Student Success: Susan White

Susan White of Plano has held many jobs over her career span, including office work and real estate agent. For her, becoming an Instrument Technician was a true and utter career change.

“It is an extremely important job,” Susan explains. “Instrument Technicians have to ensure safety by following standards and practices.”

Instrument Technicians are the first line of defense against infection in hospitals and operating rooms. They wash and sterilize instruments, decontaminate the surgery rooms, and set up trays of instruments for surgical procedures. Many Instrument Technicians become Surgical Technologists, who actually assist the doctors and nurses inside the operating rooms.

Susan credits Sylvia Bratton, instructor for the Instrument Technician program at Lifelong Learning, for her success in becoming a medical professional, as she has been offered a position at Denton Presbyterian Hospital. While participating in the externship requirement for the Instrument Technician program, Susan says she did not feel anxious. Instead, she felt prepared and confident, and that was due to Sylvia’s training and guidance. “Sylvia made the course a blast,” Susan states. “She gave real life scenarios, her years of expertise were very valuable, and it was Sylvia who made the course worth it.”

North Central Texas College offers the Instrument Technician Program and also the Surgical Technology Program.

Student Success: Alexandra Thornton

The MATRIX Grant, sponsored by the Department of Labor, has assisted over 1,000 students at NCTC. One of them is Alexandra, who is using the grant to fund the first steps towards her ultimate goal to become a nurse!

Alexandra Thornton, 21, lives in Denton County and received the MATRIX Grant in the Spring and Fall of 2011—she first became a  Certified Nurse Aide, then she completed the Phlebotomy Technician Program. Alexandra now works at Good Samaritan Rehabilitation Center in Denton, where she takes care of patients and also gathers specimens to help monitor their health.

She says, “The MATRIX Grant was very helpful. What with planning a wedding and having to pay for school, I couldn’t afford it all, and I didn’t want to get swallowed up in student loans. It was easy to apply for the grant, and the staff helped me along the way. I highly recommend NCTC’s healthcare programs and the MATRIX grant!”

Alexandra’s career pathway plans include entering NCTC’s nursing program. Her ultimate goal is to become a neonatal nurse, and with her winning attitude, there’s no doubt she’ll accomplish that in no time!

Congratulations, Graduates!

NCTC Lifelong Learning has two programs available to help people attain their GED. We offer a scholarship program through the Texas Education Agency, which serves adults ages 18 to 25 who last attended a Texas high school. This program pays for preperation, exam fees, THEA preperation, and workforce training in one of our non-credit career programs. The other GED preperation program serves adults beyond 25 and includes intense exam practice.

Grads with their families

Every year, we honor those who have completed their GED with a recognition ceremony. The efforts of working towards, and then successfully passing, the GED examinations is truly a big deal. And while many of the GED completers missed the High School graduation milestone, we give them a chance to experience that moment during our ceremony.

The GED Prep team at NCTC consists of Djuna Forrester, Dean of Lifelong Learning; Lori Dunn, GED Academy Coordinator; Salli Page and Jessica Carlisle, Essential Skills Advisors; and many fabulous instructors (names forthcoming). Together, these hardworking professionals are making a real difference in people’s lives. A big thanks to them, and a huge CONGRATS to the graduates!

Student Success: Rodney Fuller

Rodney inspects welds at Forum Technologies

Rodney Fuller completed the Welding program at North Central
Texas College in May of 2010, and received his first job as a welder at Titan, which became ForumEnergy Technologies at the beginning of 2011. He has since graduated from a part time assembly welder to a full time tank welder, then welded custom-made
skids (platforms for tanks and other equipment) before being promoted to
quality control.

Mr. Fuller credits his career success to the professionals
at Lifelong Learning. “Learning blueprint reading and occupational math were
the exact skills I needed to build the customized skids,” he says, “and the
instructors, Kenny Smith and Dennis “Hoot” Beane, did not give up on me.” Mr.
Fuller continues, “Obtaining training was my last chance. I was unemployed
without many prospects, as I have a prison record. But Djuna Forrester, the
Dean of Lifelong Learning, and Cheryl Davis from Workforce Texoma were able to
get me started in the course.” He gives back to the college, too. During the spring
semester of 2011, Mr. Fuller returned to campus to act as a judge in the semi-annual
student Weld-Off competition. He inspected the welds and helped declare the
winner.

A lifelong Gainesville resident, Mr. Fuller is a true inspiration for all students at North Central Texas College. He explains that, “North Central Texas College changed my life. It had a really positive effect on me, because everyone believed in me, from the teachers to the administration. The instructors made the Welding program challenging but rewarding. And I love to be challenged. I think every kid should be challenged,
so that they stay focused in life. The Welding program at the college gave me
back the focus that I had lost. I now have a very good job, and together with my
wife, who is a North Central Texas College nursing school graduate, I have bought
a good house here in Gainesville to raise my family. This wouldn’t have been
possible without North Central Texas College.”

Student Profile: Steven Day

Mr. Day stands next to a large unit that his class uses to gain hands-on technical skills.

Students who pursue occupational training at Lifelong Learning tend to be self-starters. They are motivated by a drive to succeed, and often attend classes as a prelude to start their own businesses. Steven Day of Gainesville is one such individual.

Mr. Day completed the HVAC Technician I course and is now enrolled in the HVAC II- Contractor program. Currently, he enjoys working for a bank as the facility manager, but
he’d eventually like to partner with his wife to open an air conditioning
contractor business. “There are a lot of opportunities in North Texas for HVAC
Techs,” he said, “especially for honest people. Kenny Smith, the HVAC
instructor, stresses the need to be honest and ethical. Kenny also insists on
teaching us by doing, not just by lecture.” Mr. Day and his wife are very
involved in their community. They donated A/C units to Lifelong Learning to be
refurbished, and then distributed to homes that need them.

Mr. Day proves once again that the programs at Lifelong Learning can help achieve dreams and goals. We are very proud of Mr. Day and all of our students!

The Importance of a GED

Along with receiving a driver’s license, graduating high school is one of the major rites of passage into adulthood for American youth. Not everyone is able to complete twelve years of compulsory schooling, however. Whether it is due to family or economic situations, new mandates on testing and academic requirements (which seem to change EVERY semester), or immigration experiences, many people just are simply unable to receive the high school diploma.

Fortunately, students can take the tests for the General Equivalency Diploma – a certificate that is the equal to high school completion. With the GED, students can enter any public, state funded college and are eligible for student aid. Employers, too,  accept the GED as readily as any high school diploma.

The GED consists of five exams: writing, reading, math, science, and social studies. Except for the writing portion, the exams are multiple choice. Applicants can take the tests all at once or take a few at a time. The tests, which are regulated by the Texas Education Agency, cost $85 each. The Gainesville Campus of NCTC offers the GED tests at least four times per year.

If you’d like to take the GED but feel that you need more preparation, NCTC Lifelong Learning can help. We offer FREE benchmark testing (which gauges where you might need assistance); a GED scholarship for 18-25 year old students who dropped out of a Texas school; GED Fast Track courses for $85 per topic; and a comprehensive GED course for $259 that explains test taking strategies, lessens test anxieties, and tutors students in all five topics.

Obtaining a GED is THE most important step towards a solid future. Let us help you get there! Call us at 940-668-4272 (Gainesville) or 940-498-6270 (Corinth) to ask about the GED preparation options our division has available.