You name it, Regina Cates has probably done it.

Cates is perhaps best known in Rome as a staff member of Berry College's Campbell School of Business, where she was appointed director of graduate studies in August 2002.

But her unconventionally eclectic resume includes everything from a managerial position at a Birmingham-based steel refractory to a stint as a rock 'n roll drummer during the early '80s.

"Powerhouse" might be the best word to describe Cates, who has created a relativel harmonious career out of hodgepodge of interests.

Cates began her life's journey in Texas, where she received a degree in education from Sam Houston State University. She made her way through Missouri before landing in Alabama.

During 20 years there, Cates held administration positions in marketing at Miles College in Fairfield, Ala., and at Birmingham-Southern College. She received a master of arts in public and private management from Birmingham-Southern in 1995. She rounded our her stay in Birmingham in 2001, after spending a year managing two local medical practices.

Although Cates said she has never experienced gender-based prejudge, she was schooled in gender differences at her refactory position. The only female employee, she said, she enjoyed working with the guys. "I really benefited from it. I got to learn how the other half thinks,... and they learned me."

She said the experience along with her time at Miles College, "shaped me a lot." At Miles, Cates was the only white administrative staffer at the historically African-American college.

Still, Cates said the only time she felt discriminated against was during her short-lived career as a drummer for a rock 'n roll band The Janes. The band had her spending her free time cutting records and performing at local festivals.

But she faced opposition because of her age. "We were in our late 20's, early 30's." Cates said "which was not the right age for the industry." Frustrations mounted until The Janes broke up in October of 1987.

Believe it or not this was not the last of Cates' creative ventures.

Her latest project: The launch of her own Native American craft company, Toltec Art, in May. Cates taught herself to make the various crafts she sells, including smudge fans, turtle rattles and talking sticks. "They really make themselves," she said.

Cates said she has always fostered an entrepreneurial spirit. "In the back of my mind, I always wanted to start my own business," she said. "I just didn't know what it would be."

Cates does not envision huge growth in her business any time soon. She enjoys the creative process so much, she said, that she wants to be able to be, everything from artesian to CEO for Toltec Art for as long as possible.

She anticipates strong demand for her craft items, especially after Toltec Art's Website is completed.

In the meantime, Cates pursues other interests. She finds additional outlets for her creativity in the form of landscape design and gardening, bird watching and mountain biking.

Cates also writes. She has published several poems and has been lingering over the manuscript of her novel for some time.

Among all of these interests, can she pick a favorite? "Everything I choose to do I'm passionate about," Cates said.

Cates envisions a future just as full as the present. "I'm just starting to live my life," she said. "I've only just begun."

During her tenure at Berry, Cates hopes to oversee the growth of the MBA program as a significant tuition drop the curriculum changes go into effect in the near future.

Cates said she would like someday to retire early and travel, Eventually she plans to settle peacefully in a login cabin with her three dogs to enjoy the rest of her life.

What's next on her agenda? "I will not stop working, that's for sure," Cates said.

She is not sure what this work will entail, but, she said with a sly smile," that's the exciting part."