Success story: Dr. Whitney (Fletcher) Hubbell

            Dr. Whitney Hubbell was quick to realize attending Hazard Community and Technical College was the most economical way for her to get started on her education. As a pharmacist, she looks back and is pleased with the decision she made to begin close to home.

            She is a 2011 HCTC graduate who proceeded to continue graduate course work through the University Center of the Mountains partner, Sullivan University College of Pharmacy (SUCoP).  Dr. Hubbell graduated from SUCoP with a doctorate in pharmacy in 2016. She is now working at the University of Iowa as a clinical pharmacist. Her previous jobs were staff pharmacist with Walgreens in Iowa and Pharmacy Technician at Family Pharmacy in Hazard.

            “At HCTC, the smaller financial risk gave me more freedom to explore and change my mind. In addition, HCTC had smaller classes. I was able to get more attention from instructors and better opportunities for mentorship. When classes are too large, I feel like it’s easy to fall behind and communicating that to an instructor and finding ways to get help is hard. At HCTC, I felt comfortable enough to ask questions freely inside and outside of class,” she said.

            She especially appreciates Dr. Paul Currie, present academic dean of allied health sciences, who was her chemistry professor at the time and HCTC President Dr. Jennifer Lindon. “Dr. Currie went above and beyond to teach us and mentor us even in our plans after HCTC. He encouraged me to apply to pharmacy school and wrote me a letter of recommendation. I will never forget his encouragement and the role he played,” she said.

“I also had so much help from the president of the college, Dr. Jennifer Lindon. At the time, she was a professor and she always kept her door open to anyone who needed help. She helped me register for classes every year and figure out what I needed and how to make it work with my work schedule. And, when I was struggling, her door was always open. Dr. Lindon also encouraged me to apply to pharmacy school. Years later, when I decided to apply for a new pharmacist position at the University of Iowa as a clinical pharmacist, I needed professional references. I reached out to Dr. Lindon, and she completed my letter of recommendation right away,” she said.

“College and planning your future can be intimidating; the support and attention I received from all of the staff at HCTC were essential then and is still essential to my success today. I am so thankful I made the decision to start off small and close to home. “

            Dr. Hubbell lives in Marion, Iowa. She met her husband in pharmacy school, and after graduating, they decided to move to Marion to follow his career. 

            She is a 2009 Perry County Central High School graduate.