Change Starts Here

Jessica Przborski First Place 2020 Future Alumni Essay Contest At the dawn of 2020, new year optimism was at its peak. People were filled with hope as they set out to tackle unlikely resolutions.  That is until those plans were so abruptly interrupted by the invisible invading army called Covid-19. Marching its way through people’s lives all around the world, Covid-19 set out to seek and destroy. This infectious disease is a new strand of the Coronavirus.  What is so scary about this specific strand is that it is so new. Without historical data, the scientific community was at a loss of how to combat the virus that causes respiratory illness. The first case was detected in Wuhan China on Dec.1st, 2019. By March 11th, 2020 The World Health Organization declared the outbreak a global pandemic.  Big changes followed. Countries were put on lockdown and restricted travel. States in the U.S were locked down and quarantined. Curfews and social distancing requirements were set i...

Marisa Lynn Sligh Third Place 2020 Future Alumni Essay Contest Nursing school, motherhood, childhood cancer and a pandemic – 2020 has been a year full of challenges, to say the least.  Prior to the pandemic, I had mastered a life of constant schedule changes: juggling motherhood, nursing school and work, on top of the daily challenges of being a full-time caregiver to my four-year-old who was battling cancer. I was no stranger to social distancing, mask-wearing, or impeccable hand hygiene – as the mother to a child with cancer, these things became my new normal years before the pandemic.  What proved to be challenging was learning how to go about my life, navigating yet again another ‘new normal’ amidst a global pandemic. Being a mother to a young child with cancer is hard, being in nursing school is hard; juggling both of these roles during a global pandemic is incredibly hard. However, I can honestly say that both nursing school and caring for my son, especially during this...

Ebone Edwards Second Place 2020 Future Alumni Essay Contest The end of 2019 seemed at first glance like every other year; the catapult that would turn the page and start our lives off fresh. For so many, the year 2020 represented a “new vision” and the start of a new decade of possibilities.  I remember saying this would be the year I would finally be at my ideal body weight, save enough money to travel, get married and finally pursue my dream of becoming a chef. These goals had been written and pictured on my vision board for so many years, but 2020 was going to be “the” year I would accomplish them.  Life often has a way of adjusting our most carefully curated paths to success, but nothing compares to the impact of one singular global pandemic, which effectively challenged and changed my world forever. The seriousness of the Coronavirus disease (Covid-19) became very evident as new norms created challenges. One of those early challenges I faced would involve my job. I wo...

Trident Technical College President Mary Thornley received the state’s highest civilian honor, the Order of the Palmetto, from Gov. Henry McMaster Nov. 19 during a virtual Trident Technical College Foundation board meeting.  Foundation staff members presented the award to Thornley as a video of the governor’s remarks was shown during the online meeting.  The Order of the Palmetto is awarded to citizens of South Carolina for extraordinary lifetime service and achievements of national or statewide significance. Gov. John C. West presented the first Order of the Palmetto in 1971. Thornley has worked at the college for 47 years. She was hired as an adjunct instructor in 1973 and became a full-time instructor the next year. Over time she moved up the ranks and held positions including department head, dean and vice president for academic affairs. She was named president in 1991.  During her tenure, the college has more than doubled in physical size, and the college’s enrollm...

Kevin Frank, President and CEO of AstenJohnson, joined the TTC Foundation Board of Trustees in 2016 and serves on the Finance/Audit Committee.  We asked him for his take on the value of Trident Technical College.   What is one thing everybody should know about Trident Tech? The programs are directly applicable to industry and provide qualified, trained and often experienced applicants ready to help a business grow. What was your biggest surprise about Trident Tech? The diversity of the students is fantastic and their enthusiasm is hard to duplicate. These are students from all walks of life, highly motivated to get to work and apply their training while eager to learn and contribute to society. What is your advice for students in the COVID world? We will get through this and as we do, there will be many new opportunities for graduates who are ready to put their expanded skills to work. What is the best advice you’ve received? Hard work and innovative thinking wil...

The Department of Defense has awarded Trident Technical College $1.9 million to implement the Building Outreach Opportunities to Motivate and Inspire the Next Generation in STEM (BOOMING in STEM) initiative to help address acute STEM workforce needs in the Charleston region. Working with partners Joint Base Charleston and the Charleston Promise Neighborhood , the College will use the funding to provide camps and coursework to engage youth in STEM activities and connect them to educational offerings and work experiences. The project will create STEM career pathways for military-connected, rural and disadvantaged K-12 students, primarily focusing on students age 7-18. The college is one of only 12 institutions in the country to receive a National Defense Education Program Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) award from the Department of Defense this year. The department will provide more than $31 million to the 12 educational and industry partners over a three-ye...

Where do new auto mechanics come from? One pathway that continues to grow every year is the Charleston Regional Youth Apprenticeship Program (CRYA) .  Trident Technical College, in collaboration with regional employers in a variety of industries, offers students the opportunity to get paid to learn as youth apprentices. High school students hired as apprentices receive paid on-the-job training along with classroom instruction at TTC. The Hendrick Automotive Group employs many youth apprentices.  Don Smith, community relations guru at Hendrick, said, “We have young men and women looking for opportunities in the automotive field. With technology increasing in automobiles today, we need people with new skills for tomorrow. With the Trident Tech partnership, we hope we can fill the pipeline in the Charleston market with auto techs to fit those demands.” Buzz Varella, department head of the TTC Automotive Program , is sold on the program as well. “The apprenticeship program...

