Photo by Christina VanHorn,
UNH Human Resources

Sue St. Louis brings a unique perspective to the University of New Hampshire. Growing up in the Durham community, Sue's memories of Durham and UNH include those as a child, as a student and as a professional. Sue remembers having swimming lessons in the university's outdoor pool as a child, going to UNH football games with her parents, and having story time in the children's room at Dimond Library. "We used to practice filling out library cards when we were young. We would get scrap cards from the library and bring them home so we could fill out the cards perfectly by the time we were old enough to take out books from the library."

As Sue grew, so did her university experiences. "Both my parents were graduates of UNH and loved the campus and the community. It's a supportive community and a friendly place to work." Following in their footsteps, Sue's path at UNH as a student and a staff member began in 1982. She received her Bachelor's degree in Economics from UNH in 1985 while working for the College of Life Science and Agriculture through the Work-Study program. Sue went on to earn her Master's degree in Public Administration in the College of Liberal Arts while working on campus. Shortly after graduating from UNH, from 1985-1987, Sue worked at Citizens Bank. There, she gained valuable experience working in internal auditing and mortgage quality control. That job helped fine tune the accounting skills she uses today, and served as a practical application for those skills. It also gave her experience in an environment other than the academic one to which she is currently accustomed.

In her 20 years of employment at the university Sue's positions have crossed the spectrum of departments and colleges. She has worked as an Administrative Assistant for Cooperative Extension's Entomology and COLSA's Biochemistry departments, as an Accountant for the College of Life Science and Agriculture, as Director of Administration and Finance at UNH Manchester, as Assistant Athletic Director for Finance, and finally today's position of Director of Financial and Administrative Services for the College of Liberal Arts. All of these past work experiences contributed to where she is today. "Working at UNH-Manchester helped me see the whole picture, which is sometimes lost here where the campus is so big," Sue explained. "It was also a great opportunity to see the student services area, as I worked with student billing there."

Today her main duties include budgeting and forecasting for the College of Liberal Arts and supervising the COLA Business Service Center. In order to fulfill her duties, Sue explained, "accounting and business skills are obviously important, but what is also important is an understanding of the campus culture and its values."

"I enjoy the people I work with! I am fortunate to be surrounded by some of the most wonderful people. They make even the most difficult challenges possible. The university sets a high value on opinions and voicing those opinions. It is important to always have discussion. People here have such high levels of knowledge about things that happen on campus every day. Their opinions and knowledge are valued as part of the decision making process."

While expanding upon her life experiences at UNH, Sue explained that, "so many people have had a positive impact on me here. If I had to choose one who truly stands out, it would be Emery Booska. I worked with Emery for many years at the COLSA Dean's Office - as a student employee and as a member of the staff. He had a remarkable sense of values and always kept perspective about what was truly important both in work and life in general. He demonstrated hard work coupled with compassion for those around him. He also had a tremendous sense of humor." While meeting with Sue, it was evident that these wonderful qualities are now adapted into her professional routine as well.

After working hard in the office each day, Sue goes home to her house in Madbury where she is greeted by her husband, her cat, four ducks, and her eight Shetland Sheepdogs. Sue has another passion besides the UNH campus and crunching numbers - training and competing with her Shetland Sheepdogs. Her eight dogs (4 months, 2 years, 3 years, two dogs at 6 years old, a 15 year old and a 16 ½ year old) show in obedience, agility, conformation, and some herding competitions as well. Between working for COLA and training her dogs, Sue explained, "it can get a little hectic." She and her husband opened a small training facility behind their house so it would be less traveling to prepare their dogs for shows. Trainers come and teach at her facility in Madbury. There, Sue and her dogs can practice, along with others who bring their dogs of various breeds for training as well. Sue explained, "I am very active with training and showing my Shetland Sheepdogs. Most weekends I am off traveling to shows or some other dog event."

Sue's office is filled with pleasant photos from home including her puppies, dogs, and family members. She also has an autographed poster of the UNH gymnastics team proudly pinned up on her office wall. She revealed that she also volunteers for the team, helping process scores during competitions. This really proved Sue's true dedication and involvement in making the students and her colleagues experiences of campus life reflect the positive aspects of UNH that Sue cherishes.