“I get to eat bacon for a living!” Glen Oaks Community College alumna Cori Van Wagoner eagerly explains her job.
Now a senior account manager within Smithfield Food Service, Van Wagoner parlayed her 2020 general studies associate degree into a promotion that has her overseeing the territory of Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland, and Delaware.
Van Wagoner’s Viking journey began two decades ago, when the newly minted Three Rivers High School graduate was considering her options.
Unsure of her career path, and not wanting to spend money without guidance at a large university, she elected to start small at Glen Oaks.
However, a move out of the area precluded completion of her degree.
After working in retail for several years, she landed a position at Smithfield Foods, the world’s largest pork manufacturer.
In her current role, “I go to any place you can get something to eat,” she said. “I work with the chef or buyer and ask ‘who are you using for bacon and breakfast sausage?’”
If the answer isn’t Smithfield, she works toward bringing that establishment into the company fold.
Extremely organized, self-motivated and conscientious, Van Wagoner was the perfect candidate for a promotion. Only one obstacle remained: her lack of a degree.
Determined to change the situation, her mind went back to the school on Shimmel Road.
She contacted advisor Benjamin Fries, who walked her step by step through the process of completing her degree.
“I loved that Glen Oaks had an online option,” she said.
Taking two classes at a time dovetailed well with her full-time work schedule, and her teachers understood that she traveled for a living.
“I was never late – I managed my time,” she said. “They were really awesome working with me.”
Van Wagoner, whose mother Pam Carrel teaches in Glen Oaks’ nursing department, expressed a wish that the college offered bachelor’s degrees so she could continue her education even further.
“Glen Oaks blew away my expectations,” she said. “It’s so much more than just a community college.”