Geralyn Heystek: 40 years of helping students grow and thrive

Geralyn Heystek (center) stands with Zhang Career Center staff in the courtyard at Schneider Hall. 

When you walk into the Zhang Career Center, you are greeted by a staff that is friendly, professional and skilled. The career center employees have a common goal: Assist students in exploring fields and developing career paths that lead to fulfilling work. Directing the career center’s programming and its people is Geralyn Heystek, who has held multiple positions over a 40-year career at Western Michigan University. She will retire this summer after thousands of interactions with students as a faculty member, advisor and director of the Zhang Career Center.

Heystek is the quintessential lifelong learner. 

She started as a student at Western in 1974 and studied languages, which was an interest area for her. She soon found herself searching for a degree program that maximized her talents. She spoke with an academic advisor who said she should consider business, and she decided to try a class. She was hooked, earning her B.B.A. in 1979. During her undergraduate degree, she began working at Alro Steel as a receptionist, and after graduation she was promoted to an inside sales position. With a tough economy and layoffs in the steel industry, she decided to return to WMU to earn an MBA, eventually going to work at Jacklin Steel.

Through faculty connections in the Department of Marketing, Heystek landed at WMU as a faculty member in 1986 where she covered faculty sabbaticals and taught a variety of marketing classes until 1998. It was the perfect position while her son was young. By the late 90s, her son was older, and Heystek was ready for a full-time role. Dean Schmotter asked her if she would be willing to take on the internship coordinator position for the college.

She accepted, and leading those efforts to connect students with employers set the stage for the work she would do in the career center. Eventually, she transitioned to academic advising and then a split position between advising and the career center when it opened in 2008. In 2013, the first director of the career center stepped down, and Heystek was selected for the role. Along the way, she earned her M.A. in Counselor Education and maintained her love of languages, taking Spanish classes at WMU. 

“What I value most about working with students who are getting ready for their professional careers is that I can be instrumental in teaching them foundational skills so they can successfully interact with prospective employers and future team members,” says Heystek. “I enjoy helping students grow—and so much growth happens between their first year through graduation. It is amazing to see.”

Heystek has created several programs that have helped WMU Haworth students thrive, including:

• Business Externship Program: An exploratory program that introduces students to the fields they are interested in, connecting them with business leaders and alumni in those organizations for an insider’s view of a variety of professions.
• The Business Preparation for Transfer Students Course: A class that supports transfer students in their transition to WMU, providing key skills and allowing them to fulfill graduation co-curricular requirements on an expedited timeline.
• Collaboration between the Zhang Career Center and the Student Professional Readiness Series (SPuRS): Several career center offerings have become part of the approved events for SPuRS, formalizing professional development steps that ready students for the workforce.
• Retention efforts: For her counseling internship for her master’s degree, Heystek conducted research on student retention and developed programming with former colleague Chris Robinson, eventually presenting at the Mid-American Business Deans Association conference.

“I really enjoy working with younger students and seeing how much they change,” says Heystek. “I have some very fond memories of the students who have worked in our office, too. Our student employees are motivated and very involved. I hope they feel poured into and supported. Many students encounter significant life issues during college, and I have always done my best to mentor students through those tougher moments so they can enjoy the college years and go onto great careers.”

Seeing students with great careers is a daily occurrence for Heystek, as she observes students she has taught and mentored go onto success. The journey often comes full circle. 

“Many students who I worked with personally are now externship hosts or hiring managers, and I get to see them move from student, to first job out of college, to leadership and managerial roles,” she says.

Heystek is going to miss her colleagues, business students, and the laughter at WMU Haworth, but she is looking forward to traveling with her partner Jerry, an upcoming destination family reunion and some girls trips she has planned. She also will be re-igniting her creative and artistic pursuits more during retirement. 

“I have truly enjoyed my time at WMU Haworth—it is a place where I have found great fulfillment and have learned so much,” she says. 

With three degrees from WMU herself and countless students impacted throughout her career, Heystek fully expects to volunteer at WMU and engage in events on campus in the future. 

Learn more about the Haworth College of Business. 

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