Shaping Future Nurses: A Conversation with OFTC’s 2025 RPA Winner, Kerrie Fountain
Kerrie Fountain, Practical Nursing instructor at Oconee Fall Line Technical College (OFTC), was recently named the college’s 2025 Rick Perkins Award (RPA) Winner and Instructor of the Year.
In this Q&A, Fountain shares her passion for teaching, her journey in nursing education, and the impact she hopes to make on her students. Learn more about what drives her dedication to shaping the next generation of healthcare professionals.
Q: When did you start teaching at OFTC?
A: September 2020
Q: What OFTC classes do you teach and what is your role within the OFTC Nursing Department?
A: I teach Dosage and Calculations, Pharmacology, Maternity, Leadership (Capstone). I teach the students in the beginning, and the end, and in between, and I instruct the students throughout different clinicals.
Q: What made you pursue a career in Nursing, and what made you want to teach nursing students?
A: I have always loved helping and caring for others. I wanted to play a role in shaping and educating future nurses. We need nurses that are smart, caring, and who have not only skills, but who also have empathy, passion, and commitment. Without empathy, passion, and commitment, true patient care will never exist.
Q: What do you enjoy most about working with your students at OFTC?
A: What I enjoy most is seeing the students in the very beginning, when they are nervous, anxious, and excited, and then seeing them at the end at pinning. I love seeing the pride on their faces, and watching their loved ones beam with pride as they get pinned. I also love seeing them out in the community working as nurses after they graduate.
Q: In your opinion, what makes OFTC a good option for someone who wants to pursue higher education and further their career?
A: OFTC offers extensive hands-on training in a more caring and intimate environment than other postsecondary options. We strive to help the student succeed in and outside of the classroom. We teach and stress work ethics, and I am confident that our students are well-trained and have strong work skills. We also have free tuition for Hope eligible students. OFTC/TCSG also has a 99% job placement rate.
Q: What is the best part about being an OFTC instructor?
A: The best part about being an instructor at OFTC is seeing our students from advisement to graduation. I love knowing that I’m helping shape the next generation of nurses, and that those nurses are working primarily in our community.
Q: What are you most looking forward to about being this year’s RPA Winner?
A: As OFTC’s 2025 RPA winner, I am looking forward to representing my college and meeting other instructors from across the state.
Q: What do you think other people should know about OFTC?
A: I think other people should realize OFTC ensures their graduates are skilled, confident, and workforce ready. I also think others should realize that OFTC is also a very caring college. Many of my students describe how OFTC has a more caring and personal environment than other colleges and schools they have attended.
Q: What do you think other people should know about working at OFTC?
A: I think others should know that working at OFTC is a very rewarding experience. OFTC makes a difference in the lives of their students, and as an employee and instructor, it is a great feeling to feel like I am making a difference and helping others reach their dreams.
Q: As you look back on your career and your time at OFTC, what moments stick out to you? Is there anything impactful or memorable you’d like to share?
A: Looking back on my time at OFTC, there are so many moments that stick out to me. I really think about when my students get to witness a birth. The excitement they experience is indescribable. Also, I always love to see the pride on their faces at pinning. It is a great feeling to go from advising to pinning the students.
As the college’s 2025 RPA winner, Fountain will represent OFTC in regionals as she competes against other top instructors from TCSG colleges later in February. The top region finalists will compete at the state-level in Atlanta in April where the winner will be named the state’s 2025 RPA winner by the TCSG.
For more info on OFTC or the College’s 130+ programs of study, visit the College’s website, OFTC.edu.
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