TSTC Awarded 2016 Military Friendly Schools® Designation

(WEST TEXAS) – Texas State Technical College announced today that it has been designated a 2016 Military Friendly® School. Now in its seventh year, the Military Friendly® Schools designation and list by Victory Media is the premier, trusted resource for post-military success. Military Friendly® provides service members transparent, data-driven ratings about post-military education and career opportunities.

The Military Friendly® Schools designation is awarded to the top 15 percent of colleges, universities and trade schools in the country that are doing the most to embrace military students, and to dedicate resources to ensure their success in the classroom and after graduation. The methodology used for making the Military Friendly® Schools list has changed the student veteran landscape to one much more transparent, and has played a significant role over the past six years in capturing and advancing best practices to support military students across the country.

The survey captures over 50 leading practices in supporting military students and is available free of charge to the more than 8,000 schools approved for Post-9/11 GI Bill funding.

TSTC will be showcased along with other 2016 Military Friendly® Schools in the annual Guide to Military Friendly® Schools, special education issues of G.I. Jobs® and Military Spouse Magazine, and on MilitaryFriendly.com.

Texas State Technical College Instructors Helping Student-Veterans

Daniel Nixon, left, and and Nathan Cleveland, right, Computer Aided Manufacturing instructors at Texas State Technical College in Marshall, show one of the jalapeno popper grills they made to help student-veterans.

(MARSHALL) – Two Computer Aided Manufacturing instructors at Texas State Technical College in Marshall made jalapeno popper grills to help student-veterans raise money to attend a conference next year.

The handiwork of machining instructors Daniel Nixon and Nathan Cleveland was recently on display at Marshall’s FireAnt Festival. The grills are shaped like the state of Texas and can be used to stuff peppers with cheese and wrap with bacon and cook on a grill or in the oven, Nixon said.

“It was just the right thing to do since these men and women have sacrificed a lot for our country and anything we can do to support them is just what we want to do,” Nixon said.

Stesha Colby, TSTC’s Veterans Program Office at the Marshall and North Texas campuses, was familiar with Nixon and Cleveland’s work.

“They had made some grills before I was an employee here,” Colby said. “Folks liked them and they had them in the bookstore. When we were doing a fundraiser brainstorming session, a co-worker suggested asking them. I approached them to help out and they said yes.”

Nixon said he and Cleveland can weld 30 grills in four hours.

People who want to learn more about the jalapeno grills can contact Colby at stesha.colby@tstc.edu.

The Student Veterans Association in Marshall and the Student Veterans Alliance at the North Texas campus began raising money this summer to send as many members as possible to the Student Veterans of America’s 8th annual National Conference from Jan. 7-10 in Orlando, Fla.

“I attended the conference as a student when I was in college,” Colby said. “I liked the networking, the breakout sessions for various groups such as female veterans, veterans at two-year colleges, four-year colleges, private colleges, STEM colleges.”

Texas State Technical College in Marshall Hosts Industry Career Day

More than 20 businesses and companies from Texas and Louisiana gathered recently at Industry Career Day at Texas State Technical College in Marshall

(MARSHALL) – More than 20 businesses and companies throughout Texas and western Louisiana were represented at the Fall 2015 Industry Career Day at Texas State Technical College in Marshall.

The event’s purpose was to connect students and graduates with employers that have immediate hiring needs,” said Benjamin “Benji” Cantu, Director of Industry Relations and Talent Management in Marshall.

Some of the businesses and companies that participated included Trinity Industries in Dallas, EasTex Tower in Longview and Woodlawn Manufacturing in Marshall.

Representatives of International Paper in Mansfield, La. visits several area career days throughout the year.

“We find great recruits on every visit to TSTC,” said Michael W. Stewart, the company’s Area Maintenance Manager – Balance of Plant. “This visit provided nine very good potential employees, two of which will graduate in December and we plan to hire them in January. With the lack of local apprenticeship programs in 2015, these events are the perfect avenue for recruiting team members ready for the workforce.”

The Marshall campus will have its next Industry Career Day on March 24. And, Industry Career Day is planned for March 31 at TSTC in Waco and April 7 at TSTC in Harlingen.

Campuses in Abilene, Breckenridge, Brownwood and Sweetwater have several Employer Spotlights each semester when area businesses speak with directly with classes.

TSTC Graduate Motivates Students to Pursue Tech Industry

Raymond Jordan of McKinney is a customer support engineer at Cisco in Richardson and a graduate of Texas State Technical College in Waco.

(WACO) – Raymond Jordan has the world at his fingertips as he stares at his computer monitors at Cisco Systems Inc. in Richardson. Support calls from individual customers and companies transcend time zones and he is the man with answers.

Jordan, 41, is a customer support engineer on Cisco’s Server Virtualization Team in the company’s Technical Assistance Center dealing with the company’s Unified Computing System Platform.

