December 8, 2022
Graduating this fall, Danielle Petrovich is grateful for the direct experience her major has offered her at Shawnee State University. A native of Berdsk, Russia and Toronto, Canada, the senior first moved to the United States at the age of eighteen and attended a community college in Houston, Texas.
“It never felt like where I was supposed to be, but I wasn’t sure where else I could go,” she said. “It was definitely challenging enough trying to adapt to life in a new country straight out of high school.”
Moving a year later, to Portsmouth, Ohio with her mother, Petrovich toured SSU’s campus and fell in love. This week, she will be celebrating completing her degree in Business Management from SSU’s C.H. Lute School of Business.
“I immediately knew I wanted to come with her, and I also knew about the university here, so I decided to apply,” she said.
Starting classes at SSU, Petrovich found she enjoyed it much more than she had anticipated, and every year since then she has been grateful to feel like part of a community on campus.
“There are so many wonderful professors, programs, and student organizations at SSU,” she said. “I’m most grateful for all the amazing friends I’ve met here that I now can’t imagine my life without.”
As she focused on her major, Petrovich found that what she likes most in her coursework is the opportunity to gain direct experience that is encouraged by the program and its instructors. As part of her program, she interned with the management company that runs the Holiday Inn in Portsmouth, Ohio, and that internship has led her to understand what type of leader she wants to be within an organization as well as what to expect in terms of how businesses operate from different perspectives.
“I’ve learned so much already from working with both the management company as well as the staff within the hotel itself, including general and restaurant managers, banquet coordinators, and housekeeping supervisors,” she said.
On campus, Petrovich has been an active member of the Theta Phi Alpha sorority where she has held a variety of leadership positions. She has also worked on campus as a student employee in the Dean’s Office of the College of Arts & Sciences and in the Office of the President.
“I’ve never been in one place for very long, and SSU is no different as I know I’ll be leaving soon,” she said. “It’s one of the few places I really feel will stay a part of my life even after I leave.”
To learn more about the C.H. Lute School of Business and its programs at Shawnee State University, visit shawnee.edu/business.