Professionally active, civically involved, personally committed. And pursuing her Ph.D.

“It is important to me to be active in my community,” says Philadelphia native Bernice Purcell. And indeed, active she is.

Ms. Purcell is, currently or recently … A volunteer at the Fox Chase branch of the Free Library of Philadelphia, a lecturer at St. Cecilia Church, a Leader for her son’s Cub Scout Troop (“Go Pack 290!!”) and, at her son’s school, a member of the grants writing committee, an assistant to the forensics coach, and a library aide

Purcell is also an assistant professor at Holy Family University, where she teaches MIS, database management, systems analysis, and web design. She is active in the faculty senate and frequently serves on school committees. She conducts workshops for colleagues in areas of her expertise and does consulting work for educational and healthcare institutions in the area.

And on top of all that, Bernice Purcell is a student — a Learner at NCU getting a PhD in the School of Business, specializing in Management Information Systems.

A graduate of Nazareth Academy High School, Purcell went straight into Holy Family University where, after earning a BA in Management Information Systems, she stayed on for a few years as an administrative staffer. She worked in the private sector for a while, then returned to school at LaSalle University, where she took an MBA with a specialization in management. After that, in 1991, she was invited back to Holy Family University to teach and has been there ever since.

Despite being a full-time professional academic already, “I needed a PhD,” Purcell said. “However, finding a program that fit my life (teaching position, newly married and planning a family), proved very difficult.” And in fact, the right program eluded her until 2003 — “Until I found out about NCU.”

“I had searched for some time for a program that would allow me to keep my involvement at work and with my son,” she says. Then, “One day, my husband came home from work and told me about one of his colleagues who was in NCU’s PhD program in Business Administration. I got in touch with her, and she was enthusiastic about the program. I looked into the program myself, and soon applied for admission.” NCU offered just what she was looking for. “I now share [her] enthusiasm.”

“NCU has allowed me to continue in my career as an educator and to remain active at work, in my community, and in my son’s education and activities. This involvement is important to me, and a traditional program would have been too inflexible to allow me to continue these.”

She found NCU to be as supportive as it was convenient. “NCU has a tremendous array of student support services and opportunities to communicate with the staff and with other learners. The Library’s on-line resources are extensive, and the database of dissertations has been extremely useful to me in my dissertation research. The Writing Center has a large number of writing references and guides on-line to help students with writing style.”

At NCU Purcell discovered that, far from working in isolation, she was part of a community of peers, even though she was going to school online. “There are a number of discussion groups on the main Learner’s Page that both answer any questions you might have of the other learners regarding their experiences, opinions, and guidance,” she says. “There is also a discussion board on the page for each course to let the learner communicate with fellow learners in that course. And the Business program has a monthly newsletter that lets you know what is happening with the university, the mentors, the staff, and the learners.

“The Mentors and staff are wonderful,” Purcell adds. “The turn-around response time from the mentors is quick, and their comments are always succinct and helpful. The Academic Adviser has always been there, looking over my progress and making sure that I always know what to expect and what I will need to be doing.”

Working on her PhD for almost 4 years now, Purcell still lives right at home in her beloved Fox Chase neighborhood. Her overall take on NCU is straightforward: “This has been a fabulous experience,” she says. “I highly recommend this program.”