Change Starts Here

Sherri Broyles Future Alumni Essay Contest 2017 Runner-up Have you ever heard the expression “It’s better to give than receive”? Well, at Trident Technical College you get to do both. Trident Tech has a vision of educating the individual, accelerating the economy and inspiring the future. The education - if you work hard, you will receive valuable training that will put you on the right track to a rewarding career. The acceleration – TTC graduates leave school with quality training that makes them ready to join the workforce. The inspiration – as a Trident Technical college alumni, you will be able to give back to others and your community. That is my goal and I am well on my way to achieving it thanks in large part to the program I am currently in at TTC. Trident Technical College makes earning an associate degree achievable and affordable. Whether you are a traditional student taking classes on campus or a nontraditional student taking classes online, there are so many opt...

Rory Thomas Future Alumni Essay Contest 2017 Runner-up Are you insecure about going back to school to better your career choices and income earning potential? Not sure you want to commit right away to a four-year college? Not sure that you can afford it or even have the time to take classes? Then you are very much in the desperate position I was in, not very long ago. I have a mortgage to pay, mouths to feed, and more than one job to make that happen. I chose to attend Trident Technical College (TTC) because there is a campus close to home, and the courses are offered throughout the day and evening as well as online. This flexibility provided me with a class schedule that allowed me to “pay the bills” while improving the quality of my professional life. In addition, TTC paired me with an advisor to guide me into the right courses that ended up building my confidence and helping me to believe that I could thrive in college. And yes, even after many years out of high school I ...

Kelsey Hearing Future Alumni Essay Contest 2017 Runner-Up Dear Past Me, It might be crazy to think that you'll be graduating with an associate's degree this upcoming May. Even more crazy considering, you're only 17, still don't have a high school diploma, oh and you're graduating with your hardworking mom. Just 4 years ago you were sitting down with your guidance counselor and parents trying to decide if the early college program was right for you. “Am I ready to take college classes in high school?” “Do I really want to give up my summers to take courses?” “Will the classes even matter when I go to a four year school?” “Will colleges not want to accept me since most of my high school career is spent with a technical school?” You’re going to spend a lot of time wondering if you shouldn’t have done the program, if you should have just taken endless AP courses like everyone else. Stop stressing over it, okay? Taking dual credit classes from Trident Technical...

Meagan Hayes Future Alumni Essay Contest 2017 Runner-Up I am a student at Trident Technical College. Such a meaningful sentence and a statement that I am exceedingly proud of. I had always dreamed of going back to school, getting a degree and making a positive impact on the world. However my life as a single parent, waitress and an addict four years into my recovery is already busy. I was overwhelmed by the idea of trying to find a way to pay for school, change my work schedule to attend classes, and jumping through hoops to get enrolled. Thankfully, one day after a string of bad days at work, I made a decision that changed my life for the better. So I got off of work and google searched Trident Tech because I didn’t know how to get there. Turns out there are campuses all over and one, the Palmer Campus, was less than four miles away from my job! So I drove, took a deep breath and went inside with high hopes but low expectations because of my preconceived notions. I have nev...

Addie Ledbetter Future Alumni Essay Contest 2017 Winner We all grow up saying we’re going to be a doctor, astronaut, dentist, or dancer, but how many of us actually get to where we want to be? Trident Technical College aims to educate the individual, accelerate the economy, and inspire the future. This is how Trident helped me educate, accelerate, and inspire. Trident Technical College offers not only an affordable education, but it offers you the chance to hone in on what you want to do for the rest of your life. Every person you meet at the college wants you to do your best. Yes, the classes are important, but the relationships you build with your professors and peers are what make the experience worthwhile. Entering my first class at Trident, I was very nervous. However, it didn’t take long for me to get comfortable with my professor and my other classmates who shared similar interests with me. We talked about where we had gone in life and where we were going. That’s ...

Trident Tech alum Jessica Sage never imagined that she would someday take over the family business, Charleston’s Rigging & Marine Hardware Inc. (DBA Carolina’s Rigging) with her brother, Skip.  In fact, their father, Rick Sawin, was always very much against it. “He saw too many businesses fail after the next generation took over,” says Jessica.  After graduating from Wando High School, Jessica was not sure exactly what she wanted to do, so she enrolled at Trident Technical College. It was there, while taking a class with TTC Instructor Michael Reed, she discovered an interest in environmental technology. Reed served as a mentor to her and strongly encouraged her to transfer to College of Charleston , where she graduated with a Bachelor of Science in biology. Soon after graduation, she found success working for ArborGen, Inc., a provider of conventional and advanced genetics tree seedling products, and was named on a patented process of harvesting plant embr...

