HFC welcomes new accountant Melissa Kurtz
Melissa Kurtz joined HFC in mid-February as an accountant.
“I was looking for a job change and wanted to come back to an educational setting. I received a notice that my skills aligned well with this position, and I eagerly applied,” said Kurtz, of Romulus.
Kurtz comes to the College with more than 35 years of experience in accounting and administrative systems. Her duties include working with the College’s grants and some of the financial work for the HFC Foundation. In this position, she reports to Barbara Eisterhold, HFC Director of Financial Accounting. Previously, Kurtz worked for Henry Ford Health System in Detroit for 16 years.
“I have been on campus since I started. My colleagues here in Financial Services are in the office on a rotating basis, so I have had the opportunity to meet them. I have been using Teams to meet some of the other individuals I work closely with. While it isn’t ideal, it has been a real treat to meet everyone here at HFC,” said Kurtz. “I love it here. Learning the work is fun, and the people I work with are fabulous. They have been so nice and have been so welcoming and I feel right at home here at the College.”
Previous higher education experience
Kurtz has experience in higher education. She started her professional career at from Eastern Michigan University in Ypsilanti as a grant accountant. She later spent five years as an accountant in the Department of Internal Medicine at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor.
An alumna of Canton High School, Kurtz earned her bachelor of business administration degree from EMU, double-majoring in accounting and information systems. She is also a certified medical coder in ICD-9, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s official system of assigning codes to diagnoses and procedures associated with hospital utilization in the United States.
Initially, Kurtz wanted to be an attorney and go into corporate law. However, at the time, there wasn’t a specific program for that career path, so she choose a business program instead.
“As I was doing my accounting work, I discovered a love for programing and information systems,” she said. “When it was time to declare a major, a new double major program opened up in Accounting/Information Systems at EMU, so I grabbed it. I have been blessed to be able use all of the skills I learned in my degree program in the jobs I have held.”
Learning is the best part
“Melissa has been a great addition to our team,” said Eisterhold. “She brings a good base of knowledge on grants from past experience and has been able to jump in with both feet. She is doing a great job and we are glad to have her here in Financial Services and at HFC!”
For Kurtz, the most challenging part of her job at HFC is also the best part.
“The best part of my job here at HFC is learning. I have always been a person who enjoys learning new things, and this position – while it is similar to other roles I have had in my career – is giving me the opportunity to learn new things,” she said. “Getting to know new systems, and the way things are done here vs. how I may have done them in the past can be a bit of a challenge. Luckily, everyone has been very patient with me, and given me the chance to learn and grow. I’m so excited to be a part of the HFC family. I can’t wait for the campus to fully open back up again and be part of the community!”