Celebrating Dr. Steven D. Berkshire as He Embarks on Retirement

Dr. Steven Berkshire.  EdD, MHA, FACHE, SPHR, SHRM-SCP, Director of the Doctor of Health Administration Program July 2008-December 2024

Retirement is an emotional experience after sixteen years of being director of the DHA program. I am glad to be hanging my hat so to speak, since I am almost 78, but I am also torn about passing the role to someone else.

I began my healthcare journey in 1971 as the Coordinator for Postgraduate Medical Education at Indiana University School of

Medicine while I was completing my MHA degree.

Saint Alphonsus Regional Medical Center, Boise, Idaho

Then, it was off to Boise, Idaho, as the Assistant Executive Director for the Idaho Hospital Association, running shared services. This ultimately led to my involvement in healthcare policy and lobbying. I became the assistant administrator at Saint Alphonsus Regional Medical Center as it began its growth agenda. I was involved with the state's original Health Services Planning agency, running the State’s Developmental Disabilities Program and working on the initial DD plan for the state. I met some wonderful people working with families of children and adults with Developmental Disabilities. Boise was a wonderful city close to better fishing on many streams and lakes.

Next, in Portland, Oregon, I served as the CEO of the Greater Portland Area Hospital Council, again representing health care in the public arena. I was fortunate to work closely with some great people at the Oregon Association of Hospitals; many remain in close contact.

Portland is a great place. Like Boise, Portland is also close to excellent fishing streams, and the beauty of the Oregon coast cannot be beaten.

Sitka Community Hospital, Baranoff Island, AK

After eight years, I returned to Alaska as the CEO of Sitka Community Hospital on Baranoff Island in Southeast Alaska. For context, Baranoff Island has just seven miles of road running north to south, so you must reach the island via the Alaska Ferry System or Alaska Airlines.

If you want to see Southeast Alaska, I highly recommend the ferry system; you can take a vehicle and get off at its many stops. You can also drive from Skagway to Whitehorse and into Alaska or from Haines through Canada to the Alaska border. Alaska is truly an adventure.

During my time with the Sitka Hospital, it became part of Southeast Alaska Regional Health Corporation (SEARHC), one of the regional Alaska Native health entities. While CEO, I returned to the political arena with the Alaska Hospital and Nursing Home Association. This culminated in my family moving to Anchorage, first as the Associate Administrator and then as the CEO of Charter North Hospital. I went to Denver to open Charter North Hospital's Lakewood Adolescent Hospital. Still, I returned to Anchorage to run a struggling North Star Hospital, re-establishing financial stability and growth.

Anchorage, Alaska

During my tenure at the two Anchorage hospitals, I started teaching regularly at local colleges. This piqued my interest in starting my doctoral degree at Boston University. At that time, Boston University had a collaborative doctoral degree with Alaska Pacific University; some classes were taught in Alaska, and then students would finish in Boston. I earned my doctoral degree only to make about half what a hospital administrator made, but it has been worth it.

Boston University's doctoral program was similar to Central Michigan's DHA since it included diverse students from the consulting world, business, higher education, and schools. Research was varied, and where you took courses depended on specialty; I did much of the coursework in the Business College. I also honed my research skills by doing regional projects for various hospitals. My dissertation ended up being rated one of the top dissertations at Boston University in 1993.

Upon completing my doctorate, I returned to Alaska to serve as Chair of the Business Department at Alaska Pacific University. There, I rejuvenated the Degree Completion Program and contributed to the creation of the Rural Alaska Native Adult (RANA) program. The latter was created to enable adult learners in remote areas of Alaska to obtain a college degree without needing to move to Anchorage or Fairbanks.

This was just the beginning of the internet in education, so it was a combination of distance learning and periodic sessions in Anchorage. Most of the graduates of the Rural Alaska Native Adult Program went on to impressive careers, including running the Indian Health Service in Yuma, being CEO of Mount Edgecumbe Hospital in Sitka, earning a doctoral degree, and becoming the head of Public Administration at a major university. Others have become leaders in business in Alaska and headed regional Native corporations. In addition, we also started the health administration curriculum at APU.

In these roles, I had the wonderful opportunity to build working relationships with several regional Native corporations and health programs. As those who visited with me at

Southcentral Foundation in Anchorage discovered that the individuals serving these organizations are highly dedicated.

This experience led me to relocate to Denver, where I became the Dean of Graduate Programs at Regis University.

Regis University Denver, Colorado

My team and I expanded existing programs and initiated new ones, growing the online MBA to 3,000 students worldwide. Additionally, we launched a clinical professional counseling program, a unique graduate program in liberal studies, expanded the Master of Science in Management to include leadership, HR, project management, and others (similar to the MSA at CMU), enhanced the nonprofit management program, and developed an MHA degree program with a concentration in the MBA.

The Herbert H. & Grace A. Dow College of Health Professions at Central Michigan University, Mt. Pleasant, MI

After dedicating eight years to Regis, I took on the role of Director of the Doctor of Health Administration (DHA) Program at Central Michigan University. This move led us to relocate to Mount Pleasant. Subsequently, I assumed the director position for all health administration programs until I stepped down in 2018.

During my time with Central Michigan University, we introduced the MHA and two graduate certificates, and we are planning a graduate degree in Health Analytics. Building on my international initiatives from Regis University, where we established joint degree programs in Mexico and Ireland, I worked with Dr. Johnson to develop the Central Michigan University Graduate Certificate in International Health, offering a valuable opportunity for both DHA and non-DHA students.

In 2019, my wife and I moved from Michigan to the high desert. I was able to retire at that time, but CMU gave me the opportunity to continue with the DHA degree and certificates remotely. So, before everyone adapted to remote living due to COVID, I was already doing so from New Mexico. While prices are higher here, the location is incredible, rich in history dating back to the late 1400s. If you haven't visited northern New Mexico, you're truly missing out on the Land of Enchantment and the City Different in Santa Fe.

Some of you were introduced to the area when we conducted DHA 717 in Albuquerque through the ECHO program. In New Mexico, I remain active on the New Mexico Health Executives (ACHE) board, the Northern New Mexico Human Resource Association, serve as chair of the Santa Fe County Health Policy and Planning Commission (HPPC), and engage in consulting work.

My wife and I have been fortunate to have two sons and a daughter. All three completed their education while we lived in Anchorage, graduating from East Anchorage High School, which is perhaps the most ethnically diverse high school in the country. Interestingly, my older sister graduated from Anchorage High School when it was the only high school, and my younger brother graduated from East Anchorage H.S. I didn't get to graduate in Alaska because our family was transferred to the lower 48. Fun fact: my brother held the mile record for nearly 20 years. However, everything worked out, as I met my future wife while attending Lawrence Central in Indianapolis. We are delighted that one of our sons is a Licensed Acupuncturist in Portland, Oregon, and our daughter is a physical therapist in Seattle.

My wife is pleased with my choice to retire alongside her, even though navigating Medicare enrollment and organizing retirement benefits is difficult. Medicare is particularly tough!

It has been a wonderful 50 years in healthcare, especially the last 16 at Central Michigan University. Thank you all.

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