About National

Success Stories

All About Family

Carrie Hauser, who graduated in June 2006 from the Dayton Area Campus with a Business Management associate degree, never thought she’d be putting her skills to work at her church. But as Office Coordinator for the Christ United Methodist Church in Kettering, she has found a challenging and rewarding job where she feels right at home. Carrie devotes some of her time in the office to the usual administrative duties that are necessary to keep any organization running smoothly. But her position also requires her to coordinate events for groups inside and outside of the church, including all weddings held at the church. As head of the church’s volunteer committee, she also has to manage the work schedules of dozens of volunteers – two of whom work at the church each day plus at other times for special events. She enjoys the interaction her job requires. Her favorite activities are “working with the members, doing the event scheduling and the weddings,” she says. “I really get to work with people one-on-one…I’m a people person.”

Carrie is all about family. She’s the mother of two small children, and was an active member and volunteer for her church well before she began working there as an employee. She also manages the books for her husband’s landscaping business. So it’s not a surprise that it was a family connection that led her to National College, where the friendliness and atmosphere of the National family won her over. She had told her grandparents, who care for her children while she is at work, that she was interested in going back to school. “So, my grandpa took it upon himself to go out to the fair that National College had,” she recounts with a broad smile. “He got paperwork for me…the next morning when I went to drop the kids off it was sitting on the table for me to look at.”

A visit to the campus soon followed. “I really liked how small and close-knit everybody was,” Carrie says. That atmosphere made a big difference as she worked her way through her program. “I went through the entire program with a lot of the same students in my class,” she adds. “I really enjoyed that because you get to build relationships with them.”

How does she feel about her education now that she’s putting her skills to use at work? “One thing that I think is unique about National, because I didn’t find this at other schools, is the fact that their main focus is giving you skills that you’re going to use directly in the work environment.”