Entrepreneur Patrick Bryant joined the TTC Foundation Board of Trustees in 2019. As a partner in several technology firms based in Charleston, Bryant feels strongly about making our area and the state a better place to work. We talked with him to get his take on the pandemic’s impact on his industry: How has entrepreneurship changed during COVID-19? COVID has created challenges every single day as our business has been made to adapt and in some cases shut down. But it has also created business opportunities such as our pivot for Event.Gives. With the onset of the pandemic, we’ve helped nonprofits have virtual video events to hold live auctions and paddle raise donations. It has been a huge hit and will double the company this year. What would you recommend for a student's career path now that COVID-19 has changed things? Certain industries are taking off during the changes and others are seeing a big decline. I would highly recommend students looking at career paths such as cod...

The TTC Foundation fills many needs for students who have the passion, desire and bravery to take on the challenge of earning a college degree but lack the financial support to get there.  I am a graduate of the Culinary Institute of Charleston (CIC) at Trident Technical College and have been teaching here for five years.   When CIC students begin the program, they must invest a significant amount of money for uniforms and equipment, including either a culinary kit or baking and pastry kit. These kits contain all the tools students need in the culinary and baking labs.  They are not cheap, in price or quality. It is a substantial investment that students may not have factored into their overall college costs and could end up as the final roadblock in the admissions and onboarding process at TTC. That kit belongs to them and will be part of their story. It will remind them of the hours of chopping vegetables, piping out icing, filleting fish, and gently fo...

Dillon Spires was in his last semester at Trident Technical College and nearing graduation from the Medical Laboratory Technical (MLT) program last Spring when COVID-19 hit. “I remember walking into clinical thinking that COVID-19 would certainly become an issue soon. That same day clinicals were canceled until further notice,” he said. While this could have delayed his graduation from the program, MLT faculty worked with him to fulfill the remaining clinical requirement. He was already working as a Lab Assistant at Roper St. Francis Mount Pleasant Hospital, so he was able to use some of his work experience to fulfill clinical requirements and schedule training time for the areas that he still needed clinical experience. Spires joined the Air Force in 2011 after graduating high school in Eastman, Ga. He served for seven years, first in Omaha, Nebraska supporting reconnaissance aircraft and then at Joint Base Charleston supporting C-17 aircraft. He met his future wife in Nebraska and t...

Moving can be difficult for most teenagers, but when it's to another country, it can be even more intimidating. America Martinez Gonzalez moved to the United States from Mexico with her parents at the age of 18.   She eventually learned English by watching the television show, "Friends. " She says, “Because of the language barrier, I felt so insecure about meeting new people. But "Friends" helped me overcome the struggle and I laughed a lot while doing so.” Now she has two teenagers of her own and is one semester away from getting her associate degree in Baking and Pastry at the Culinary Institute of Charleston at Trident Technical College .  Her dream is to open a Hispanic bakery. For years Gonzalez would drive by Thornley Campus in North Charleston thinking how nice it must be to study there. At the time, she did not have a social security number, a high school diploma or the money to go to college. She thought the American dream was beyond her reach....

Trident Technical College announced the 2019-20 SKIP Award recipients at the college’s annual faculty and staff meeting, held virtually for the first time due to social distancing restrictions as a result of COVID-19. The SKIPs were created by former Trident Tech vice president and former TTC Foundation Trustee, Skip Godow, to identify and reward employees who are setting an example of innovation at TTC. "Good is the enemy of great," Godow said. “We should always be striving for great. That takes creativity, imagination and innovation.” The nominations exemplify innovation that significantly enhances the student experience, improves an administrative process or puts TTC on the cutting edge. Awards were given in each of two categories, non-instructional and instructional. The Phi Theta Kappa Advisory team of Carmela Gordon, Daryl Milligan, Brenda Oxford, Mozell Rollerson and Chris Solomon won the non-instructional award for the PTK Grocery Vault.  In 2019, this team decided to...

The Trident Technical College Foundation is pleased to announce six new members to the board of trustees. These outstanding individuals bring a variety of professional and personal experiences that will help the Foundation continue its mission to advocate and raise funds for Trident Technical College to support the region’s economy. Karena M. Bell is the founder and CEO of Tiger Team Enterprises , a nationwide executive recruiting and talent acquisition firm. With over 25 years of experience, Bell is a trusted expert in relationship-based executive recruiting, with a proven track record in finding and placing key individuals across organizations to drive the strategic goals within the Medical Device, Pharmaceutical, Biotechnology and Life Sciences industries.  Bell originates from Detroit, MI, and is proud to call Charleston, SC her home since 2013. She has a B.A. in Business Management from  Northwood University and M.B.A. from University of South Carolina-Darla Moore School...

