National College Student Success Story: Ashley Derry

Student Success Story: Ashley Derry

For Ashley Derry, a 2007 graduate of the Danville, Kentucky Campus, being a “people person” is vital to her job working as the assistant food and beverage director of Danville Country Club.

“I’m really great with people. We have 297 members here, and I know everybody by name,” she said with a smile.

While her people skills are essential to her job managing the dining room, pool-side service, banquets and other social events at the club, the business skills that she gained in her business administration-management program at National College enable her to seamlessly orchestrate her staff and inventory, ensuring that her members’ experience is perfect in every way.

“I feel like I have so much more confidence since I went there,” she said of her time at National College. “I was able to just step into the job here.”

Ashley was working in an office with little chance for advancement, when she realized that she needed a college degree to help her get ahead in her career. She chose National over another local school after she visited the campus.

“Everybody was just so welcoming. I felt like they were there to help me decide what I wanted to do with my major,” she recalled. “They were concerned. They wanted me to be there, so they helped me pick the right one.”

She felt that she could always count on her instructors for support in the classroom. “If you needed help with anything, they would stay over if they needed to,” she said. “They always made you feel like you were important and you could ask anything.”

After five years of working at the club, Ashley continues to use the business know-how that she gained at National on the job, including skills in accounting, building a clientele, and staff management.

“Going to college…it definitely pays off,” she said. “Sometimes it’s about experience, but when you have both—it’s really helped me as far as where I’m at right now.”

Although she’s not sure what the next step in her career will be, she knows that she has the tools that she needs to accomplish her goals.

“I’m just trying to build my resume, and see where it goes from here,” Ashley explained. “It could be at a bigger country club, or another restaurant, or somewhere else. I’ll just see where it takes me.”