By Apryl Motley – Communications Consultant, MS-CC
Editor’s Note: This Q&A continues off our series of short interviews spotlighting members of the MS-CC community. Be on the lookout for additional interviews each month, and email Apryl Motley if there’s an MS-CC community member you would like us to spotlight in the future or if you would like to be in the spotlight yourself. We appreciate community members and all they do to move our mission forward.
Stacie Pretty On Top serves as IT services operations manager at Salish Kootenai College (SKC) in Montana. Including her time as a student intern, Stacie has been at SKC for 20+ years.
The best part of her job? “Being directly involved in the student onboarding process and then witnessing those same students walk across the stage to receive their hard-earned degrees,” she said. “It’s rewarding to know that they made the choice to come to SKC, and despite any and all odds, they’ve overcome challenges and can now celebrate their success.”
Stacie currently serves on the Consortium Leadership Board and noted that “participation in the MS-CC community has led to new professional development opportunities, which led to new professional relationships and new roles like being a conference panelist.”
Read on to learn more about why she values the MS-CC.
More About Stacie Pretty On Top
Her personal Motto or Mantra: Hard work and dedication are the foundation for success in all aspects of life.
Is there a particular MS-CC resource that you find especially useful?
The community of practice meetings and presentations have been especially useful to make connections and learn about the amazing things HBCUs, TCUs, and HSIs are doing. Plus this year, three members of our SKC IT services team attended the MS-CC Annual Meeting for the first time, and it was a great learning experience. The workshops were very informative, the community atmosphere made it easy to connect with others and, of course, the food was amazing!
What would you say to encourage other institutions to participate in the MS-CC?
I would say that participating in the MS-CC is a great way to offer your campus access to a continually expanding community of IT professionals and valuable learning resources, including webinars, presentations, and the annual meetings.
Why does participation in the MS-CC continue to be important for your institution?
Salish Kootenai College, located in western Montana on the Flathead Indian Reservation, values participation in the MS-CC because it provides access to a professional community, events, and presentations specifically designed to support HBCUs, TCUs, and HSIs – institutions that often operate with limited resources.