From Kenya to Campus President: Dr. Catherine Chege’s Journey to Nursing Education

Catherine Chege, PhD, MBA, MHRM, the Campus President at Arizona College of Nursing’s Las Vegas campus, didn’t always plan on a career in education. In fact, her family is still surprised that she runs a college today.

“My whole family and friends laugh when they know that I work at and run a college because I was never about school,” Dr. Chege says. “For me, it was just something that I had to go through.”

Born in Kenya and raised with a global perspective due to her father’s career as a diplomat, Dr. Chege was no stranger to travel. Her father, an Officer with the Kenyan Airforce and had worked alongside the U.S. Navy in Pensacola and the Air Force in Alabama. Because of this international background, she had options all over the world.

When her father was stationed in London, she recalls her parents asking her where she saw herself going to further her education. She found herself drawn to the United States.

“I took my SATs. I did pretty well…. [and at] 17 years old, all by myself, I came to the U.S,” she says.

Dr. Chege admits she joined the field for “selfish reasons” at first: to get her degree. But as she began helping other students, she realized she had found her calling. She saw that many people did not understand how to navigate the college system and she wanted to be the one to help guide them.

“I had this whole impression of well, these are Americans, they know the value of education… in Kenya, people know the value of education but can’t afford it. So, when I was at DeVry, I was like, I’m educating this mom and dad on college. I’m educating this kid. Holy moly, this is a foreign concept, and I think this is my calling.”

In Las Vegas, her career accelerated. She moved through the ranks at DeVry, moved to a Director of Enrollment Services position at another college, and then even landed in a senior management role. However, the heavy travel requirements of a regional role began to clash with the most important job in her life: being a mother.

This desire for stability led her to Arizona College in 2017. At the time, the Las Vegas campus was in its infancy, with only 86 students enrolled. Here, she saw an opportunity to not just lead the campus, but to build it.

Dr. Chege is also proud of the diversity on her campus, noting that on any given day, you can find “four continents represented” in the hallways. She finds joy in walking the halls and hearing about all the students’ successes and helping them through their struggles.

Now, Dr. Chege is focused on her campus and celebrating the high NCLEX scores the campus has achieved. She views the college like a growing child and is excited to see what the future holds.