Trident Technical College announced that the Zucker family will provide $6 million to support the new S.C. Aeronautical Training Center, which is being built on the college’s Main Campus in North Charleston.  Anita Zucker, CEO of the InterTech Group, said the family is making the donation to support the efforts the college is making to grow advanced manufacturing in the state. “The S.C. Aeronautical Training Center at Trident Technical College is more important than ever,” said Zucker. “In this region we are growing dramatically. We are growing with every kind of manufacturing, not just aerospace but also advanced manufacturing in general. Providing training to meet that demand is critical. This will be a facility with an incredible economic impact, on not just our region but our entire state.” The $6 million donation to the Trident Technical College Foundation is the biggest in the college’s history. The Zuckers’ largest previous donation to the college was a $1 millio...

Pictured (l-r) Angela, Gil, Mike, Linda, Nick, Brook, Bryon and Scott in front of Leatherwood Manufacturing in North Charleston. The Trident Technical College family mourns the loss of student, Bryon Leatherwood. In his honor, we would like to share a story from 2013, featuring Byron and others in his family who have attended TTC. The Leatherwoods are long-time supporters of the college and our thoughts and prayers are with them all during this difficult time. _________________________________________________________________________ Wh at family traditions do you have? For Mike Leatherwood, president of Leatherwood Manufacturing in North Charleston, education at Trident Technical College has become an intergenerational family tradition.  Leatherwood has been an on-going student since the early 1970’s. His two sons, Scott and Gil Leatherwood, are TTC graduates, as is Gil’s wife Angela. Scott holds two associate degrees in industrial technology and welding technology. Gil a...

Brian Smith Future Alumni Essay Contest - 2016 Winner Alumni is the plural of the Latin noun Alumnus (foster son, pupil) which is derived from the Latin verb Alere (to nourish).  In the ancient Roman legal system Alumnus was used to describe a child placed under the care of foster parents, wherein the child might be showered with love, simply treated as a servant or both.  Noted Yale alumni John Boswell held that in even earlier ancient times it referred to ‘exposed children’ taken in by foster parents; think Moses, Paris, Oedipus or Romulus & Remus.  These days and according to Merriam-Webster we get one commonly used definition and one perhaps not so common: Alumnus 1: a person who has attended or has graduated from a particular school, college, or university. 2: a person who is a former member, employee, contributor, or inmate. The first definition is familiar to me, but not the second. I also didn’t know of the word’s etymology until d...

Dawn R. Wells Future Alumni Essay Contest - Runner-up After being a stay at home mom for nearly two decades, I realized that my job as mom would eventually come to a close and I wanted to start something new. I was comfortable being in the shadows of my husband's accomplishments; therefore, I assumed I would get a part time job and do some volunteer work. Behind the safe thoughts of an entry level job, was a gnawing desire to get a degree and have a career that could support me if something happened to my husband. I was not sure of what I wanted to do as a career or where to start. I did not know much about Trident Technical College; I assumed it was for people that did not want a four-year degree. I applied at College of Charleston and was denied based on poor academic performance at a college twenty-five years prior. I applied to Trident with the idea that I would prove myself worthy of College of Charleston. When I registered, I was told to declare a major. At that time,...

Jessie L. Cox Future Alumni Essay Contest - 2016 Runner-up Nelson Mandela said, “education is the most powerful weapon you can use to change the world.” As a self-proclaimed dreamer and a firm believer that education is the light in the dark our world needs, I had planned to attend college ever since I can remember. My yearning to continue my education did not come from any sense of obligation nor from lectures by my parents, but by way of my everlasting love affair with knowledge. I have always been somewhat of a philomath. Having had a love of learning from a very young age, my family often speaks of my undying curiosity. I had always known that high school would not be the end of my journey with education. However, my big plans hit a massive bump. The harsh reality of paying to continue my education was a hard a pill to swallow. Sure, I knew college would not be free, but I had no idea just how costly it would turn out to be. At a time when I was sure I would have to abandon my ...

Brandon Murray Future Alumni Essay Contest - Runner-up When you think of salvation, you think of a church. A place where you go to religiously and perpetually. Whatever the reason one thing is a usually a given, it is a place of faith and worship. In my roller coaster adventure of life, it is ironic how one place I wrote off as “just a tech school” has become so critical and invaluable to me. I sit in the law lab on the second floor of the library every day before class. Every couple of hours I look outside the large square window and at that moment I am injected with peace, desire, passion and complete happiness. It is in this vast room stacked with books that I have found my sanctuary of salvation. To start my journey in college, I was enrolled at the University of South Carolina for three semesters. While studying computer information systems the plot that was my life took a major nose dive in August of 2014. My grandmother and guardian angel was diagnosed with stage...