potlight S Nilda Oyola
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n marketing meetings, at conventions or during trade shows, Nilda Oyola is an encyclopedia of knowledge regarding her employer, Majestic Drug, and she can easily tell you anything you wish to know about the products her company sells. If anybody knows about Majestic, it’s Nilda Oyola, who has worked at virtually every administrative level at the company.
Oyola enrolled at SUNY Orange in 2007. While pursuing her degree, taking courses mostly at night or online, Oyola earned a spot on the Dean’s List in each of the four semesters in which she was eligible. She was also a member of Phi Theta Kappa, the honor society for community college students, and she accomplished these stellar academic feats all while working fulltime at Majestic.
Oyola, who earned her business administration degree at SUNY Orange in May 2010, received yet another promotion this spring when she was named national sales and marketing manager for Majestic, a manufacturer of niche oral care and personal products.
“When I started at SUNY Orange, it was about advancing my career, but it quickly turned into a very fun experience,” she says. “I understood what the teachers were teaching, and I got it. I had an advantage of having real-world experience. When the professors were giving examples, it was more than an example in a book for me. Nine out of 10 times, it was about someplace I’d been or something I’d done.”
The promotion comes 23 years after she first joined the company as a receptionist, and the story of how her career has unfolded with the company can truly serve as a shining example of what can be accomplished with dedication, commitment to a goal and a healthy dose of hard work. Over the past two-plus decades, she has steadily risen through the company’s organizational and administrative ranks, occupying roles of increasing responsibility with each new post. She was elevated to assistant to the president, office manager, head of accounts receivable/payable and head of international customer service before accepting her newest position in April.
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On the weekend of her 2010 Commencement, Oyola missed her long-awaited graduation ceremony in order to join other community college students at the Johnson Space Center for the National Community College Aerospace Scholars program. She was the only business student among the 76 participants. Today, Oyola is continuing her education at SUNY New Paltz and plans on ultimately acquiring a master’s degree in business administration, and she’s still telling folks all she knows about Majestic Drug.
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