South Georgia Technical College President Dr. John Watford announced recently that SGTC Director of Career Services Cynthia Carter of Oglethorpe, Grants Coordinator Nancy Jones Fitzgerald of Americus and Maintenance Administrative Assistant Linda Edge will be joining new departments at the college and have responsibilities rearranged.
“Cynthia Carter, Nancy Fitzgerald and Linda Edge are assets to South Georgia Technical College,” said SGTC President Watford. “They are vital members of our team and their new assignments are a continuation of the reorganization of administrative responsibilities.”
Carter has been reporting to SGTC Assistant to the President Don Smith and assisting with Student Life, Clubs and Organizations, as well as Career Services. Since Smith’s retirement, she will now become a part of the South Georgia Technical College Economic Development division and report to SGTC Vice President of Economic Development Wally Summers. She will continue to concentrate on providing career services to students and graduates as well as continue to coordinate Career Fairs for the college.
Nancy Jones Fitzgerald has been a member of the Student Affairs division, but will now become a part of the college’s Academic Affairs department and report to Vice President of Academic Affairs David Kuipers. She will continue in her role as Grants Coordinator for the college and assist Kuipers with institutional research projects.
Linda Edge has been serving as the Administrative Assistant for Don Smith since 2013. She had been in the Academic Affairs division prior to working with Smith. She will now report to Vice President of Academic Affairs David Kuipers but retain duties associated with entering payment requisitions for maintenance. She will continue to provide maintenance with support for payment requisitions but will be responsible for other duties in academic affairs as well.
“South Georgia Technical College is a tax-supported unit of the Technical College System of Georgia. This reorganization of administrative responsibilities is designed to provide a greater impact on the overall student success at South Georgia Tech. These changes should result in greater efficiency and overall effectiveness while also fully utilizing the talents and skills of our employees,” said President Watford.
“Workforce development is our mission. Aligning Career Services with the Economic Development Division helps us accomplish that mission and provide students with more direct contact with business and industry and future employers. Moving the Grants Coordinator position under Academic Affairs, which is responsible for Institutional Effectiveness as well as administering the Perkins and other grants, also seems to be a better fit or alignment. Reassigning Linda Edge to the Academic Affairs department but still utilizing her skills and knowledge in the online purchasing process for maintenance and academic affairs will benefit students and the college,” added Dr. Watford.
Cynthia Carter joined South Georgia Technical College as the Director of Career Services/Job Placement/Recruitment in August 2002. Over the past 17 years, her job responsibilities have changed slightly and she assumed more responsibilities with student life and clubs and organizations rather than job placement and recruitment duties.
Under this reorganization, Carter will be responsible for supporting learning through a comprehensive career services program that encompasses employer development, career counseling, job search assistance (resume writing, cover letter writing, interviewing skills, identifying job leads), internship or apprenticeship assistance and other areas related to career success. She will also work with the Economic Development division to plan Career Fairs at the college. These services are provided for current students as well as alumni. South Georgia Tech provides lifetime career placement services for its graduates. The Director of Career Services is a pivotal and highly visible individual, working closely and collaboratively with students, faculty, staff, alumni, and parents to expand possibilities for student learning, leadership, and employment.
Carter has a Bachelor of Science in Business Education from Fort Valley State College. She served on the South Georgia Technical College Board of Directors from 1995 to 2002. Prior to working with South Georgia Tech, Carter worked with The Weyerhaeuser Company from 1993 – 2001 and she also was employed by Procter & Gamble Cellulose from 1980 to 1992. She has been very active in the local communities and with economic development in SGTC’s seven county service areas.
“Cynthia Carter is going to be a great asset to this department,” said South Georgia Technical College Vice President of Economic Development Wally Summers. “By incorporating Career Services into the Economic Development department we are directly connecting students with their future employers and we will be able to better connect employers to students and job seekers. This is a win, win situation for the college, the students, and our business and industry partners.”
David Kuipers, Vice President of Academic Affairs at SGTC, was also pleased to be receiving new members to his team. “The work that Nancy Fitzgerald has been doing with our STEM camps and STEM activities is directly connected to our academic programs. She has already been working with Academic Affairs on several different projects so I am pleased that she will now be joining us permanently,” said Kuipers. “She will also be an asset for our Institutional Research efforts and for the planning, implementing and reporting on the Perkins Grant and other federal grants.”
Kuipers was just as pleased about regaining Linda Edge to the Academic Affairs team. Linda served in Academic Affairs from 1991 until 2013. “She has valuable knowledge about the Academic Affairs department and I look forward to working with her again. She assisted the department with online purchasing reporting when my assistant was out on medical leave. Since she is no longer working with student affairs in clubs and activities, we felt like we could utilize her skills in entering purchasing information for more than one department and in the advisory committee organization and meeting process,” said Kuipers.
As a grants coordinator, Fitzgerald is responsible for maintaining and monitoring certain federal and/or state grants as well as the administrative reporting and tracking documentation related to grants and Institutional Effectiveness reporting.
Fitzgerald has a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from Valdosta State University. She was employed as a high school American Government, World History and Economics instructor at Southland Academy in Americus prior to joining South Georgia Tech in 2016. Linda Edge is a graduate of South Georgia Technical College with a Business Education diploma. She worked in Academic Affairs as the Administrative Assistant for retired SGTC Vice President of Academic Affairs Dr. Robbie Latimore before moving to serve as the administrative assistant for Assistant to the President Don Smith in 2013.