Joel Cofer, a Customer Service Representative for Campus Partners, is an employee who doesn’t mind saying “How high?” if a customer asks him to jump. Soaring to heights of customer service comes naturally to the All-American track and field star and high jumper from the University of North Carolina at Pembroke, where Joel’s plaque is still on display.

The 27-year veteran of our company is renown for some of the traits that propelled him to his All American status. He is dedicated, knowledgeable, and focused in carrying out his responsibilities to his customers, which include answering questions about accounting and accounting reports, responding to inquiries concerning federal regulations, providing information about iPROMise, our online entrance interview product, E-Exit, our online exit interview service, and myReports, our ad hoc reporting tool. “iPROMise has really taken off with our customers and their borrowers. The students are so technically tuned in that most will respond within a few days when they are notified that their online entrance interview is available. When customers sign up, they really look forward to using iPROMise because of the time it will save them in scheduling and conducting entrance interviews. The new reports, available through System 3i, will make it even easier to administer the program,” stated Joel with enthusiasm.

Joel and other employees work as a team and help each other out in the course of their work. “We all have general knowledge and areas of expertise, such as assignments, accounting, or collection agencies. If I have a collections question that I need help with, I can go to April O’Mara, our dedicated Customer Service Representative for collection agencies,” Joel stated. Joel, in turn, can provide added insight about iPROMise, the file transfer process, accounting, or federal regulations. Joel is quick to point out that Sharon Cameron, Audit and Compliance Specialist for our company, provides training and insight to all the representatives to help them keep track of new and ever-changing regulations.

Joel was very excited to meet many of our customers during Partners Conference 2007, which was held last month in Greensboro with a visit to our Service Center in Winston-Salem. Among others, Joel got to meet Jocelyn Heywood from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Maria Rubio and Ruta Patel from Rush University, Arnold Kemner from Ramapo College of New Jersey, and Lettie Clark from Gonzaga University. “When we went out to the lobby to greet the customers, I could hear voices in the crowd and immediately knew who they were. It was great to meet them all. I had been talking to some of them for over 20 years,” Joel related. “My customers were excited before the conference and are still talking about it. They have great stories about hearing M.L. Carr, the trip to the winery for dinner, and meeting Richard Childress. They thought everything was first class all the way.”

Since Joel joined the company on June 30, 1980, a great deal has changed. When he started as a forms analyst and then borrower services representative, there were no computers in these departments. “Everything was on microfiche in those days. Today, we can look at accounts and up-to-the-minute data is displayed. Our online reports are current and QuikLetters and other letters are sent right away.” Joel said.

Joel has helped train many of his coworkers and counts his experience as one of the biggest assets he brings to the company. In addition to Sharon Cameron, he is quick to praise other employees, including Charles Parker, Director of Loan Accounting, Tammy Gupton, Business Analyst, and April O’Mara and Tori Matthews, both Customer Service Representatives.

Joel values his relationships with both staff members and his customers. He has worked with MIT since the early 1980s and with Patty Ragland at the College of William and Mary for 20 years. “Customers call me and don’t even identify themselves. They say ‘Hey, Joel,’ and I immediately know who they are. They’re like family to me,” he continued.

Speaking of family, Joel is quite a family man. He has been married to his wife, Debbie, for 27 years, but they have known each other since meeting in elementary school at the Methodist Children’s Home In Winston-Salem. “We have been together ever since. We both attended the University of North Carolina at Pembroke and then got married,” Joel explained. The couple has four children, the youngest of whom is a senior in high school. All of the children have been very involved in scouting. One son is an Eagle Scout, and both daughters have earned the Girl Scout Silver Award, the second highest award that the organization bestows. Their younger daughter is just finishing the requirements for the Gold Award, Girl Scouts’ highest award. Joel has served as an assistant scoutmaster and has helped sell around 10,000 boxes of Girl Scout cookies over the past 17 years.

Joel and Debbie enjoy mountain biking, back packing, and camping throughout North Carolina. Joel enjoys reading about US history and has just completed a biography about Meriwether Lewis, leader of the Lewis and Clark Expedition.

Although Joel’s track and field days are past, he has maintained his All-American status when it comes to providing customer service. He is second to none in his longevity and devotion to customers and is ready to leap over any hurdles to meet customer expectations.