Safety top priority at TSTC this fall

(ABILENE, Texas) – Safety will be the top priority at Texas State Technical College when the fall semester begins Aug. 31.

The four West Texas campuses, located in Abilene, Breckenridge, Brownwood and Sweetwater, will have a different look this year. Students who need to complete labs will be allowed on campus, but all other instruction will be delivered online.

“Our primary goal is the safety of our students, faculty and staff in this era of COVID-19,” said Lance Eastman, West Texas’ interim provost. “We have put in several safety measures to ensure that safety.”

Everyone must wear a facial covering while on campus, and social distancing guidelines will be enforced, Eastman said.

“I know it is hard sometimes to maintain social distance. But for the safety of everyone, we are going to practice it,” he said. “We not only want the students, faculty and staff to protect themselves, but everyone around them.”

Buildings will be marked with directional signage to show entrances and exits. Hand-sanitizing stations will also be available in each building.

Since March, TSTC has provided online lectures for students, and Eastman said it will continue in the fall. In May, students were allowed to return to campus to complete lab sessions.

Eastman said continuing to provide hands-on lab sessions is important to the college’s mission of placing people in the workforce.

“We will still do a lot of the hands-on lab sessions because it is important the students get that training,” he said.

Daniel Martin, TSTC’s director of student recruiting in West Texas, said students are excited about the new way of learning.

“The students are pleased with how the courses are being constructed. The online lectures, coupled with lab time, are perfect for them,” he said. “This is a better use of a student’s time. It is not a classroom-heavy situation for them.”

Martin said prospective students will also be able to tour campuses, but with limitations. Tours must be reserved and will be limited to three guests per tour.

“We are excited to get people back on our campuses to show students what we offer,” he said. “We had some tours during the summer, and everyone followed all of the protocols we had in place.”

In Sweetwater, safety is also the top priority for housing director Jose Navarrette. Since it is the only West Texas campus with student housing, additional safety measures are in place.

Navarrette said each student will have a private bedroom but share a bathroom. He said students will learn the proper way to sanitize the area to help prevent the spread of contagions.

“We will have room checks to make sure all the rules are being followed,” he said. “We had some students living on campus this summer, and everyone followed all the rules.”

Navarrette said students were assigned days to move in prior to Aug. 31. He said that was done to help limit the amount of people on campus.

“Safety is the key for us. We want students to know that we have things in place for their safety and the safety of everyone on campus,” he said.

Rick Nelson, supervisor of TSTC food services in Sweetwater, said meals will continue to be sold only to go. Students will enter the Student Center’s main entrance and leave through the cafeteria’s glass-door exit.

TSTC will also provide three new programs in West Texas this fall.

In Breckenridge, an Associate of Applied Science degree in Occupational Safety Compliance Technology will be offered. Students will learn the hazards of machines, safe work methods, first aid, and cardiopulmonary resuscitation procedures during the five semesters.

Two Occupational Skills Award programs are scheduled this fall. Basic Welding – Multiple Processes will be available in Abilene, while Basic Automotive will be taught in Sweetwater. Both courses will be 15 weeks and are part of TSTC’s Rapid Industry Skills and Employability (RISE) program that helps students learn skills quickly in order to start a career.

“It is always good to provide new programs at TSTC,” Eastman said. “We want to provide our students with the tools to prepare them for the workforce. The OSA programs will allow us to quickly educate students to get them to work. That will help better our economy.”

To schedule a campus tour, contact Chris Johnson, TSTC’s lead recruiter for West Texas, at christopher.johnson@tstc.edu.

Registration for the fall semester is underway. For more information, go to tstc.edu.

TSTC Welding Technology offers Occupational Skills Award certification in Abilene

(ABILENE, Texas) – Many construction companies are looking for entry-level welders.

To help fill that need, Texas State Technical College will offer an Occupational Skills Award certification program in Welding Technology this fall at the college’s Industrial Technology Center in Abilene. 

Three basic welding courses will be offered over 15 weeks, said instructor Anthony Lewis.

“There is always a need for welders in every region of Texas. Between 80 and 90 percent of those jobs are for entry-level positions,” he said.

