Search | Menu President Berne’s classroom roots shape leadership vision
On her first day as Madison College’s president, Dr. Jennifer Berne faced her toughest audience: toddlers at Truax’s Early Learning Center.
While many at the college were eager to meet Berne, the kids weren’t impressed by her title; they just cared that she could bring Good Boy, Fergus to life during storytime.
In that moment, Berne was returning to her roots: teaching in a classroom. She thought she did pretty well except for one tiny critique. “One of the young students told me I should use the adult sink and not the children’s sink to wash up before snack time,” Berne says, laughing. “I guess they put me in my place.
A life inspired by teachers
Growing up in the Detroit suburb of West Bloomfield, Berne was often found turning the pages of a book. One of her favorites was Ramona the Pest by Beverly Cleary. Berne was envious of the heroine’s lively spirit. “I was very much a rule-follower, and Ramona wasn’t, which I found very fascinating,” she says.
She also admired her teachers, who skillfully led classrooms full of children. “I always wanted to be a teacher,” Berne says, “I was quiet but also bossy, and I thought, how satisfying it might be to tell people what to do. Clearly, I didn’t understand what it was to actually be a teacher.”
In her early twenties, Berne found herself in front of a classroom, teaching students just a few years younger than herself, all eager to get a good education.
“We figured it out together, and I think it was a good experience for me and the students, but I learned more from them than they did from me. I learned that teaching is not about telling people what to do but about helping them find their own power and equipping them with critical thinking and decision-making tools."
Educator evolution
That early experience deepened Berne’s interest in the real work of teaching, so she went back to school to study adult learning theory. In doing so, she shifted from teaching adult students as they acquired advanced literacy skills to teaching future educators who would work with children learning to read and write.
“It was an amazing experience,” she says. “I began teaching university classes of 25 teachers, each of whom could go on to teach 25 students a year for the next 20 years. I was overwhelmed by the responsibility of all those people being touched by my ideas, but also inspired.” Berne did that work in K-12 classrooms with teachers for a decade before returning to her roots in community college work.
Doing the hard stuff
Back in community college education, Berne’s career path was shaped by experiences in almost every role--part-time and full-time faculty, department chair, dean, vice president of academic affairs, provost, and now president.
But her motivation was shaped even earlier, before she even stepped on a college campus.
She remembers her parents’ strong work ethic – the kind that made it hard for a teenage daughter to justify spending summers on the couch. Their example motivated her to lean into “doing the hard stuff."
“I remember that feeling of hanging around all day not doing much. I’d greet my parents after their long days at work, and at some point, I figured I’d better get myself together,” Berne remembers with a laugh.
That same determination carried on to her adulthood. When she became a mom, raising her kids while working as a professor and an administrator, she faced the challenge of balancing family life and work. Those experiences, she says, help her empathize with Madison College students and staff navigating similar situations.
“I loved raising my kids. But the day-to-day was hard,” she says. “I remember lying in bed thinking, ‘What if one of my kids wakes up with an ear infection tomorrow and I can’t go to work?’ That feeling of not being in control--it was stressful.”
Still, Berne pushes herself to learn and grow.
In May, she achieved another milestone: earning her master's degree in business administration. Going back to school as an adult learner wasn’t easy.
It was one of the hardest things I’ve done,” Berne says. “I was used to feeling competent and expert. When I was confronted with unfamiliar content, I had to learn to accommodate uncertainty. It was exciting, though. I’ve always been comfortable with words but less capable with numbers. However, I could feel my brain changing as equations moved through my head. I now have new tools for problem-solving.”
Berne also tackles physical challenges. If you stop by her Truax campus office, you’ll see a few of her marathon medals hanging up. She recently completed the Madison Mini-Marathon in August, finishing second in her age group, and looks forward to running the Madison Marathon on Nov. 9.
“I've run 26 marathons,” she says. “They never get easier. Training is hard, running is hard, and recovery is hard. But I love doing them.”
Madison College connection
Since moving to Wisconsin in July, Dr. Berne and her husband, a professor at Northern Illinois University, have been exploring the state’s natural beauty. On a recent hike at Devil’s Lake State Park, Berne wore her Madison College cap-- a walking billboard, she jokes.
“I'm very proud to represent Madison College," she says. “What I love most is how it brings me together with people across our community and the chance to hear their stories.”
She says all those stories contribute to the college’s community and impressive legacy.
“I hope our students have an amazing experience here,” she says. “And when they leave, I want them to remember where they started, because they are the ones who will show others what’s possible at Madison College.”
