Even as a lifelong resident of Ashland and Mansfield, Ohio, Kelley Van Guilder says that Bluffton is her home.
Kelley is supported by her husband, Scott, daughters Emily and Aubrey, foreign exchange student from Germany and four cats.
Van Guilder had no expectations of being a part of the Bluffton University family. Still, after a conversation with an old professor, she was well on her way to being an adjunct for the Bluffton criminal justice program.
Eager to enter the workforce with her degrees in criminal justice and children and family services, she found the job climate very competitive. This posed problems for her for some time before finding work, but she was expecting something else.
She worked at a bank briefly before finally getting the opportunity she had been waiting for - [MP2] children’s services.
“I was offered a position at Richland County Children Services. I wanted to stay there a year to sort of figure out what I wanted to do but I ended up being there for 14 years,” said Van Guilder.
After her longer-than-expected stint with Richland County Children Services, an old friend referred her to a home healthcare agency as an executive director.
“It was a for-profit agency. I learned very quickly that it was not my niche. People above money,” said Van Guilder.
After much deliberation and communication with her husband, Kelley told him that she was going to work in a factory to which he explained that she wouldn’t like it because she couldn’t talk to people in the ways that she enjoyed.
“After that, I ended up going to get my MSW with the intention of going into social work,” said Van Guilder.
Van Guilder said she would like [MP3] to pursue a doctorate in social work in the near future. This stems from the intrinsic rewards of working with people.
“I like to think I’m somehow making a difference and in child services, you didn’t really have that closure,” said Van Guilder.
Van Guilder has also had a short movie career[MP4] . She says that her kids watch the Hallmark-esque film on Prime Video often.
Van Guilder hasn’t always been one to expand her horizons in such a manner but claims that some of her recent urges to go outside of her comfort zone are thanks to criminal justice professor Mike Barrett.
Van Guilder said she wants to be back in the world of criminal justice and social work simultaneously in the future.
“I think I can make a bigger impact if I can touch both programs,” said Van Guilder.
Although her path has not been exactly what she was expecting it to be, she said that one thing that keeps her going is one of her favorite mantras: Growth doesn’t come from staying in your own little box.
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