The Occupational Skills Award is part of TSTC’s Rapid Industry Skills and Employability (RISE) program that helps students learn skills quickly in order to start a career.

“When students complete this OSA program, they will have no trouble finding a job,” Lewis said. “The skills we will teach are what employers are looking for in a welder.”

Lewis will spend five weeks covering three different areas of welding.

The first five weeks will be the Introduction to Welding Using Multiple Processes class. Lewis said students will learn basic welding techniques using several different processes, including Oxy-fuel welding and cutting, gas metal arc welding and gas tungsten arc welding.

“The first five weeks, we will cover just the basics of welding to get the students ready for the next class,” Lewis said.

The second course will be Introduction to Shielded Metal Arc Welding. Lewis said emphasis will be placed on power sources, electrode selection and different joint designs.

The final five weeks will be Intermediate Welding Using Multiple Processes. Lewis said this is a more advanced class, but it will prepare students for a job. Students will receive instruction on using layout tools and blueprint reading that will include demonstrations.

Students will not spend the entire time in the classroom. Lewis said they will put what they learn into use during lab sessions.

“It will be fast and furious, but the students will get enough knowledge and information that it will not overwhelm them,” he said.

While in the classroom, students will hear firsthand about Lewis’ knowledge of welding and working on a job site.

“I have a lot of knowledge to give them. I have done a lot of work and will bring that experience into the classroom,” he said.

TSTC is offering several Occupational Skills Awards programs this fall. With unemployment increasing in Texas, TSTC is partnering with business and industry through the RISE program to get Texans back to work. The short-term, skills-focused courses provide students with the ability to gain basic technical skills to start an entry-level career.

“From there, through hard work and determination, students can enhance their skills and earn promotions,” Lewis said.

For more information on the Occupational Skills Awards courses, visit https://www.tstc.edu/programslist/rise.

Registration for the fall semester is underway. For more information, go to tstc.edu.

TSTC Computer Networking students to use virtual software program

(ABILENE, Texas) – A new program will allow Computer Networking and Systems Administration students at Texas State Technical College to work on equipment virtually.

TSTC will use the NetLab program for virtual lab sessions, instructor Adrian Medrano said.

“NetLab is very popular for remote training,” Medrano said. “The benefits are amazing.”

Students will use the program to work on a computer system online just like the real instruments. Medrano said students will operate instruments with knobs and buttons the same way they would an actual computer. Measurements will be displayed on the computer screen to help students during the lab session, he added.

“Having NetLab is huge. Companies like Cisco and Microsoft use this for training their employees,” Medrano said. “With the push to move everything online, we are looking forward to getting this content to our students.”

Medrano is no stranger to the program. He said TSTC instructors have used it for their own training sessions held throughout the state.

“I enjoy working with this program. It is easy to navigate,” he said. “I see nothing but smooth sailing for our students when they use NetLab.”

The program will allow Medrano and other instructors to achieve their goal of providing companies with a “well-rounded individual for an IT (information technology) department.”

“We are not going to focus on one certain area. By the time a student graduates, they will learn how to take apart and put back together a computer system,” Medrano said. “They will know how to put a computer on a company network, share files, and other aspects of computer networking.”

That knowledge is important in today’s business world, according to Medrano.

“Sharing information between computers in a business is the main aspect of the network,” he said.

Another area in which students will gain knowledge is security settings.

“We are going to teach students how to make a computer virus-free and to make sure no one hacks into the system,” Medrano said. “We are going to teach all of the security tactics they will need, as well as the difference between a virus, worm and Trojan software.”

Medrano said students will become knowledgeable about routers and switches.

“They will know the difference between a home router and routers used at small businesses,” he said. “Students are going to know exactly how the internet happens when they complete the program. They are going to know how they can send something from their home to around the world with just one click.”

Medrano said the online classes will benefit students.

“This will give students a lot of flexibility, and they can remain safe,” he said. “We are going to deliver our content via video, but it will still have a classroom feel.”

Medrano said instructors were recorded during classes last spring, and those videos will be used for classroom lessons during the upcoming school year.

“Students will be able to watch the video at their convenience and then practice what they learned with NetLab,” he said.

Registration for the fall semester is underway. For more information, go to tstc.edu.

