Erin Choate is majoring in Organizational Leadership with a Health Care Management emphasis and plans to graduate in 2021. Erin transferred to UW-Green Bay from NWTC with Associate Degrees in Leadership Development and Human Resources.
When do you plan on graduating? I look forward to graduating in the Spring or Fall of 2021, depending in how aggressive I want to plan out the next year’s course load.
Why did you major in Organizational Leadership? I did not attend college immediately after graduating high school. Instead, I worked my way up the corporate ladder and advanced my career in retail management. It wasn’t until I wanted to shift my career out of the retail sector, 16 years later, that I decided to pursue continuing education. Organizational Leadership applies to a wide selection of career choices in multiple fields. Leadership is people development, and that applies everywhere. The choice of emphasis on Health Care Management applies to my current role at Prevea Health as the Director of Front End Revenue Operations. While retail and healthcare have similarities as it pertains to patient/customer experience, leadership, and teamwork, additional insight to the big picture of healthcare is why I chose this program specifically. I feel that additional education for self-development and improvement will assist me in being the most effective leader possible for the organization.
What are your plans after graduation? I hope to apply the additional tools, resources, and knowledge gained throughout my education journey to assist me in being an effective leader within my current organization. I truly enjoy my current role at Prevea Health and see opportunities for growth at this organization. After graduation I plan to pursue a Master’s Degree to pursue those opportunities. I do not believe my academic journey will ever truly be over as I continue to explore avenues of self-development and see education as a critical piece of growth.
What academic experience or accomplishment are you most proud of? I am most proud of being an online student. I am proud of the fact that after 15 years of being out of the classroom, I decided to return to school to continue education, while having a demanding career, three young children, and a household to run. I am proud of holding a 4.0 GPA throughout the entire process and plan to maintain it!
What single thing do you hope to accomplish at UWGB before graduating? As an online student, I rarely come to campus, but the convenience of being an online student is what works for well for me and my family. I’d really like to come to the campus and just have a cup of coffee. Just kidding! Actually, I hope to inspire someone else to pursue their goals of self-development before I graduate.
What do you do for fun? My husband and I enjoy going to concerts. Every summer we try to attend a few and we truly enjoy live music. I also have three children, Chelsea (10), Clayton (7), and Claire (3) and we enjoy camping, enjoying nature and traveling in our RV. We have a pretty big road trip scheduled for the summer that we are getting very excited about.
What else do you want people to know about you? I want others to know that it can be done. You can have a full time job you love, a crazy family that drives you nuts but you love even more, and you can still achieve the goals that you set for yourself. Moms especially need to remember to put themselves first once in a while.
WOW very inspirational. Every person who thinks there isn’t a way should know your journey! Very proud of you!
Class act! 👏 Erin you are inspirational and a motivation.
The goals you have set are amazing, and I know you will meet each and every one of them.
I have always said that the mantra that suits you best has been:
“I am not accustomed to defeat”.
Your family is so proud of you.