TSTI alumnus polishes skills in TSTC’s Workforce Training and Continuing Education program

(HARLINGEN, Texas) – Before Texas State Technical Institute became Texas State Technical College in 1991, Jose Luis Leija was enrolled there in Electronics Technology.

Recently he recalled when, as a child, he would tinker with objects around the household.

“I enjoyed disassembling and reassembling items that I found in the house,” Leija said.

Those childhood experiences put the Brownsville resident on a trajectory toward graduating with a certificate of completion in Electronics Servicing from TSTI in 1989, followed by an Associate of Applied Science degree from TSTI two years later.

He decided to further his education and graduated with both Associate of Applied Science and Bachelor of Science degrees from an area university in 2003.

Leija has enjoyed a rewarding 32-year career with the Brownsville Public Utilities Board that began in 1991. Recently he completed a five-week Industrial Systems training program to gain knowledge of current technologies through the assistance of TSTC’s Workforce Training and Continuing Education department.

“I’m currently an electrical maintenance supervisor with the Brownsville PUB,” he said. “I chose to take a refresher to improve my skills in electronics. I earned seven different SACA (Smart Automation Certification Alliance) Industry 4.0 certifications.”

Leija said the training will be useful to him at work.

“My instructor (Alberto) Barrera taught me about the importance of the integration of programmable logic controllers and variable frequency drive applications,” he said. “All of the instrumentation work I did with the hands-on equipment … will be translated into my job.”

Leija said he appreciates TSTC’s Workforce Training program.

“This experience took me back to 1988,” he said. “It polished my skills and will help me with my professional employer,” he said.

Barrera said Leija came to TSTC with years of experience.

“Jose adapted well to the current technologies and was a model student for his classmates,” he said. “He wanted to specialize in programmable logic controllers because that’s an area he needs to familiarize himself with and train others because he’s a supervisor. But he had to learn more about schematics, pneumatics and motor controls. Now he can train other teammates by troubleshooting and upgrading the company’s systems.”

For more information about TSTC’s Workforce Training and Continuing Education program, visit https://www.tstc.edu/workforcetraining/.

Registration for TSTC’s fall semester is underway. For more information, visit tstc.edu.