Stacy Gee Hollins’ entire professional career has been punctuated by love of technology, education and a desire to help others.
Hollins, Ph.D., joined the faculty at Maryville University this fall as an associate professor in information systems. She began teaching inadvertently while working as an administrative assistant for the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. in 1990.
“Many of the bank examiners came to me for assistance to create detailed reports with spreadsheets,” said Hollins, who was born in Kinloch and grew up in Berkeley. “For some reason, new technology came easy to me, and I instantly fell in love with it. I have kept up with new technologies. It’s just something ‘I get’ – a gift is what I call it.”
In ensuing positions with the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis and a furniture distributor, coworkers continued to find solutions to their technology issues after conversations with Hollins. At this point, Hollins had completed a master’s of business administration degree and was a single parent of a young son.
“A member of my church asked me to join his GED school,” Hollins said. “I had no formal teaching experience, but loved the idea of helping someone reach their educational goals, so I accepted. Due to my love of technology, I was asked to be the first person in the University City School District to offer GED prep courses online.”
In 2002, she also had started her own company, GEEnius LLC, which provides computer services and training. Another stop along the journey to becoming a college teacher found Hollins as a computer lab manager at the nonprofit Discovering Options, where she helped individuals with learning disabilities earn certifications in Microsoft Office applications.
“I was teaching – and I loved it,” Hollins said. “Helping people reach their educational goals brought me joy, and I looked forward to going to work and changing someone’s life every day.”
St. Louis Community College’s mission to expand minds and change lives fit right into Hollins’ wheelhouse, and she joined the faculty in information systems at the Meramec campus in 2005. She eventually became a fixture at the Florissant Valley campus, serving as the Information Systems department chair. Her skills and expertise extended beyond the classrooms and into the community.
Hollins was instrumental in creating a technology center at Florissant Valley, which she said is a result of research into her dissertation for a doctorate in educational technology at the University of Missouri-St. Louis.
“I found that many students had laptops, but they weren’t functional because of viruses or software issues,” Hollins said. “So I worked to create a dedicated space, staffed by information systems and business students who essentially ran a walk-up, free technical support center on campus. Over three years, IS students served more than 300 students and helped them get back up and running so they could complete work off campus.
“We took this show on the road and did the same for Ferguson residents at the Ferguson Library at a community event,” she added. “I was also able to collaborate with MERS Goodwill and the Urban League through their community programs to get students paid for working in the technology center on campus.”
Hollins’ dissertation, “The Digital Divide through the Lens of Critical Race Theory: The Digitally Denied,” was included as one of the 10 best original student research pieces by American Libraries Association Magazine.
“My dissertation was a gift to me and my community. I was provided the opportunity to discuss two issues close to my heart – technology and social justice,” Hollins said. “The more I talked to others about it, the more I realized that it is not just a community college issue, but a community issue that needs to be addressed. Never did I imagine that it would make a national top 10 list – EVER. Nor did I imagine that I would learn so much about the students that I served and the adversity that they face without access to technology both on and off campus.”
Hollins has been a champion for the underserved, but draws inspiration for what she does from her own family and her students.
“They all inspire me in different ways,” she said. “They’ve all shown me perseverance, determination and love.”
Hollins’ grandmother, Laverne Hauley, Finished school many years after raising her children and began teaching CNA classes to young people in nursing homes and helped them get certified.
Her mother, Diane Weaver, has spent her whole life in Equal Employment Opportunity in the St. Louis area and eventually moved to lead an EEO division in the Department of Immigration in Washington, D.C., now owns her own company, Creating Options, LLC. The company investigates discrimination complaints for the government by contract.
Hollins’ husband, George, worked in retail for 23 years, but later returned to school to earn two certificates of proficiency in management and IT and a bachelor’s degree in business administration. He now works in the technology field.
Her son, Trevon Gee, served in the Air Force and now works as a technician for AT&T in Houston, Texas.
As for her students, Hollins said they push through adversity every day to obtain the one thing no one can ever take away from them – education.
“I can see and feel their excitement when they come to class,” Hollins said. “The majority of our time is spent discussing, exploring and using new technologies. They really seem to love that.”
Hollins shares their excitement for learning, and feels she is in the exact right place at this stage of her career.
“While my journey has been a collection of hills and valleys, I do believe that God has orchestrated my path for such a time as this,” Hollins said.
