Longtime Eastern Campus Student Services manager to retire

Jane Horst, WVU Eastern Campus’s first Student Services manager, will retire on May 28, following more than two decades of work with medical students in the Eastern Panhandle.

Horst spent several years working with community-based programming and medical students in the Eastern panhandle.

Her unique combination of experience and skills allowed her to play a critical role in the planning and development of WVU’s Eastern Campus Medical Student Services. She served as the first manager of the Eastern Campus Student Services office – a position she held for 13 years before stepping down to serve as a part-time academic advisor in 2019.

“I'm lucky in that I was in the right place at the right time and was given this opportunity to work in Student Services and provide the administrative support for the new WVU School of Medicine Campus,” Horst said. “I've been blessed to have great co-workers at Eastern. Coming to work was something I looked forward to, it was a work family, not just a workplace, and all the wonderful students were part of it. I consider being a small part of the planning and start-up of the Eastern Campus at Martinsburg one of my best personal achievements.”

Since joining the team, Horst said that she is proud to have witnessed first-hand how much the Berkeley Medical Center and the Eastern Campus as a whole had grown during her tenure.

“Jane keeps us all on track and the trains running on time for our wide range of learners and educators, all the while promoting and understanding the needs of the diverse rural community we serve and the key roles our medical students play in serving the state,” Emma Eggleston, M.D., dean of WVU Health Sciences – Eastern Division, said. “Our HSC team won’t be the same without Jane, but the foundation she built in our Student Services program will continue to benefit medical students for years to come.”

Horst began working with medical students as a field site coordinator for the WV Rural Health Consortium in the Eastern Panhandle. The grant-based program served medical students by scheduling their clinical rotations and community service opportunities in rural areas, as well as providing housing for them.

Prior to joining WVU, she was instrumental in establishing a Health Sciences and Technology (HTSA) Club in the Eastern Panhandle. She served as the first HTSA Field Site Coordinator, where she recruited students, nominated potential board members, established clubs at local high schools and hired and supervised teachers for those clubs.

“I’ll miss my Eastern Campus family, but I know that the Campus will continue to thrive and grow,” Horst said. 

Following her retirement, Horst plans to travel, write, paint, visit with friends and spend time with her husband and grandchildren.

For more information on Student Services at the Eastern Campus, visit the website.