Don’t ever tell Mark Heisohn that you’re too old to learn something new.
At age 52, the father of three found himself unemployed when the Chrysler automotive factory in Fenton, Mo., closed its doors in 2008. He’d worked there for 25 years, starting as an hourly employee and working his way up to management.
While he received a nice severance package, he knew he needed to come up with Plan B.
“I had to figure out what I was going to do in my next life,” said Heisohn, who graduated from the University of Missouri–St. Louis in 1980 with a bachelor of science in business administration.
“Nursing had always been an itch,” he said.
He enrolled in the nursing program at St. Louis Community College at Forest Park, graduating in 2012. His attention turned to UMSL after hearing a presentation on UMSL’s RN to BSN program from Christina Vanatta, senior academic adviser in the College of Nursing. This past August, Heisohn took home his second degree from UMSL.
“I did a lot better in school this time. I worked harder and got straight A’s. Plus, it’s amazing what a littler maturity will do for you,” he said with a chuckle. “Starting over has been exciting. The real upside to all of this is that I’m using brain cells that I haven’t used in years.”
Reviewed 2014-09-10