TSTC Ready to Welcome Students Back This Fall in North Texas

(RED OAK, Texas) – Students attending Texas State Technical College’s North Texas campus will see differences in how they learn and interact as they start the fall semester on Monday, Aug. 31.

“I think the exciting part of the fall to me is we have new students coming to campus to begin their educational journey,” said Marcus Balch, provost of TSTC’s North Texas campus. “The new students, the returning students, the faculty and staff all get to participate in rebuilding the economy of Texas.”

Students will see ample signage promoting campus health and safety, as well as more hand-sanitizing stations. Students will need to wear face coverings at all times, and go in and out of designated entrances and exits at the Jim Pitts Industrial Technology Center. There will be more social distancing in labs. Students will not be allowed on the second floor.

One of the biggest changes is how classes will be taught, which began being modified in late March.

Programs that will be taught in an all-online format are Architectural Design and Engineering Graphics Technology, Computer Networking and Systems Administration, and Cybersecurity.

Programs that will be taught in a hybrid format are Diesel Equipment Technology, Electrical Power and Controls; Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning Technology; Industrial Systems – Electrical Specialization, Precision Machining Technology and Welding Technology. 

“The only time the students will be on campus is to complete the labs,” said Matthew Dobbs, an instructor in TSTC’s Diesel Equipment Technology program. “This will allow the students that work to either have all afternoon or morning to work, or several weekdays  to allow for more work time.”

Tutoring will be available virtually. Students will need to go to TSTC’s student portal and click on the tutoring icon to fill out a form requesting help. The tutoring staff will connect students virtually to statewide tutors in their subject areas.

One thing that is not changing is TSTC’s commitment to its students.

Career Services is going virtual with its employer spotlights, career preparation workshops and one-on-one meetings with students using Webex and Google Meet.

“Since virtual platforms are the latest and most effective way of communication to ensure social distancing, students are going to have to adapt and get comfortable with speaking in front of a webcam and being spoken to from a computer monitor or laptop,” said Adrian Castanon, a TSTC Career Services coordinator.”

Castanon will have on-campus office hours each Wednesday from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. starting Aug. 12. He will also be available virtually to work with students Monday through Friday.

Registration for the fall semester is underway.

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

TSTC Ready to Welcome Students Back This Fall in Williamson County

(HUTTO, Texas) – Students attending Texas State Technical College’s Williamson County campus will see differences in how they learn and interact as they start the fall semester on Monday, Aug. 31.

Students will see ample signage promoting campus health and safety, and social distancing will be practiced in labs. Students will also have designated entrances and exits at the East Williamson County Higher Education Center. Face coverings will be required on campus at all times. 

One of the biggest changes is how classes will be taught, which began being modified in late March.

The Cybersecurity program and the first-semester college preparation course will move online.

The Culinary Arts, Industrial Systems, Precision Machining Technology, Welding Technology and Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning Technology programs will teach in a hybrid format, with on-campus labs and online lectures and tests. 

The new format is something Nelson Adams, lead instructor in TSTC’s Culinary Arts program, is excited about. The revamped curriculum will teach students what Adams said employers are looking for, graduates who have sound customer service and soft skills, along with the ability to ask for help and accept feedback.

“There will be a social aspect as they (students) share their discoveries with their cohort by way of short videos or posts,” Adams said. “Our students will be learning a full dimension of the industry that they are entering. Culinary Arts students will not just be watching videos. Instead, they will be studying recipes, costing out ingredients, researching cultures, and coming into the lab to demonstrate what they have learned by cooking the food they understand in a whole new spectrum.”

Tutoring will be available virtually. Students will go to TSTC’s student portal and click on the tutoring icon to fill out a form requesting help. The tutoring staff will connect students virtually to statewide tutors in their subject areas.

Something that is not changing is the commitment to students.

“Career Services is always here to help students, pandemic or not,” said Hunter Henry, a Career Services associate at the Williamson County campus. “From our side of things, students can feel safe in knowing that we can do practically all of our work with them without needing to be in the same room. On top of that, we still have employers hungry for the kinds of skills we teach here at TSTC.”

Registration for the fall semester is underway.

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