‘ A Culture of Caring ’ Customer service key to Oconee Fall Line Technical College ’ s mission
Story and Photos by LEAH S . BETHEA
Whether through fulfilling the needs of its students or the communities that it serves , customer service is always at the core of what Oconee Fall Line Technical College does .
“ We like to say we have a culture of caring in that we treat each other , our employees , with respect , as well as our students and serve our community with really a servant attitude ,” says OFTC President Erica Harden . “ We provide a service to the community in terms of education , whether it ’ s our credit programs , our non-credit programs or our adult education programs , and so if we ’ re not friendly and we ’ re not focused on customer service , we ’ re not going to attract people to the college , and that ’ s kind of the goal , to get them here and get them educated .”
Serving 11 counties with multiple campuses , Sandersville is the main campus for the college that offers more than 100 credit programs as well as several non-credit programs for business and industry .
Harden recently celebrated her third anniversary as OFTC president , though she has been with the college since 1999 , serving previously as vice president for academic and student affairs . During her tenure , she has seen countless success stories that illustrate the impactful role OFTC plays in the lives of its students . She has watched students begin in a dual enrollment program for Certified Nursing Assistants and then transition to practical nursing only to return to get an associate ’ s degree in nursing . It ’ s a full-circle moment for both the students and those who have invested in them .
“ They go all the way from being a CNA to an RN with us and then give back to the community by working in nursing ,” Harden says . And she has seen the way these moments change lives . With industrial programs like welding , she has watched several students begin the program through dual enrollment and then make a great living after obtaining their degree .
“ There ’ s a surprising amount of money that they ’ re making in
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