Athens Technical College has named Candace Coker and Amanda Stanley as the 2022 as Piedmont Athens Regional Medical Center Eminent Scholars in Health Care. Coker has been a registered dental hygienist for 17 years and is currently an instructor and first-year dental hygiene clinic coordinator at Athens Tech. Stanley is chair of College’s radiography program.
From Athens Tech…
This award is given annually to faculty members who demonstrate high standards in health care education. The College and Piedmont Athens Regional Medical Center have a long-standing partnership with the associate of science in nursing (ASN) program as well as other allied health programs.
“It’s my honor to present these awards to some of our top instructors who have made a sincere commitment to their programs, students and college,” said ATC President Andrea Daniel. “Our employees are our greatest asset and are critical link in our chain of supporting workforce development. We know health care workers are in critical demand and are committed to providing the best education possible to meet the region’s demand.”
Coker has been a registered dental hygienist for 17 years and is currently an instructor and first-year dental hygiene clinic coordinator for the College. She graduated from ATC’s Dental Hygiene program in 2004 and went on to obtain a bachelor’s in English. She is currently pursuing a master’s degree in educational leadership.
“I love learning, and while in clinical practice I loved sharing what I learned with my patients,” she said. “As I moved through my career, educating my patients became my passion. I eventually realized that educating my patients was only a small part of what I wanted to do moving forward. I felt as if I could impact so many more lives by educating future dental professionals. Working at Athens Technical College has afforded me the opportunity to have a positive impact on future dental hygienist and assistants.” Stanley currently serves as chair of the radiography program at ATC and is registered by the American Registry of Radiologic Technologists (ARRT) in Radiography. She began her education at Athens Technical College, receiving the Mallinckrodt award for clinical excellence and earning her Associate of Applied Science in in Radiography in 2013.
Prior to starting at ATC in 2017 as a clinical instructor, Stanley worked full-time on staff at Piedmont Athens Regional. She has extensive expertise in inpatient/outpatient diagnostic imaging, trauma imaging and interventional radiography.
“I love teaching in radiography because it gives me the opportunity to have the best of both worlds,” she said. “I love working with students — it is so rewarding to see them conquer new skills and start their careers.”
Stanley earned her bachelor’s degree in human capital performance from Valdosta State University where she graduated magna cum laude in 2020. She is currently pursuing her master’s degree in education from VSU.
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