I Spy: Andrea Dorsey, the officer we all want to meet
Her day begins early at 6 a.m. She’s making noise, she’s bubbly and the darkness outside isn’t going to hide her smile. For CCU security officer Andrea Dorsey, it’s another day to be happy. It’s another opportunity to golf-cart a student running late to class. It’s her chance to give someone a lift --physically and mentally.
For the past 10 years, Dorsey has been part of the Coastal Carolina University community. She was offered the job right on the spot.
“I started out here working night shifts,” says Dorsey. “But the day shift I have now lets me experience my favorite part of the job.”
And for her, it’s the students.
“Most people think the officers on campus are out here to write tickets or harass people,” she says. “That’s where they’re wrong. We are here to help them with any sort of problem.”
Dorsey has been known to escort students to class to help them avoid illegally parking in faculty and staff lots. She is almost always smiling and saying hello when she’s manning the crosswalk.
Dorsey is responsible for unlocking all the buildings first thing in the morning. She says that every day is different — “you just have to feel it out,” she says.
Friend and CCU administrative assistant Kelita Colburn knew that it was time for Dorsey to be recognized.
“She has the biggest heart,” says Colburn. “She goes the extra mile and her demeanor never changes.” Colburn and Dorsey worked together at CCU in the past. Before Colburn became an administrative assistant in the biology department, she worked in dispatch with Dorsey.
But Colburn isn’t the only one who sees the light in Dorsey.
“We call her the ultimate CCU employee,” says Chief of Police David Roper “She always has the students’ best interests in mind. She also tries to give students good advice about how to succeed in life and the pitfalls they will encounter if they indulge in certain types of behavior.”
Originally from Florence County, Dorsey escapes to her safe haven when she has the chance.
“I love to fish,” she confesses. “At work, I talk all day long, so when I go fishing, I can meditate and just sit there and hear the Lord. My goal is to go on a fishing cruise on the ocean.”
Dorsey lives in Conway with her mother, but the majority of her family is back in Florence. She commutes back home for church on Sundays.
“My thing is, you treat people how you want to be treated,” she says. “When people ask me, ‘Why are you so happy, Andrea?’ I tell them, ‘I’m happy every day.’”
