and we like to fight from time to
time, we can always bring people back to
a more civil tone by saying ‘what’s best
for the student?’
7. What is your best Siena Heights experience
outside the classroom?
Perhaps the best moment I ever had
was when (the 1994-95 national runner-up
men’s basketball team) came off the airplane and drove back to campus. I remember it was in the evening and (coach Fred
Smith) and the players were received by
quite a few people at the Fieldhouse. And
in typical Fred Smith fashion, he made
sure all the athletes were out front and
they got to do the talking.
8. What is the one thing most people don’t
know about you?

That gives you an idea of how many things
we were trying and how humble our beginnings were when we were pioneering offcampus adult education.
9. Give us your best Fred Smith story.
I’ve t