(WACO, Texas) – Several career and technical education counselors and teachers from throughout Texas learned about technical programs at Texas State Technical College’s second annual TECHcelerate conference held June 10-11 and 13-14.
The conference’s purpose was to show how TSTC fits into building a strong Texas workforce.
“I hope they take back basically to the students the job opportunities the graduates of the programs have and the hands-on experience they are learning,” said Heath Martin, an associate provost at TSTC’s Waco campus.
Attendees learned the basics of gas metal arc welding in the Welding Technology program, used flight simulators in the Aircraft Pilot Training Technology program, and stained and sanded charcuterie boards in the Building Construction Technology program.
Other programs included in the conference were Culinary Arts, Electrical Lineworker and Management Technology, and Robotics and Industrial Controls Technology.
Austin Allen, program team lead for TSTC’s Welding Technology program at the Waco campus, said he enjoyed teaching the counselors and teachers about welding, a program he said many high schools have.
“We show them what students get to experience,” he said.
Jody Ferguson, a counselor at Whitney High School in Whitney, said she wanted to attend the conference to learn more about TSTC’s technical programs.
Ferguson and other conference participants made pens during their visit to the Precision Machining Technology program. She said she was glad to have something that she created to show to students when she tells them about the career possibilities of the machining field.
Jessica Wallace, a counselor at Northwest High School in Justin, was already familiar with TSTC because her son is a graduate of its Aviation Maintenance program. She has also brought students to the Waco campus before.
“The more knowledgeable I am for my students, the more I can bring them this way,” Wallace said. “My favorite thing has been the hands-on experiences.”
Closing lunch ceremonies were held on Tuesday, June 11, and Friday, June 14, when the counselors and teachers were given $200 each and certificates of completion.
For more information on TSTC, go to tstc.edu.