Jordan, of McKinney, recently spoke to computer science students at Texas State Technical College in Waco about his work at Cisco and how students can prepare for internships and jobs. He said it is typical for interviews in the technology field to be conducted in front of a small panel. Panelists ask a question, which can then lead to follow-up questions.

“Most people are looking for a basic method of problem solving,” Jordan said.

Jordan was living in Hewitt when he graduated in summer 2013 from TSTC with an associate degree in Computer Networking and Systems Administration.

“I knew I was going to get a good education when I enrolled,” he said. “I knew TSTC had a good reputation in the computer networking field and in other fields. I was impressed that the computer networking classes have equipment that you can work on, installing cables on equipment and getting your hands on. Sometimes, I have to do something like that and think back on the hands-on work I did at TSTC. This kind of experience helps when you are going through job interviews.”

Jordan’s TSTC degree complimented another career interest he had throughout his life: Journalism. Jordan received a bachelor’s degree in Journalism in 2008 from The University of Texas at Arlington. He worked at a newspaper in Cameron but left after a year and a half.

“I was looking to stay in journalism for a while,” Jordan said. “I was working at Sprint at their retention department in Temple. I was commuting every day. I had always liked technology and working with computers and knew TSTC had a great program.”

TSTC instructors encourage students to pursue as many certifications as possible primarily because testing prices are lower for those in school.

“What we do is teach the fundamentals,” said John Washington, an associate professor in the Computer Networking and Systems Administration Technology at TSTC in Waco. “At the library we have books the students can use to prepare for the tests.”

TSTC in Waco is a member of the Cisco Networking Academy, an international career-building skills program created in 1987 to provide a pathway for people to enter the IT field.

The Computer Networking and Systems Administration program offers the Cisco Certified Network Associate Routing and Switching four-course curriculum that students can take to become Cisco Certified Entry Networking Technician certified or CCNA certified.

A group of TSTC Computer Networking and Systems Administration students and instructors will travel Nov. 2 to San Antonio for Cisco Academy Day at Rackspace, a worldwide cloud management company specializing in website hosting, data services and cybersecurity.

TSTC in Harlingen to Hold 25th Annual Oktoberfest

WHO: TSTC in Harlingen

WHEN: 6 to 9 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 28

WHERE: TSTC in Harlingen Athletic Field, 1902 N. Loop 499, Harlingen

WHAT: TSTC will hold its 25th Annual Oktoberfest. The event will feature more than 20 student organizations selling delicious food, more than 10 TSTC program booths, eight carnival rides, hayrides, a petting zoo, pony rides, a visit from ninja turtles, a haunted house, costume contests and more. All activities are free, except the food vendor booths.

Georgetown Company Filling Technician Needs Through TSTC

TASUS Corp. employees (left to right) Dean Bernhard of Leander, Anthony Bunch of Jarrell and Leo Trigo of Hutto are studying industrial maintenance at Texas State Technical College’s East Williamson County Higher Education Center in Hutto.

(HUTTO) – The 15-minute drive from Texas State Technical College’s East Williamson County Higher Education Center in Hutto to TASUS Corp. in Georgetown is a path for employees to meet their educational and work training goals.

Eight employees at TASUS are currently attending TSTC and studying industrial maintenance. And, company leaders consider the college a pipeline to provide a need for maintenance technicians and workers to acquire the skills needed to receive increased work responsibilities.

Tracy Jackson, human resources manager for TASUS in Georgetown, said the company and college have a good relationship and hope it grows in the future.

“TSTC is helping to provide the educational knowledge for TASUS employees and has been a strong educational partner in our community,” Jackson said.

TASUS has more than 150 employees working three shifts in automotive injection molding, blow molding and extrusion molding. Some of the items that are shipped worldwide include vehicle visors, consoles and brackets. The company has been in Georgetown for a decade and is owned by Tsuchiya Co. Ltd. based in Nagoya, Japan.

Anthony Bunch, 29, of Jarrell is one of several TASUS employees who take advantage of the company paying a portion of college tuition to those studying in fields related to their work.

Bunch, a production operator, began attending TSTC a year and a half ago and discovered that he liked the hands-on course work.

“It always makes one a little nervous to see who you will meet and how it will all work out on the first day of class,” Bunch said.

Bunch has a goal of getting an associate degree at TSTC once he finishes the Industrial Maintenance Mechanic certificate.

“I wanted to go to TSTC to better myself and learn more,” Bunch said. “I have a 4.0 grade point average. The people at TSTC are great. I like how the teachers work with each individual student.”

Dean Bernhard, 48, of Leander has also kept up a 4.0 grade point average working on a certificate in Industrial Maintenance Mechanic. He is taking Motor Control and Industrial Power Plants during the fall semester.

