The woman behind your printed degree

Since 2001, every Mt. Hood student application for graduation and a degree has been guaranteed to pass through a single individual – Laura Whiting.

Whiting is the MHCC transfer evaluator and degree auditor, but not for much longer: She retires as soon as she finishes the fall audits, later this month.

She is currently responsible for auditing each individual graduation application, a process mostly done by hand with some help from DARS (online degree auditing program) software.

Other Mt. Hood employees have begun training in the process Whiting knows so well. The involved technology will soon change, and she predicts the oversight duties will be shared among multiple workers. Her position has not yet been filled.

Whiting’s journey with MHCC started in 1971 when she enrolled as a student and continued as an employee in 1996 when she was hired as a part-time instructional coordinator for Industrial Technology. She helped created the school’s first evening and weekend college.

She looked back on her time on campus and said with a giggle, “Not much has changed.”

Lindsay Mansfield, MHCC registration specialist, said, “She really cares about people. She’s a kind person, really great to work with. She’ll go out of her way to help people.”

Job highlights include commencement ceremonies and awarding the student degrees, Whiting said. “That is a fun time. I’ve always been very involved in commencement.”

Sometimes a student might need a degree right away for a job requirement, or another situation, and Whiting can pre-print a degree, she explained. She used to print every degree at her own desk, but now sends them to the college mailroom.

Another scenario she described: A student might not be eligible for the degree he or she had planned, but are not far away from another degree. She can offer them an opportunity to switch, and then award them that degree.

“That is a really big accomplishment,” Whiting said.

She especially enjoys when an MHCC staff member receives a degree and she can deliver the goods. “That is the best part – giving out the degrees,” she said.

Whiting serves as adviser, both to students and program directors. She encourages all students to regularly check their DARS along the path to graduation.

A real challenge has been the maximum time frame appeal for student financial aid, she said, which keeps her in frequent contact with the MHCC financial aid office.

“The more we help students, the less frustration there is for them,” she said.

At 60 years old, Whiting said she’s ready to move on. “There is a time for everything, and it’s time to do something different,” she said. “Of course, I will miss my co-workers. We’re all pretty close.”

Living near the MHCC campus, Whiting plans to stop by for lunch occasionally. That is, between trips to see her children and grandchildren, some who live in Kansas City, and more family who reside in Idaho, she said – and perhaps even her own return to school, for studies she hasn’t determined yet.