Carolyn Hurst first came to Andrews University as a graduate student. She pursued a Master of Arts and, in 1993, completed her degree. She worked briefly in market research until returning to Andrews—this time in 1998 as the graduate dean’s administrative assistant.
In 2001, Carolyn moved into Graduate Admissions as the graduate admissions supervisor. Her responsibilities continued to grow and, in 2010, she became director of Graduate Admissions.
“When I first moved into the Graduate Admissions Office, the typewriter was still being used as part of the process of preparing files,” she says. “While I didn’t get everything done that I wanted to, I was able to streamline the processes. Figuring students’ GPAs on their undergraduate degrees was done with pencil and paper and a calculator, and after telling my brother what we needed, he developed a spreadsheet that met our needs. We also started scanning documents so we could have a digital copy of what was submitted to us.”
A few years later, in 2014, Carolyn accepted the job of registrar at University of Eastern Africa, Baraton, (UEAB) in Kenya. She worked at UEAB for five and a half years, where she again helped to streamline processes, then rejoined Andrews University as associate registrar of Undergraduate and Graduate Programs in 2020.
“I helped students get into Andrews, and then I helped them graduate. Both jobs were challenging and varied depending on the students’ circumstances.”
Carolyn says, “When I came back to Andrews, I helped to test several new computer processes to streamline the registrar’s office, including for the online graduation application and the Change of Program application used when students want to change their majors from one program to another.” Her goal was to make sure students met their degree requirements in order to graduate with Andrews degrees.
She adds, “During my first time as an employee at Andrews, I prepared students’ files to be processed for admission, and during my second time as an Andrews employee, I cleared students for graduation. I helped students get into Andrews, and then I helped them graduate. Both jobs were challenging and varied depending on the students’ circumstances.”
Carolyn began her retirement in 2024, though she currently assists Andrews part-time as a degree audit specialist in Academic Records. She also volunteers at the Ruth Murdoch Elementary School library, which brings extra occasions to see her grandchildren. Carolyn plans to primarily stay in the Berrien Springs, Michigan, area to be close to her family. She will continue a personal project that she began in 2011—making prayer shawls for people who have recently lost a loved one or who are going through health challenges. Carolyn has made over 100 shawls that have been given to people in the U.S. and Kenya.
Reflecting on her years at Andrews, Carolyn notes that while her career path is not in the least what she expected, she is grateful she had the opportunity to work in higher education—something she had hoped for and enjoyed. She always aimed to do her job to the best of her ability, appreciated working in a Christian environment where her office team had worship every day, and valued the cultural diversity of Andrews.
Carolyn says, “I will miss the people I worked with. I also will miss the joy of seeing students graduate.”