When life throws you one challenge after another, you start to appreciate the small wins.  For Trident Tech student Kristi Salvo, receiving a new laptop through the Student Urgent Needs (SUN) fund was a game-changer.  Like students across the country, Salvo’s in-person classes were abruptly switched to an online format this spring due to COVID-19. But she knew her older computer couldn’t keep up with the online demands and she couldn't afford to buy a new one. “I was already dealing with a lot and it felt like this was going to be the thing that would break me,” she said. Salvo, a veteran of the US Air Force, struggles with health issues, including a back injury and a severe autoimmune disorder. In March, she and her husband separated, leaving her to juggle the responsibility of being a student, while also being a teacher to their two young children. All this, while trying to stay healthy and safe during a global pandemic. After Salvo and her children moved into a smaller, mor...

In addition to generous gifts from many individual donors, the Trident Technical College Foundation recently received awards from the following organizations to support TTC students: Bank of America awarded $30,000 to support students during the COVID-19 pandemic through the Student Urgent Needs fund. Through this fund, the college provides one-time financial support to students who, as a result of unforeseen and urgent financial circumstances, are at risk of withdrawing from classes. The Coastal Community Foundation ’s COVID-19 Emergency Fund provided $8,000 to purchase laptops for students who need them to complete their coursework online.  The Exchange Club of Charleston awarded $2,000 for the Student Mission to Increase Lifelong Excellent Oral Health (SMILE Oral Health) program. The funding will support Dental Hygiene students’ outreach and education programs for Title I elementary school children, enabling them to purchase dental models for instruction and to provide oral ...

Robert Anderson hadn’t yet graduated from Trident Technical College when he was offered an IT job with the local bank in his Pennsylvania hometown. The year was 1966, and the job was a systems analyst on an IBM mainframe computer located at another company. The other company was 23 miles away. “In those days, a computer was a major investment, and it was common for businesses to share computing time,” said Anderson.  If something went wrong with the program - which could happen at any time, in any weather -  he would drive to the computer center, debug the program and stay to make sure the bank application finished and the bank's customer accounts were up to date the following morning.  “Roads could be very slippery; there was this one hill that my car would sometimes slide back down,” he laughed. Anderson wasn’t sure what he wanted to do when he graduated from high school, so he decided to join the Air Force. He was stationed around the country and in England, from wher...

It's been more than a year since Dan Bellack, a beloved and respected member of the Trident Technical College family, passed away. But his legacy as an educator will live on, thanks to the newly formed Daniel R. Bellack Endowed Memorial Scholarship. Everyone who knew Bellack will tell you about his genuine concern for his students’ success and well-being. He was skillful at engaging students and was a role model for other instructors, teaching in the classroom and online. He taught psychology and served as the department head and coordinator of the Behavioral and Social Sciences Department for more than 20 years. Margaret Hane Murphy was a student of his in 1991 and has never forgotten the impact Bellack had on her. "He was my favorite professor in all my years of college, and his class my most meaningful. I am grateful for my time in his classroom, and honored to have called him professor and friend." Bellack's youngest son, Braden Bellack, recalls one ...

Trident Technical College stands in support of the African American members of the community we serve. We reject all forms of discrimination. We affirm the guiding principles of our mission: equality, advocacy, individual worth, and mutual respect. We seek to model the change we want to see in the world. We work to prepare our students to see from various angles. We strive to demonstrate to them, and to each other, that we are able to see perspectives different from our own, and, in so doing, become more empathetic and responsive. We work to ensure that all of our campus community’s voices are heard, that all know we value them as individuals, and that we respect each other not just for our strengths but also for our struggles. Trident Technical College commits to mutually respectful, humanizing dialogue as we work to change our campuses and our community.

Trident Tech Nursing alum Jennifer Kelly arrived in New York City in April - ready, willing and determined to help fight the COVID-19 pandemic. But she quickly realized that no amount of education or experience (including her eight years as a nurse) could have fully prepared her for what she was about to face. “It was surreal at first. I landed at JFK, one of the biggest airports in the country, and it was practically empty. My biggest worry was driving in the city, but there were very few people on the road,” she said. Kelly’s decision to go to New York for the four-week assignment was not taken lightly. She was eager to help on the front lines of the pandemic and her husband and three children were very supportive of her going. But she was hesitant to leave her colleagues. She works at the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC) and had been a supervisor at the drive-thru testing site from day one. She was reluctant to leave the team she had grown very close to as they faced such...

Trident Tech alum Robin Workman may not be on the front lines, but she is doing her very best to support those who are. As the Heart and Vascular Surgery Coordinator at Trident Medical Center , Workman's patient volume is down. So in between checking on her patients, she is also checking in on her colleagues: lending a listening ear, letting them know how valuable they are and checking in on their personal situations and needs. "They are on the front lines, showing up day after day for whatever task is necessary and needed," she says. "They are my heroes." Workman could be considered a hero herself. She was a part of the very first class of the Associate Degree in Nursing (ADN) program at Trident Technical College in 1983, and the pressure was on to do well. “It started as a partnership with the University of South Carolina, and if we didn’t pass there was a chance the program at Trident Tech would not receive accreditation,” she says. "No ac...