Dody Pelts
Assistant Director & Diagnostic Specialist
153 Jones Learning Center
(479) 979-1422
E-mail: dpelts@ozarks.edu
B.A., Arkansas Tech University
M.S., University of Central Arkansas
Licensed Psychological Examiner
Dody grew up near the Ozarks campus and began working as a diagnostic specialist in the learning center in 1999, while working toward her master's degree in school psychology. In 2007 Dody assumed the role of Assistant Director of the JLC. She loves the intensity of her job, which involves giving new learning center students a battery of tests and evaluations, and then going over the results with students and parents. "I don't beat around the bush," Dody says. "[College students are] adults, and they'll be on their own once they're here, so they need to know their strengths and weaknesses. It's their first major step to becoming an independent learner!"
In addition to working with students one-on-one, Dody also teaches study skills classes to freshmen students. "We always talk about treating college like a job," says Dody. She instructs students in time management, test-taking skills, research, and other necessities for success in college.
"They have so much more free time in college than they had [in high school]," Dody says. "I try to teach them a few basic skills that they can apply to all their classes."
Dody says she felt welcome from the day she started working in the learning center, and considers the staff and students there family. She takes delight in the achievements of learning center students -- "They have so much motivation and work so hard to get where they are!" -- and is especially pleased to see so many learning center students graduate and go on to land good jobs.
Finding spare time can be a struggle for Dody. "I don't have much free time with two kids in pre-school!" she says. When she gets a chance, she enjoys any type of outdoor activity with her family and reading, especially suspense novels. She and her husband are also in the middle of a lengthy makeover of their old farmhouse near Clarksville.
