“I’m coming in from a totally different experience,” says Micki Berthelot Morency, DMSB’81 as she paints an intricate story of her life prior to enrolling at Northeastern and how that has shaped her worldview. “A Northeastern student is there to accomplish a goal…there will be obstacles and you just have to learn to jump over them. That’s what I did.”
Morency and her family arrived in the Boston neighborhood of Hyde Park from Haiti when she was a teenager. She recalls her first drastic instance of culture shock when arriving in Boston—after landing at Logan Airport, Morency stepped off the airplane wearing a sundress in the dead of one of Boston’s infamous winters.
After graduating from Hyde Park High School, Morency enrolled in Northeastern’s D’Amore-McKim School of Business to pursue a bachelor of science in finance. Her reason for choosing Northesatern was for not only the international commuinty that the Boston campus has to offer, but also to be a part of the immersive and experiential co-op program. “I had Haitian friends in the community that were attending school there,” says Morency with a smile. “I [also] love the co-op program. I remember thinking ‘This is going to get me in the door after I graduate.’”
After receiving her degree, Morency worked as a bank auditor in both Boston and New Jersey, before recognizing what she believed to be her “true calling” in the social service sector. Eventually, she moved to Florida—where she currently resides—and worked as an independent contractor for the state to help individuals with developmental disabilities, as well as a case manager for transitional housing.
However, despite her diverse working background, Morency had always longed for a career that revolved around her passion for reading and other cultures. “Reading books opened the world to me,” she says. “This is something that I try to foster in kids—the love of books. I read books from authors of other cultures…becasuse books take you to places that you may never actually visit.” With this philosophy in mind, Morency decided to pivot her career and become an author.
Morency’s debut novel, entitled “The Island Sisters”, was released this past spring to rave reviews. The story follows four college-aged women, all from islands across the world, who meet at a college-counseling session and bond over their shared history of abuse. “I wrote the book as fiction,” says Morency, “but the book is really based on my experience of having worked in that space with real women…the goal of the book is to give a voice to the women that are voiceless for many reasons.”
Morency is currently on a cross-country book tour to promote “The Island Sisters” with many stops being on college campuses, helping her reminisce about her times at Northeastern. “I’m always grateful for Northeastern,” she says while beaming. “I totally benefited from the opportunity that was given to me, and I’d like to believe that I didn’t squander it…I did all of the things that I wanted to do.”
You can purchase a copy of “The Island Sisters” here.
I’m always grateful for Northeastern. I totally benefited from the opportunity that was given to me, and I’d like to believe that I didn’t squander it.”
Micki Morency, DMSB’81