Sue Harding has been the Administrative Assistant in Athletics at Illinois Valley Community College for over 32 years.
Over this course of time she has made countless connections with the student athletes, some still lasting to this day. With as much experience as Harding has, she has a repertoire of events, moments, and memories around IVCC.
Harding is the youngest of seven siblings and has lived in Oglesby for most of her life although she spent a year living overseas in England with her husband until she moved back to the United States and started her career with IVCC.
During that time, they lived in an apartment in Bristol, England.
Bristol, Harding said, is “a terrific place to visit, though I didn’t really care for living over there.” Her reasoning was people are not as friendly and talkative as they are in the United States, and the food can be hit or miss for most people.
Her favorite part of the job is her interactions with the student athletes. She enjoys what they bring to the table and they never fail to make her laugh.
As Harding puts it, “I would say 99% (of student athletes) are very respectful, very polite to me and considerate to me.” Some former students even reach out to Harding to this day to talk and keep up with her life.
One of her favorite moments at IVCC is seeing all the basketball teams play against each other when hosting the regional tournament: “It was a lot of work, but they were fun to see the teams and the games … it was nice to see everybody from the outside come in.”
Another favorite of hers is getting to know the secretaries and athletic directors of other colleges. It has been rewarding for Harding and has resulted in friends that she still talks to today.
Harding is neat and precise when it comes to doing her work, as she likes to “have all my T’s crossed and I’s dotted.” As Cory Tomasson, the Athletic Director of IVCC sports, puts it, “Sue is the most important element to the Athletic Department. Her years of experience, caring personality, and eye for detail make her invaluable.”
In 2012, she won the Support Staff Distinguished award, which was voted on by students and staff.
One of the most important things Harding has learned at IVCC is to not look at everybody at face value. As Harding says, “I think it causes you to step back and appreciate people rather than how they look or where they come from or anything like that.”
