Featured Tigers is a monthly series wherein the spotlight shines on a few students, alumni, faculty and staff from our Crete, Lincoln and Omaha campus locations. These individuals stand out in the best way — as talented and driven leaders.
View all Featured Tigers here.
What is your name and title?
Denise Ellis, Registrar
How long have you worked at Doane? What attracted you to work here?
It will be 18 years in December. I had recently finished my Master's in Counseling specializing in Student Affairs and I was looking for a position that was a step up from the position I had at Metropolitan Community College in Omaha.
What do you consider the best part of your Doane experience?
I really enjoy the small atmosphere of Doane. I've gotten to know fellow staff members well, and consider them friends not just co-workers. I enjoy working collaboratively with other offices as we all need to support each other to help students succeed. I also enjoy that I get to do different things everyday since we are small; no one position is a "specialist" we're all "generalists" and support lots of things (e.g. UNL has a whole office that just worries about graduation and that's just one of the many things I worry about!).
What is something you're proud of accomplishing or achieving while at Doane?
In 18 years you can imagine a lot has happened. When I first started, faculty were being trained to enter grades online themselves, which was a huge deal. We've grown so much since then. I'm really pleased how well Academic Planning is working for students. When students contact me and say "I was looking at my plan and have a question," it makes me so happy. I love that students have tools to see how they are progressing and ask knowledgeable questions about degree requirements. Most recently, with IT's help, we implemented a touchless electronic transcript process. It not only saves staff time, but students can get their official transcript in a matter of minutes. Pretty darn cool.
What's some advice you would give to current students? Or, what is some advice you've received that you value?
Advocate for yourself and don't hesitate to ask questions.
What's something you like about yourself that others may not know?
I love rollercoasters. I enjoy the fast speed, hills, and turns.