“They have a really good program,” Bernhard said. “Almost everything is hands-on. You gain more doing it and it helps bring the formulas from the book and shows you what they are for. If you can’t do the work, the homework won’t do you any good.”

Bernhard has been a preventive maintenance administrator for more than two years at TASUS. His work includes opening and closing work tickets and reviewing orders for parts.

“Sometimes there is a sharp learning curve,” Bernhard said. “I watch and I ask a lot of questions.”

Leo Trigo, 48, of Hutto is a maintenance technician who has worked at TASUS for eight years and is taking night classes at TSTC in Williamson County to work on an associate degree in Industrial Maintenance – Mechanical Specialization. Trigo already has an Industrial Maintenance Mechanic certificate from TSTC.

Trigo graduated in 1985 from Hutto High School and was inspired by his children and observing a TSTC industrial maintenance class to consider returning to the classroom.

“With my age, about half the material was new to me,” Trigo said. “I had worked in manufacturing for 22 years before I started school, so I had seen a lot of the stuff we were working on in class. The Programmable Logic Controllers I class was new to me.”

TSTC offers associate degrees and certificates in Industrial Maintenance with concentrations in electrical and mechanical at campuses in Marshall, North Texas, Waco and Williamson County.

TSTC to Host Women in Technology Day Oct. 22

(WACO) – Texas State Technical College is hosting a Women in Technology Day from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 22 in the Student Recreation Center, to celebrate and educate women interested in non-traditional fields.

Around 250 female students from area high schools and TSTC will attend the day-long event. The morning will feature events aimed towards high school students, like a Q&A panel of current TSTC students, and tours of programs at TSTC.

After the tours, guests will be provided lunch from noon to 12:45 p.m., with a Q&A panel of professional women in non-traditional fields beginning after lunch.

At 1:30 p.m., TSTC Provost Rob Wolaver will present a scholarship to a prospective TSTC student. After the scholarship presentation, high school students will board buses to leave and TSTC students will break out into professional development sessions. At 3:30 p.m., Wolaver will present a scholarship to a current student.

A schedule of the day follows this email. For more information on the event, contact Debra Gonzalez at 254-867-4812.

Students Taking New Automotive Aluminum Welding Course

Texas State Technical College students (l to r) Kaitlyn Mackey and Roy Rodriguez work in the lab portion of the Advanced Collision Repair Welding course.

(WACO) – Kaitlyn Mackey, 17, said she has come a long way from being intimidated when she began welding several months ago. Now, she is confident she can find her focused zone to work.

“My favorite part is when I take off my helmet and look at the welding and it looks good,” said the dual enrollment Connally Early College High School senior and Texas State Technical College student.

Some students at TSTC are getting their first chance to work with automotive aluminum welding to make themselves more marketable in the workforce. The vehicle industry saw the unveiling this year of the Ford F-150, the first mainstream high-volume vehicle with an aluminum body.

“Steel vehicles have to be made lighter and stronger by thinning the metal, which is done by using advanced steels to maintain integrity,” said Ranson Bandy, an instructor in Auto Collision and Management Technology in Waco. “Using aluminum means vehicles can be made lighter with increased thickness and strength in the body.”

Bandy is teaching four students during fall semester in the Advanced Collision Repair Welding course. The class was developed because of the need for technicians to have knowledge and experience with new vehicle constructions due to the federal government’s mandate for higher miles per gallon. And, aluminum is almost 60 percent lighter than steel of the same thickness.

The learning material was developed from the Inter-Industry Conference on Auto Collision Repair, a not-for-profit organization advocating research, training and work in the collision field and from Original Equipment Manufacturer recommendations and service procedures. Students are learning about aluminum pulse spray arc welding, rivet bonding and silicon bronze welding which are all advanced forms of fastening these vehicles together.

“It’s pretty fun so far,” said Jordan Eppler, 21, of Valley Mills and second-year major in Auto Body Refinishing and Auto Collision Repair. “I do not know much about the aluminum body. I know it’s going to get complicated later on, but I like challenges.”

Roy Rodriguez, 23, of Clifton graduated from TSTC in 2014 with an associate degree in Automotive Technology and returned to learn about auto collision and painting. He wants to eventually work at a collision shop.

“I feel like today’s cars are getting so much better,” Rodriguez said. “So far the class is good. I have seen a big difference in welding with steel and aluminum. Whenever steel gets hot it glows, but aluminum doesn’t glow. That’s a tricky thing right there.”

Joe Keggler, 39, of Nacogdoches and Waco, is working on an associate degree in Auto Collision and Management Technology – Refinishing Specialization.

“A lot of the cars are becoming aluminum and I wanted to get the basics down before I go into the workforce,” Keggler said.

