Texas State Technical College has implemented a hybrid learning format as part of the many safety regulations being followed during the ongoing pandemic.

However, even with more sessions being taught online, programs like Culinary Arts are still managing to give students the hands-on learning that TSTC has become known for.

“Every week students meet their hands-on training,” said Culinary Arts instructor Ayla Cabarubio. “While completing an on-campus lab, students are provided with their own designated workspace, which allows for social distancing standards to be met.”

Lead Culinary Arts instructor Emma Creps mentioned a positive aspect of the new way of learning.

“The class sizes are smaller in order to maintain social distancing, and the good thing about that is that students get more time from the instructor, whereas before the instructor had to split their time with a larger group.”

Safety has been important at TSTC throughout the coronavirus outbreak, and the safety standards do not stop once students leave the room.

“After labs are completed and the students have exited the building, the lab space is cleaned and sanitized by the instructor,” said Cabarubio. “Maintaining a clean and safe lab environment is our top priority.”

Although Culinary Arts students are required to participate in labs on campus, a large amount of their coursework is done remotely.

“All the coursework for the program is now uploaded to Moodle,” Cabarubio said. “This allows flexibility with the lecture aspect of the course, allowing students to complete those assessments remotely.”

Virtual labs are also being implemented in the program, with the instructor on campus and the students in their own kitchens.

“The instructor conducts the class through Google Meet,” Creps said. “Students are provided the ingredients for their labs. Pickups are done once a week, and ingredients they get are based on the class they are in. Students follow along virtually as the instructor demonstrates how to make a product, such as bread rolls, croissants, filleting a fish, and even the different ways to cook fish.”

Students are adapting well to the new way of learning.

“Students seem to be adjusting to the new learning environment,” Cabarubio said. “After the first week, they got a feel for the course structure, and they began making it part of their routine.”

To learn more about TSTC’s Culinary Arts program, visit https://www.tstc.edu/programs/CulinaryArts.

Photo caption: Culinary Arts instructors prepping for their virtual lab. (Photo courtesy of TSTC.)

(HARLINGEN, Texas) – Trials and tribulations come in many shapes and sizes. For recent Texas State Technical College graduate Gracie Arias, those trials and tribulations came when she was about to begin her second semester on the path to an Associate of Applied Science degree in Nursing.

That was when her doctor said, “The tumor is malignant.”

Now healthy and with her degree under her belt, Arias is ready to become a positive light for others in a field that helped save her life.

“I initially pursued nursing about 22 years ago,” she said. “At the time, I was married, and I had children. My husband and I also own a gym. So I put a pause on my nursing journey, and I directed my path toward raising my children and continuing with our business.”

Advice from her children, who have all received their college degrees, is what motivated her to reignite the flame for nursing that she had two decades ago.

“My children have already graduated,” she said. “Once they finished, they told me, ‘Mom, now it’s your turn.’”

Despite Arias’ excitement to begin her path to nursing, an extremely unexpected bump in the road tried to stop her.

“It stuns you when the medical personnel tell you that the tumor you have is malignant,” she said. “I asked if the surgery to remove the tumor could possibly wait until I was done with school because I was just going into my second semester of nursing. My doctor explained to me that this type of cancer grows very rapidly, and he wanted to operate immediately.”

Arias was determined to complete her degree and refused to let her diagnosis and treatment impact her time in the Nursing program.

“The surgery was successful,” she said. “I went through six chemotherapy sessions after my surgery. The chemo would knock me down for about two or three days at a time. But come that Monday when it was time for class, I was okay.”

Her resilience is something that her instructors saw for themselves.

“She is just awesome,” said program director Heather Sauceda. “She did not have any excuses for anything and gave it her all. She had a mentality of ‘let me do it’ and ‘I can do it.’ She was such a blessing to have in this program.”

Arias is also thankful for the comfort that her classmates provided, and for the support system she had at TSTC.

“All of our instructors are an amazing team,” she said. “The way that they want you to become the best nurse you can be shows that they genuinely care about their students. Our class was extremely close with one another.”

After graduating with a 4.0 GPA, Arias is ready to step into the health care field to help others in any way that she can.

“I truly believe that God was leading me because of the way everything played out,” she said. “I kept hearing a little voice telling me that everything was going to be okay. I know that I have been placed in this position to help people, and I fully believe that there is nothing we cannot conquer with faith, trust and perseverance.”

To learn more about TSTC’s Nursing program, visit https://www.tstc.edu/programs/Nursing.

(HARLINGEN, Texas) – Wanting to follow in her mother’s footsteps, Miranda Perez is ready to become a nurse. The compassion and caring that she witnessed her mother give to her patients inspired her to complete her certificate in Vocational Nursing at Texas State Technical College. Later, she hopes to obtain her Associate of Applied Science degree in Nursing.

The Brownsville native knows that TSTC will equip her well for her career.

 Why did you decide to pursue this field?

I decided to pursue vocational nursing because I have always wanted to be able to help people. Growing up and watching my mom spread joy and love to her patients while helping them feel better made me want to be a nurse just like her. I am excited to be able to help patients not only feel healthier, but also happier.

Can you speak about your experience with TSTC?

My experience with TSTC has been amazing! I loved the instructors in my program. They helped us in every way possible and made sure we all knew they were there to help us become safe and knowledgeable nurses. Each morning they would greet us and say, “Good morning, future nurses!” And it never failed to make my day.

How has TSTC helped prepare you for your career?

TSTC, along with our program director, Ms. Sauceda, made it possible for me to prepare for my career by placing our cohort in amazing clinical sites. The hands-on experience allowed us to participate in providing care to patients using the knowledge we had gained throughout the year.

What has been your greatest sense of accomplishment to date?

My biggest accomplishment has been completing my certificate in Vocational Nursing during a pandemic and being able to make my family proud.

What words of advice would you give to others who are about to start their journey at TSTC?

My advice is to pick a program you are going to love. It might be trying and demand a lot of your time and attention, but don’t give up! The instructors will help every way they can by making themselves accessible. TSTC offers so much that helps you throughout your program. It will all be worth it in the end!

To learn more about TSTC, visit tstc.edu.

(HARLINGEN, Texas) – Electrical Lineworker Technology is well underway at Texas State Technical College.

The program, which began in Harlingen this semester, has seen much success at other TSTC campus locations, including in Fort Bend County.

“Students in the program have an astonishing placement rate at nearly 100 percent,” said department chair Eric Carithers.

The first group of students to take on the program in Harlingen began their journeys to becoming electrical lineworkers last week.

“We are all doing a great job of adjusting so far,” said Harlingen instructor Angel Toledo. “The first week of classes went really well. I am improving ways in which I can make the classes run smoothly for my students, and I am having a great time.”

Although classes are being taught differently now than before the pandemic, Toledo said he is doing his best to make sure that his students are learning as much as possible.

“A hybrid format is being implemented for this program,” Toledo said. “The lecture portion of the courses is being taught virtually through a Google Meet link,” he said. “Our lab sessions are face to face, with all safety protocols implemented.”

Those safety protocols include maintaining social distancing, wearing facial coverings, and following directional signs while on TSTC campuses.

Lab sessions for the program involve students using TSTC’s 100-pole outdoor lab, which was installed earlier this year.

“Students first visited the pole yard last Tuesday,” Toledo said. “They have three different lab sessions a week. They’re doing a great job.”

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the electrical lineworker field is projected to grow exponentially through 2028 because of population growth across the state.

To learn more about Electrical Lineworker Technology at TSTC, visit https://www.tstc.edu/programs/ElectricalLineworkerTechnology.