Foundation: Alumni Story - Debbie Williams

Wilson Community College has been such an important part of my life since 1968, that it’s difficult to think of my life apart from this college.

Alumni Debbie Williams Class of 1970

As a senior at Elm City High School, I planned to attend Hardbargers Business College in Raleigh upon my graduation. However, my Dad could not stand the thought of me leaving home, so he asked me to consider other options that would allow me to remain at home and go to school. Since my high school track had been business courses and not college preparatory, Atlantic Christian College (now Barton), was not an option, so Wilson County Technical Institute (now Wilson Community College) was the logical choice. WCTI offered the two-year Executive Secretary curriculum as part of the Accounting AAS degree that appealed to me, so I enrolled to begin the Fall Quarter of 1968. I had no idea at the time how profoundly that decision would affect my life.

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At that time, WCTI was still small enough to allow the instructors, staff, and administration to know all the students by name and encourage the students to be very involved with the school and its future. One of my fondest memories is how President DelMastro would stand in the hall between classes, leaning in a classroom doorway with his tie pulled to one side chatting with us. He valued our suggestions and opinions, and was always ready to lend an ear, shoulder or whatever we needed. I became involved in student government and other organizations, along with the yearbook staff and made many life-long friends. Instructors and staff were more than their job titles implied, they were counselors, friends, substitute parents - always available to offer help and encouragement. One instructor in particular, Miller Thomas, continued to monitor our progress after graduation making sure that our career paths were on track. I completed my studies with on-the-job training at a local corporation, after which my plan was to move to Raleigh with several fellow students to live and work. As fate would have it, I met my future husband, Ray, who also worked at the corporation where I was completing my OJT, and, you guessed it, I never made it to Raleigh. I accepted a full time position there as Executive Secretary to the Plant Manager, and later as Executive Secretary to the District Vice-President. Ray and I were married in 1971, and a year later I accepted a position at BB&T, where I worked for three years. Miller Thomas continued to check up on me. In November, 1975, he came by my office and told me that the Business Manager at WCTI was looking for a secretary, and I should apply. I called and made an appointment for the next day, where I filled out an application, interviewed with the Business Manager and the school president, Dr. Ernest Parry. I was hired that day and thus began the second phase of my association with Wilson County Technical Institute which continues to this day. Coming to work at WCTI was like coming home. There were so many friends working here that I had known as a student, who now welcomed me as a fellow employee. In my years as an employee of the college, I have been blessed to be a part of the Wilson CC family, and I have been offered so many opportunities to grow professionally. I began as a secretary, after which I was promoted to Payroll Technician and then Payroll Officer. As a part of the North Carolina Community College System, in 1984, we began storing and accessing all of our financial and student data on a database driven computer system. This involved a lot of system-wide training for employees that would enter and process data on this new system. I loved working with the new computer system and was fascinated with data management and retrieval. In addition to using the system for our Payroll application, I began taking classes, as well as, working on my own to learn about data management. With encouragement from our Systems Administrator, I also took classes offered for system administration and took on additional responsibilities as the Backup Systems Administrator. I received much encouragement and support from my supervisors along with fellow employees of the college and the Community College System. After 16 years as Payroll Officer and 25 years of service to the college, I was promoted from the Business Division to the Information Technology Division in a new position as Web and Database Coordinator. My responsibilities were divided between The College Website development and database management for our college application systems. I was eventually promoted to CIS Systems Administrator and am currently serving as Director of IT Administrative Systems. I had no idea of the opportunities that awaited me when I began this journey on December 1, 1975.

I owe a debt of gratitude to so many people who have helped me along the way – too numerous to name or count. In addition to supporting me first as a student and then an employee, my college family has supported me in my personal life, while my husband and I raised our two children, family joys and sorrows, and all my community theatre projects. In my 40-year tenure, I have seen Wilson Community College grow and blossom into a fine two-year college that offers our community life-long learning opportunities. I have seen the college go through four name changes, and I have been associated with all four college presidents. I am currently the longest-serving employee, however, that does not mean that I am the oldest employee! I look back now and see that God used three men to place me on this journey. It’s been quite a ride – thanks Dad, Ray, & Miller!