Alumni Spotlight

Deborah Nugen ’99 was working as the director of information systems at College of Saint Mary when she returned to the classroom to earn her degree in business leadership.

“I helped bring the college into the information age with a Title II grant,” Deborah said. “We started upgrading all the classrooms with new furniture, computers and AV equipment.”

Deborah was a member of the first business leadership class at CSM. Earning her degree allowed her to pursue her dream career as the University’s registrar.

“I thrived at College of Saint Mary and grew as a person,” Deborah said. “The exposure to the Sisters of Mercy and their work and the opportunities to attend programs about diversity, self-improvement and service enhanced my life.”

As registrar, Deborah created an academic plan for each student to assist advisors and to ensure graduation requirements were met. She created processes for the different functions of a registrar's office to reduce errors and increase productivity. She also continued to work with IT and served as an institutional researcher for grants and accreditation reports.

Deborah was later named an assistant dean.

“CSM made me a different person – more confident, more attuned to helping others, and more aware of the injustices and struggles for students and the CSM community who had diverse backgrounds,” she said.

Before working at CSM, Deborah served as the alumni office manager for California Lutheran University in Thousand Oaks, Calif., and the office manager for the College of Science and Humanities at Iowa State University in Ames, Iowa.

Deborah was one of nine alumnae honored with the Alumni Achievement Award during Homecoming on Sept. 21.