The class will culminate with an end-of-semester project. Students have three days to do a rail sectioning procedure which will include several forms of fastening techniques learned throughout the semester. Students must pay close attention to detail in the welding, quality and durability of the repair, Bandy said.

The class will also be offered in the spring, Bandy said.
Students can study Auto Collision and Management Technology at TSTC’s campuses in Waco and Harlingen.

TSTC Students Prepare for Pop-Up Restaurant Opening

Texas State Technical College Culinary Arts students will open their temporary restaurant beginning Tuesday, Nov. 3 at T&P Depot on North 1st Street in Abilene.

(ABILENE) – Dusty Barnett, a first-year culinary arts student at Texas State Technical College in Abilene, is eager to be in the middle of the quick pace of a restaurant atmosphere for the first time later this fall.

“I love to cook, so I decided to get that degree in something I enjoy doing,” said Barnett, 34, of Abilene and a Class of 2000 graduate of Paint Creek High School in Paint Creek. “I enjoy the cooking and how the food tastes to other people and knowing that I had a part in creating that food.”

Barnett and other TSTC culinary arts students are preparing for the opening of a temporary student-run restaurant at T&P Depot at 901 N. 1st St. in Abilene.

People interested in visiting can make a reservation beginning Thursday, Oct. 1. by calling 325-670-9240 or online at tstc.edu/about/culinarydiningabilene. The restaurant will be open from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Tuesdays to Thursdays on Nov. 3-5, 10-12, 17-19 and Dec. 1-3 and 8-9.
Students have several options to study culinary arts at TSTC’s campuses.

Students in West Texas can pursue an associate degree in Professional Cooking or a certificate in Food Service Technology in Abilene.

TSTC also offers culinary arts at the Waco, Harlingen and Williamson County campuses.

TSTC Alumna Keeps Hospitals Efficient with Maintained Equipment

Texas State Technical College graduate Deborah Thomas works with five hospitals in Texas and Louisiana to keep medical equipment functioning.

(WACO) – Deborah Thomas knew she wanted a career change.

Thomas, 45, of Houston, had been in law enforcement for 15 years in Central Texas and was working at the Texas Department of Public Safety in 2004 when relatives encouraged her to look into the health care field.

“Initially I wanted to do something that would not require me to go back to a four-year college,” Thomas said.

She looked online at Texas State Technical College and found a subject that she was curious about: Biomedical Equipment Technology.

“Just the thought of working on equipment sounded interesting and something that I had not done before,” Thomas said.

Thomas graduated from TSTC in Waco in 2006 with an associate degree in Biomedical Equipment Technology.

“I would encourage women in the program to stay the course because women are very much needed in this field,” she said. “There are women’s facilities, women’s surgery centers and specific kinds of women’s services that a woman feels comfortable with another woman walking into the room.”

The degree eventually led her to her present position as an area manager for Santa Ana, Calif-based Renovo Solutions, a nationwide company contracting with health care systems to manage medical equipment. Thomas manages accounts for five hospitals in Houston, Paris, Port Arthur, San Antonio and Monroe, La.

“One of the things I loved when I was a technician was having that one-on-one with patients, hospital staff and families and to be able to provide that kind of help,” Thomas said. “I love to be able to go into a room and help everybody. Now, I am helping the hospitals save money and run more efficiently.”

Thomas said she has seen a trend of robotics growing more in the medical field, particularly in surgeries, radiology and oncology. She said as new equipment is developed she has continually studied to meet the needs of her account holders.

Thomas was born in Corsicana and moved to Hewitt with her family when she was in elementary school. She graduated in 1989 from Midway High School in Waco. She began work as a dispatcher with the Robinson Police Department after graduation.

She said when she began at TSTC she had an easy rapport with her instructors because they were closer to her age. She cited Garrett Seeley, assistant department chair in Biomedical Equipment Technology, as one of her mentors.

Seeley said tenacity and dedication set Thomas apart from other students.

“There was a lot riding on her success,” Seeley said. “She wanted to make a change for her children.”

Thomas did an internship at Baylor Scott & White Hillcrest Medical Center in Waco.

“The internship is one of the most important things to go through,” she said. “Work on as much equipment as possible. I have hired numerous interns from TSTC. You can train them yourself. The equipment they work on in school is similar to what they will see when they come out.”

According to the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Outlook Handbook, there were more than 42,000 biomedical equipment repair jobs nationwide as of 2012. The number is expected to grow by 30 percent up to 2022. The median pay was $44,570 nationally for biomedical equipment technology graduates in 2012, the most recent figures available from the labor department.

Students interested in studying Biomedical Equipment Technology can pursue associate degrees at TSTC campuses in Harlingen, Marshall and Waco. Students can also earn an Enhanced Skills Certificate in Medical Imaging Specialization in Waco.