Nancy J. Hughes

STI Class of 1980

Diploma: Advertising Design

President & COO

The Dunham Company; Sioux Falls, SD 

 

A Little Moxy, A Lot of Tenacity

Nancy Hughes Works Her Way Up the Ladder at The Dunham Company

From day one, Nancy Hughes has been dedicated and committed to becoming a success. After determining that she did not want to be tied down to a traditional degree, she looked into the Advertising Design program Southeast Tech offered. “I didn’t want to commit to four years if I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do. The graphics program at Southeast Tech intrigued me and it was short enough that I wanted to give it a try.”  

A wise choice, Nancy used her degree to start her career less than a year later at Chuck’s Jack and Jill in Madison South Dakota working to develop their advertising materials. Two years later, she diversified into another industry, and worked at Madison’s radio station KJAM to sell and develop radio ads part time. It was shortly after in 1983, that her career was about to take a serious turn.

“My roommate had applied to be a secretary receptionist at The Dunham Company in Sioux Falls, but she ended up getting married and didn’t take the job. So I called the company and let them know I was interested in the job. I interviewed and got the job and things just grew from there,” smiles Nancy.  

Not satisfied to sit back and watch what was going on, she jumped in with both feet and started assisting the owner Don Dunham with property management. By the time the company had moved into building projects, she started to work with accounting as well. “At that time, the Dunham Company was a small enough company that I could help with additional duties. Because I had started and worked directly with Don, he saw my potential. I was fortunate enough to grow with Don as the company grew. So I always say I did get a college education but it was from the College of Dunham.”

Today, The Dunham Company isn’t a small business anymore and Nancy is no longer the secretary. Having proven herself many times over the years, today she heads the company as the President and Chief Operating Officer.  As to how her modest start at Southeast Tech helped her on her journey? “Southeast Tech is a little treasure out there that I don’t think everyone is familiar enough with. In my position, I still utilize my advertising and marketing skills every day. Dollar for dollar I think you get a better bang for the buck through a technical school.”