Kristin Schooley helps students see what comes next

During her first semester at Central Michigan University, Kristin Schooley wanted to go home.

She had arrived planning to become a lawyer, but political science wasn’t the right fit. College was unfamiliar, and being three hours from her family in the Downriver area made the transition harder.

“I really did not have a good first semester at Central,” Schooley said. “College was not easy for me in the very beginning.”

Today, the 2007 College of Business Administration graduate returns to campus with a perspective she hopes will help students who are wondering where their own lives might lead. She has changed direction, tried different jobs, and built a career she hadn’t imagined when she first arrived.

“I had very, very high expectations for where my life would take me,” she said. “But it’s turned out way better than I could have imagined, for sure.”

When Schooley’s parents encouraged her to give CMU another semester, she returned determined to prepare for a transfer. She researched classes and reconsidered her major. In the process, she began finding reasons to stay.

Business offered a familiar starting point. In high school, she had been active with Business Professionals of America – Michigan Association and served as a state officer. Someone suggested she consider studying business, and she eventually chose corporate finance, with a minor in legal studies.

Her on campus experiences outside the classroom helped her prepare for work, too. She spent two years as a resident assistant in Trout Hall, learning lessons about working with people from all backgrounds that she would recognize more fully later in her career. Campus involvement taught her to manage her time, while taking business classes with a business cohort helped her learn to collaborate.

“Those were all the things that really helped prepare me, but I just didn’t really realize it at the time,” Schooley said.

After graduation, she joined Flagstar Bank’s corporate management trainee program. Her career later included work at Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan and Lake Trust Credit Union before taking her to Learning Care, the second largest early childhood education and childcare provider in North America.

Now Senior Director of Shared Services, Schooley oversees the teams responsible for accounts receivable, accounts payable, and travel and expenses. Her department helps manage the cash cycle for Learning Care. 

The path included changes and difficult moments, but she sees those experiences as part of what helped her grow.

“If I had to do it all over again, I would do it the exact same way,” she said. “Because every mistake has led me to something bigger and better.”

That perspective is part of what she brings back to CMU. Through visits such as Dialogue Days, the college’s two-day program connecting alumni with students in classrooms, Schooley shares her experience and makes room for questions about working life.

Students have asked about navigating maternity leave, evaluating job offers, and whether she is happy with how her life has unfolded. She welcomes those conversations because she remembers having questions of her own.

One discussion about salary became an opportunity to talk about the full value of a job offer. Drawing on her experience at Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan, she explained how benefits, including tuition assistance with her MBA, mattered alongside her paycheck.

After another visit, a student messaged her on LinkedIn to say she felt less afraid of her future.

“It’s really cool I can make an impact on someone, even if it’s for five minutes,” Schooley said.

Her commitment to students also keeps her involved with BPA. She continues to judge competitions and help train state officers, returning year after year to an organization that helped shape her own direction. The Michigan Association recognized that service recently with an honorary lifetime membership.

CMU gave her lasting relationships, too. Nearly two decades after graduation, she remains close with four college friends. They make time for trips together, balancing careers and families to preserve the friendships that began on campus.

“Those girls are definitely my support through a lot of things, too, because they’ve really been there since the beginning,” she said.

Looking back, Schooley is grateful she stayed at CMU. Asked what she would tell the student she was in fall 2003—the one who was crying and wanted to go home—her answer was simple.

“I would hug her and say, ‘You got this.’”