(MARSHALL) – A Texas State Technical College alumnus is staying local with his new managed service provider business.

Joe Childress, 46, started Next View Technology Solutions last summer at his home in Marshall to provide technical work for businesses with less than 50 employees. His associate degree in Computer Networking and Systems Administration from TSTC helped give him the foundation to work confidently.

“The problem-solving techniques I learned – I use in my skills today,” Childress said. “The people skills I learned from the other classes have been beneficial.”

He wanted to locate his business in Harrison County because of the need to make employees more efficient and technically savvy.

“You are going to have more up-to-date hardware, and your employees are going to get more done and get a full-time information technology person on call 24 hours, seven days a week,” he said.

Childress has attended as many Greater Marshall Chamber of Commerce activities as he can to generate business interest.

“To accomplish our goals, we work in partnership with businesses, professional services, concerned citizens, and local city and county governments,” said Stormy Nickerson, the chamber’s executive director. “As a chamber, our mission is to provide quality service and leadership to our members and the community, build a healthier local economy and improve the quality of life.”

Childress graduated in 1989 from Marshall High School and worked at a machine shop and later at McDonald’s, where he went into management.

He came to a point where he needed to figure out his future. Childress determined what career field he wanted to pursue by making a list of three components of every business: accounting, technology and human resources.

Technology is what Childress ultimately chose when he graduated in 2001 from TSTC.  

“It’s always great to see a TSTC graduate work hard, continue to polish a skill set and find themselves in the position to become a small, and hopefully growing, business owner,” TSTC Provost Barton Day said. “What a great success story.”

TSTC in Marshall will have Registration Rally events on June 22, July 20 and Aug. 3 for prospective students interested in attending for the fall semester. For more information, go to tstc.edu/rally.

For more information on Texas State Technical College, go to tstc.edu.