51ÊÓƵ

Staff Spotlight: Nancy Harter - executive secretary at the Art & Humanities Focus Program

June 27, 2025

Every week, we shine a spotlight on one 51ÊÓƵ staff member! This week, meet Nancy Harter, executive secretary at the Art & Humanities Focus Program.

“Nancy is the only support staff at A&H. She serves MANY roles! She is the SEM, the health tech, the executive secretary, the registrar, the payroll person, the attendance secretary, the… I am new to A&H, and it's already evident that she is the behind-the-scenes  person that makes A&H run smoothly!” - Darla Berks, Art & Humanities Focus Program administrator. 

In a few sentences, briefly describe your role at LPS.
As the executive office professional at Arts & Humanities, I am the registrar, attendance person, nurse, bookkeeper, secured entry monitor, custodian and lunch wrangler.

How long have you worked for LPS?
Since July 5, 2000, when I was hired at the district office into the payroll department. After about 14 years there I moved to human resources for another seven years. This coming year will be my fourth year at A&H. I was also a para at Goodrich for a while from 1998-1999.

What inspired you to become part of the education field at LPS?
I never aspired to be in education in any form, but here I am! I had worked retail for years, and I wanted to get away from working every weekend and the schools offered that. That's what initially drew me into LPS. Years later, I was at a point in my occupation that I was ready for a big change so I pursued a position in a school.

What has been your favorite part of working here? What aspect of your job do you find most rewarding?
Meeting so many employees and now students has been great. Seeing where people start and move on to while they grow, or even retire. I love being in support positions; I can't teach so let me do everything else! The five educators at A&H are amazing individuals. They give every student and every need, 1000%. I learn from them constantly and am so lucky to be here. I know teachers work hard but this crew is extraordinary.

Not to be macabre (and it wasn't my favorite thing), but being a district office employee through the fire was an incredible experience. It felt like the biggest development that ever occurred to LPS and we came through it with support from Lincoln. So much was overcome and learned from that time.

Did you attend LPS as a student? If so, which school(s)? If not, where are you from?
Yes! Brownell, Mickle and Northeast.

What path did you take after completing your formal education?
I attended Hastings College for a year then moved back to Lincoln and attended Southeast Community College. Both were great experiences.

What do you enjoy most about the Lincoln community?
So many positive and cool things are happening in Lincoln. I see things from a school standpoint; I see the Lied Center working to make sure our students see performance art, the LUX Center holds a show for us each year to give our student artists a place to show their work, the Ross Theater holds viewings for our school and then brings in filmmakers for students to hear from firsthand. Seeing this kind of support for our schools is fantastic.

As a citizen, I enjoy a lot here that you can find in even bigger cities, but in Lincoln, it's always homier, more intimate. There's always a great selection of events happening, new restaurants to try, places to volunteer with. I mean, traveling is great, but have you ever gotten to go home to Lincoln?

What is your favorite childhood book or a book that has influenced your life positively?
In elementary school, I discovered "The Outsiders" by S.E. Hinton. I checked it out of the media center so much, my mom bought a second copy for the school so other students could read it! I then read everything Hinton ever wrote.

As an adult, the one book that really changed me was "The Great Deluge: Hurricane Katrina, New Orleans & the Mississippi Gulf Coast" by Douglas Brinkley. I read it out of curiosity, but it was the people that were jaw-dropping and awe-inspiring. It showed me how we all need to be there for our fellow humans.

Share a shout out to a former teacher who impacted your life.
Two played huge parts in my teen life, both are no longer with us: Christie Hammer from Mickle and Daryl Blue from Northeast. They both saw potential in me and guided me into writing and journalism. Both of them took chances on me, and I will never forget and will always appreciate that. They were supportive and showed me so much that I took outside of the classroom.

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