James July-August 2024 web - Flipbook - Page 51
digital infrastructure in an increasingly
connected world.
Finally, our Fish and Wildlife program offers unique opportunities for
those interested in conservation and
wildlife management.
Morley Can you talk about some strides
you have made in elevating OTC’s
profile?
Durden One way we’ve elevated our
profile is through industry partnerships,
both locally and nationally. Forging
partnerships with industry leaders
ensures our programs align with workforce needs and stay relevant. When
companies like Amazon or Hyundai
recognize our graduates or apprentices
as valuable assets to their team, we
know we’re doing something right. We
also strategically invest in marketing
to showcase the college’s strengths,
achievements, and unique offerings.
Morley Student tuition and related
ing their educational goals, promoting
higher education accessibility within
the community.
Furthermore, the HOPE Career
Grant provides additional financial support for students pursuing credentials
in high-demand fields. This grant helps
cover tuition, fees and other educational costs, making career-focused education more accessible and affordable.
By maintaining low tuition costs,
offering extensive scholarship opportunities, implementing innovative programs like the Strickland Promise for
Evans County high school graduates
and providing financial aid through
the HOPE Career Grant, Ogeechee
Technical College demonstrates a
strong commitment to providing affordable and high-quality education to
its students.
Morley What does the future hold for
Ogeechee Tech?
Durden The future looks bright as we
college costs present a big obstacle
for all too many parents and students.
What are your thoughts on how OTC
can provide an affordable, high-quality education?
continue to evolve and expand. Our
region is on the precipice of major
expansion, our partnerships show we
are focused on improving and increasing our capacity for training— supported by the addition of a new building
Durden OTC implements several effecdedicated to automation and robotics
tive strategies to provide an affordable, training. The Georgia Industrial Syshigh-quality education, significantly re- tems and Robotics Training Center is
ducing the financial burden on parents on schedule to open in early 2026 and
and students.
will offer state-of-the-art education in
First, the cost of tuition is only
robotics and industrial systems.
one-third of that at a public four-year
We plan to further expand our proinstitution, making it a more economgrams to accommodate the increasing
ical choice for higher education. Addidemand for healthcare services, ensurtionally, the OTC Foundation plays a
ing our graduates are well-equipped
crucial role by providing hundreds of
to provide high-quality care in various
scholarships annually, further alleviathealthcare settings.
ing the cost for students.
In addition, we look to emphasize
One notable initiative is the Strick- shortening the time to completion
land Promise, a recently established
to help students enter the workforce
endowment in Evans County— one of
more quickly. By streamlining our
the three counties in OTC’s service
curriculum without sacrificing quality,
delivery area. This endowment guaran- we ensure that students can achieve
tees recent high school graduates from their educational and career goals in a
Evans County the opportunity to attimely manner.
tend Ogeechee Tech with their tuition
Cindy Morley is a staff writer for James and James
covered for up to five semesters. This
Magazine Online.
ensures that financial constraints do
not hinder these students from pursu-
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