(RED OAK Texas) – Texas State Technical College’s North Texas campus celebrated its first graduates from the MEI (Mechanical, Electrical and Information) Technology Data Center Pathway program on Monday, Nov. 17.
Eleven graduates received their certificates of completion from Compass Datacenters, a data center management company that partnered with TSTC to create the 12-week training program. The company is also constructing a data center in Red Oak.
“To go through an accelerated training program at an accelerated pace is very cool and I commend you for reaching this point,” Marcus Balch, provost for TSTC’s North Texas campus, told the graduates.
Compass Datacenters invited several of the company’s industry partners to attend the event in order to network with the program’s graduates. Schneider Electric, an energy management and automation company, was one of those represented at the event.
Elisabeth Kwe, the HR manager for Schneider Electric’s Red Oak location, said the company has been following the program since it began due to their partnership with Compass Datacenters.
“We definitely need more of these types of programs,” she said. “I believe programs like these really give the tools and the skills that the students need to come to the workplace equipped to be able to perform and add value to the team.”
Jennifer Elam, of Henderson, said she joined the program to introduce electrical and mechanical skills to her already existing knowledge in information technology. She said she plans to enroll in either TSTC’s Electrical Power and Controls program or its HVAC program and find a job at a data center where she can work while attending school.
“The challenge of learning the new stuff, I loved that challenge,” Elam said. “To me, it was like a puzzle, and I love figuring out problems. The most rewarding part was seeing that I could actually learn these new things and do it.”
Daniel Ivory, of Ovila, switched from studying psychology to TSTC’s data center pathway program. He said the program and the people involved provided a good learning environment for him and is interested in pursuing further hands-on learning.
“It feels nice to be able to put my hands on a certificate and say ‘I did that,’” Ivory said.
The program’s next registration night will be held on Thursday, Dec. 4 and classes will begin on Feb. 9, 2026. For more information on the MEI Technology Data Center Pathway program, go to tstc.edu/datacenters.
For more information on TSTC, go to tstc.edu.