OTC celebrates 10 years of work force education

Thousands of students educated.

Hundreds of graduates employed.

Hundreds of local positions filled.

That is what Ozarks Technical Community College is most proud of in the 10 years since voters chose to support a technical community college through tax dollars April 3, 1990.

The vision for such a school began in earnest in 1987, when more than 20 members of the community joined together to make the dream of a technical school a reality. Farmers, entrepreneurs, business leaders, educators and many others comprised this steering committee, setting in motion what would become the state's third largest community college. They also set the stage for a college with the most job-training-focused mission in the state. The mission was and still is one of helping people of the Ozarks remain competitive and employable.

OTC opened its first day of classes Sept. 4, 1991, with 1,198 college-credit students far more than expected. Perhaps, the large numbers were due in part to the then recent layoff of hundreds of Zenith workers. OTC began just in time to help dozens of displaced Zenith workers retrain. Unfortunately, that was just one of several layoffs that would follow.

For 10 years, the halls of OTC have been filled with workers willing workers, able workers, but workers who weren't qualified for existing local jobs. Through OTC, many people have reinvented themselves and returned to the workplace.

The Zenith employees are an example of ordinary people who have found themselves in extraordinary situations and then discovered OTC. Many displaced homemakers find their way to OTC, as do people who have suffered an on-the-job injury and those who simply need a college with an open-door admission policy.

When these individuals' stories are grouped, you get a feel for the breadth of what OTC accomplishes. But it's the stories like those of Jason LaBauve, Lori Saviello and June Daniels that provide a glimpse into the depth of OTC.

Jason LaBauve earned his GED in 1992 while in his mid-20s. In 1995, LaBauve entered the automotive technology program at OTC because "it was the best school in the area for what I wanted to do," LaBauve said. As a single parent, he worked full-time and attended college full-time.

As if that weren't extraordinary enough, within months of graduating with an associate of applied science degree in 1997, LaBauve bought Dameron Automotive the business he worked at while attending OTC. He immediately began hiring his fellow OTC graduates, as he continues to do today.

In five years, Jason progressed from not having a high school diploma to having a college diploma and a business of his own to hang it in evidence that hard work and good education will pay.

At Springfield Remanufacturing, good education always pays.

It has been particularly beneficial for Lori Saviello. As a mother of four daughters and one son (on the way), Saviello has volunteered her own time to participate in leadership training conducted by OTC's customized training division.

Lori began working at SRC subsidiary Encore in November 1998.

At that time, Lori didn't have a working knowledge of engines. As a result of on-the-job training and OTC leadership training, Lori has advanced to a team leader.

Her goal is to be either a senior team leader or group leader within one year, and to advance to production supervisor within the next three years. "I'm a self-motivated person, and I know my potential," Saviello said.

Another OTC student who is well on her way to realizing her potential is June Daniels. Daniels' interest in psychology began as she watched her three kids grow up, taking note of what they could and could not do.

Her interest to pursue a doctorate in psychology developed following a conversation with one of her OTC psychology instructors.

Not unlike many OTC students, Daniels had just earned her GED and was already in her 30s before beginning college.

"Being older, I was leery of pursuing a degree," Daniels said. "Now I know I wasn't that old." This fall Daniels will complete her master's degree and expects to finish her doctoral course work next year at the Forest Institute of Professional Psychology.

OTC is proud proud of enrollments that have nearly quintupled in 10 years. OTC is proud of campus development. But OTC is proudest of the hundreds who have discovered the potential within themselves, and those like LaBauve, Saviello and Daniels who have brought their potential to reality.

(Norman K. Myers is president of Ozarks Technical Community College.)