Other Profiles:
- Dantever Hicks
- 2008 EAGLE Winner - Theresa Watkins
- 2007 GOAL Winner - Cynthia Rumney
- 2007 Instructor of the Year - Keri Olson
- Dental Hygiene Student and Scholarship Recipient - Wendy Bloodworth and Alyssa Shaw
- Emilie Fisher Foundation Scholarship Winners
Keri Olson: Dental Hygiene Student and Scholarship Recipient
When Keri Olson moved from California to Middle Georgia more than five years ago, she knew she wanted to pursue her dream of becoming a dental hygienist. She was already a practicing dental assistant and had some prerequisite credits for dental hygiene from a few years back. Fast forward to 2007, and Keri is finishing up her last quarter in the Dental Hygiene program at Middle Georgia Technical College. Unfortunately for her, she does not qualify for the HOPE Scholarship, which pays for tuition and provides a book allowance each quarter, because she already had too many course credits. Keri did not let this stop her; her own hope, hard work, and determination has proved to be quite rewarding.
Each quarter Keri has applied for many of the scholarships that the College or other organizations award. This past Awards Day, which was held on December 6, Keri could not seem to leave the stage. Since her studies at MGTC, Keri has won the Warner Robins Rotary Club Scholarship, valued at $200, twice. She has also won a $250 MGTC Foundation Scholarship twice. The recognition does not stop there—Keri received the $500 Central District Dental Society Scholarship. Last, but certainly not least, Keri was also recipient of the $750 Hinman Society scholarship. Hinman scholarship recipient schools are located in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia. Student recipients of the scholarships are known as “Hinman Scholars.” Recipients must be junior student members of the American Dental Association (ADA). In addition to receiving scholarship money, Hinman Scholars are invited to attend the Hinman Dental Meeting held each spring.
The Dental Hygiene program at MGTC is seven quarters in length and is quite costly. Keri calculated that at the end of her studies, she would have paid close to $8,500 on tuition, books, tools, and the Board exams. She is currently in clinicals for three days a week and is scheduled to take her Board exam on March 27. Keri is extremely grateful for the many scholarships she has received to help offset some of the costs of her studies. After she graduates in June 2007, she plans to join a dental practice in the Middle Georgia area.
