Alumni Spotlight: Rachel Collora Smith, ‘99

Today’s UMM Alumni Spotlight shines on Rachel Collora Smith of Columbia, a 1999 UMM graduate with an associate degree in office management. Rachel is currently the office and finance manager at Blueberry Ford in Machias.

 

Tell us a little bit about what you are doing now:

As Office Manager at Blueberry Ford, I answer the phones, maintain Petty Cash account and process the previous day’s receipts, do the banking and take care of the mail. I process the weekly payroll and forward the information to our payroll clerk in our parent office in New Hampshire, and handle New Hire paperwork. As Finance Manager, I help our customers to procure funding to purchase the vehicles they wish to purchase. I prepare all of the necessary paperwork for the purchase of the vehicle and file the proper forms with the various funding departments, as well as the State of Maine. When the General Manager is not on the premises, I am the highest manager on site.

 

What is the most valuable thing you learned while at UMM?

I learned a lot while attending UMM, including public speaking and communication with the my customers, and most of all my computer skills which have been very helpful in all my endeavors.

 

Do you have any advice for current students at UMM?

Stay focused on their studies and do the best they can. It will someday pay off. It might not be tomorrow, or the next day, but it will pay off.

 

How did your time at UMM prepare you for what you are doing now?

My time at UMM prepared me by giving me the tools and knowledge as well as the experience that I needed to get to this point. I have always been a hard worker, but what I learned at UMM gave me the ability to focus on what would give me the future that I was looking for.

 

How has UMM made a positive impact on your life?

The education that I achieved while at UMM has had the most positive impact on my life. I have always had a positive outlook on my life and getting my education only reinforced that that attitude.