Ask anyone to list the Bahamian institutions licensed by the Ministry of Education to grant associates and bachelors level degrees and see how many will mention Atlantic College.
Even with notable graduates and about a thousand Bahamians benefitting from Atlantic's education and training programs since its 1995 rebranding, the college continues on quietly and unrecognized by many - a situation its Dean of Academic Affairs wants to change.
The institution can trace its roots to 1939, and hundreds if not thousands of commuters heading to and from downtown pass by it every day.
It's located on Hay Street, just off East Street North in the heart of Nassau.
"This little light needs to shine, and shine brightly now," Dr. Diane Major said, the Dean of Academic Affairs.  "The country needs us."
She and the college's president, Rev. Dr. R. E. Cooper, spoke with Guardian Business from the adjacent Mission Baptist Church office. Their discussion moving seamlessly from education to compassion, from training to urban development, and from self-improvement to nation building.
The college, they said, plays a unique role in The Bahamas - creating access to a quality education and training from an institution that cares about the success of each of its students.  This goal is something Major said is summed up in the college's motto: "The college at the heart of the nation with the nation at it's heart."
"There's a difference here," Major said, mentioning that she has been part of other post-secondary institutes and can make that statement from first-hand experience.
"We have a call, a commission, a compassion, a spirit for the people of the nation.  We're not just a business, like many of the others might be.  This is a mission."
Major Atlantic College is the most affordable fully recognized associates programs available to Bahamians.  With its physical presence in the inner-city and the accessibility, it offers programs and opportunities to so many people from all walks of life. Cooper said the college opens its doors to everyone.
"People see us as that ray of hope when it comes to academics, affording them an opportunity to improve their qualitative skills in a setting that is convenient, accessible and provides that inspiration for learning - that also offers them an opportunity to study in a caring environment with hands on training/instruction, providing students with the opportunity to strategically feel a part of the learning process, where they are essentially given an opportunity to aspire for the best.   Not as a number, but as a person," the president said.
Atlantic's initial programs were geared toward Christian studies, offering bachelor's degrees in several related areas.   Since 1999, however, it has expanded to include programs in computer information technology, business administration, criminal justice, financial services, psychology and several other fields.
Associates degrees are available from the liberal arts college for popular business, computer and criminal justice tracks.  It also offers specialized certificate courses that can be tailored to the students' needs.
Major said that many women are upgrading their skill levels and employability by taking advantage of early-learning and classroom management training offered through the college, for example.
The business community is a beneficiary of Atlantic's training efforts as well.
Major said that Domino's Pizza recently sent 18 mid-level managers there for a customer-service training certificate program.
In a time of continued financial restraint as the national economy struggles to shake off the recent recession, Bahamian businesses may find Atlantic an affordable answer to some of their training needs - while the college itself has not been immune to tightened purses across the nation.  The college is reaching out to the business community for support during these times, according to Major, including a local PR firm, Di Philips & Associates, to help get its message out.
"To say we need sponsorships would be a small thing to say, because in a big way, we do.  We need help - what school, what mission doesn't need help?" Major said.  "We need support so we have begun to reach out."
In the past, response from corporate Bahamas has been minimal. Major added that the college has had "just a little".
Cooper mentioned several prominent Bahamians who have come through Atlantic's programs, listing Sherwin Hall, deputy permanent secretary at parliamentary registration department, John Rolle, the retired deputy commissioner of police and Errol Farquharson, a senior police officer.

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