News

Dowagiac’s Shawn Rawson said goodbye to Thomas F. Jerdon Hall and the Student Activities Center in 2016 for the Big 10.

He went from Southwestern Michigan College to Michigan State University, then the Ann Arbor resident joined the University of Michigan, where he is one of three Area Maintenance Coordinators. A highlight last summer was his first “crane lift.”

“You know I’m not fancy, just a country boy among a bunch of city folk and academics,” he said, opening an August Zoom call reading The Southwester with the cover story on The Fieldhouse Effect.

“I’m so happy about the direction SMC is moving in. It is a very special place to me, and I love hearing that it is doing well. I miss the ease of parking in Dowagiac. Ann Arbor is a nightmare for parking.”

Rawson graduated from Dowagiac Union High School in 2005. He wasn’t sure what he wanted to do, but he liked science courses and earned an associate degree. He considered physical therapy, podiatry and becoming an electrician. He taught anatomy and human biology for SMC.

He added a bachelor’s degree from Grand Valley State University and a master’s degree from Bethel University in Mishawaka. He also became a CEFP, or Certified Educational Facilities Professional.

The certification is designed for both aspiring and existing facilities professionals with eight years of combined education and facilities management experience.

He is engaged to be married in 2025 to Peyton Olenech from Dexter. She majored in communications at Eastern Michigan University and manages a podiatry office.

“I was at the SAC from 2009-14, then I was Jerdon residence hall manager for just over a year,” he said. “I was really blessed at SMC. The SMC community is so strong.

“I was at Michigan State for three years and Michigan for four years,” he said. “I was ready to take on a leadership position. I went from being an RHM to being a facilities supervisor at MSU, which is kind of the front-line triage of maintenance issues.

“You’re in charge of mechanics and custodians. If someone has a problem in their room, they talk to you first and you coordinate with your trades and custodians. MSU put me in the oldest residence halls, so I went from the beautiful, brand-new residence halls and the beautifully renovated Zollar. It was such a stark contrast.”

Facilities managers are above facilities supervisors and generally oversee entire neighborhoods.

“I handled three residence halls three days of the week and two days all of West Circle,” Rawson said. “As I started to get more seasoned, they added the entire north side of campus. I wanted to get to the next level. I became an operations supervisor and shifted from West Circle to the Michigan State Union with keys to the Sparty mascot.”

U-M interrupted MSU electrician studies

Rawson remembered SMC Director of Building and Grounds John Eberhart was an electrician.

“When you’re in the facilities side you get more respect if you’re a master tradesman, an engineer or an architect. I studied through MSU’s electrical technology program for three semesters. My girlfriend at the time got accepted into the U-M master’s-level nursing program and saw the facilities opening at the step up I was looking for, so I applied.

“I didn’t hear anything for a while, until spring 2019. At the same time, I applied to become an apprentice electrician through IBEW (International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers), so then I had two offers at the same time and had to choose.

“So many people along the way have believed in me and steered me in the right direction. I’m eternally grateful. At SMC, I felt showered with people invested in my success. In the SAC I saw (Hall of Fame Cross Country Coach) Ron Gunn all the time and (fifth President) Dave Briegel. Both of those guys are class acts. (Seventh President) Dr. (David) Mathews was the same way.

“I had tons of great instructors like (Dean of the School of Arts and Science) Keith Howell, Chip Weeks, Clyde Dalton, Anna Norris, it was awesome how many people were in my corner.”

When he came to SMC, Rawson pursued a 2007 associate degree in science, but didn’t have a clear career path in mind.

“I really liked biology with Clyde Dalton and anatomy and physiology with Anna Norris,” Rawson said. “I talked to (pharmacist) Donald Ennesser, whom I always looked up to. He told me about physical therapy and podiatry. I ultimately chose physical therapy and Grand Valley because of its strong program. My 2009 bachelor’s from Grand Valley is in biomedical science. The coursework was so rigorous, my pencil was smoking trying to keep up. It was a different feeling than smaller class sizes at SMC. I could reach out to professors, which made it easier for me to learn at SMC.

“It was the middle of a recession,” he said, “and I was trying to get a lab job at Eli Lilly or Stryker. I regret not taking on research opportunities, which probably could have helped. If you get a research opportunity, take it. I got to see Doug’s (Schauer) lab when they redid Daugherty and O’Leary. The research was so cool. One student who rock-climbed told me about using mushrooms to absorb heavy metals.”

One of three Area Maintenance Coordinators

At U-M he helps take care of major maintenance projects for the residential halls and Unions on Central Campus: East Quad, Fletcher, Henderson House, Law Club, Martha Cook, Michigan Union, Munger Hall, South Quad and West Quad.

“My realm, Central, is like downtown. You’re close to everything. I think all of the athletes live in Central. South Quad, one of the buildings I take care of, (Head Football Coach) Jim Harbaugh lived there. So did (23-year NFL star) Tom Brady and (former Head Basketball Coach) Juwan Howard. These are very large buildings. South Quad, you’re approaching 1,000 students.”

“I’m one of three Area Maintenance Coordinators on campus for student life facilities — the unions and the res halls — a position I took on last fall, so I’m approaching a year. Different branches have roles similar to mine, but for academic or athletic buildings.

“Summer is the busiest time for us,” he said. “This summer I did a crane lift at South Quad, which I’ve never done before. We had a large exhaust fan go bad, so we worked with a company to see whether it can be fixed. We had to get a crane in there, so I got to throw on a hard hat and a reflective vest and feel like I’m in the Village People. A lot of planning goes into a crane lift. It’s tons of paperwork coordinated with the city and the university. Fifty different people need to approve all of these things.

“We have our own skilled trades — carpenters, plumbers, electricians, masons — and can handle a lot of stuff,” but occasionally he contracts projects out or defers to capital projects.

“The business side of facilities involves a lot of accounting, so I give a shout out to (Professor) Chip Weeks,” Rawson said. “Paying attention to money is a big part of what we do.”

If he needs solitude, you might find him deep in thought at the Law Club. “It’s like a cathedral and looks like something out of Harry Potter.”

“I’m back in school sharpening my engineering side” at Washtenaw Community College,” Rawson said. “I’m aiming at U-M’s mechanical engineering program.”