Shelbie Harris
Staff Writer
Over 200 students are preparing for a day filled with opposites: a day of cheering and solemnity, future dreams and past memories, as well as many hellos and goodbyes as Idaho State University’s College of Technology winter graduation ceremony approaches.
The ceremony will be held Thursday, Dec. 18 from 7 to 9 p.m. in the Jensen Grand Concert Hall of the Stephens Performing Arts Center.
For many students graduation can’t come soon enough, as is the case for soon-to-be-graduate Michael Valentine who already has a full-time position lined up once he receives his degree.
Valentine will be receiving his Associate of Applied Science degree with a focus in Energy Systems Instrumentation and Control Engineering Technology.
“I completed an internship this summer at Simplot and I just got hired on by JP3 Inc., which is a defense contractor down in Vegas,” Valentine said.
Many College of Technology graduates already have jobs lined up prior to graduation based on the amount of hands-on experience gained through the specific design of the programs.
“We have two hours of theory every morning and then we have three hours of lab every day,” Valentine said. “Through the two year programs we have close to 1,000 hours of lab time which is why [employers] like students from the College of Technology.”
Before enrolling in the College of Technology, Valentine spent five and a half years of active duty in the Army and two and half years in the National Guard.
Valentine said the College of Technology offers great programs and opportunities for students right out of school, and specifically presented him with an opportunity he wouldn’t have been able to find without relocating.
The program Valentine participated in was one of 34 different programs with more than 72 different degree options offered by the College of Technology designed to be completed in two years or less.
“We are here to serve students who are looking for a quick education, quick training or students who are looking to enhance their current skills or to learn more skills in preparation for the career industry,” said Marketing and Recruitment Director Stuart Summers.
“Our mission is really about helping students complete short-term programs, get an exceptional education and then enter a career,” Summers added.
Summers said the College of Technology’s focus is placed primarily in locating careers for students rather than jobs so that students can start off with more than a livable income, one that provides a great lifestyle and allows for individuals to really excel in their personal lives.
Some of the major, high-demand programs offered via the College of Technology include welding, energy systems, robotics, automotive, and healthcare programs including nursing, respiratory therapy, and medical assisting.
Summers said the College of Technology works very closely with the Idaho Department of Labor to ensure the programs being offered continue to be viable programs that have a high need for hiring.
“We make it a very nice graduating ceremony and we pride ourselves in thinking this is the nicest graduating ceremony on campus,” Summers said.
He continued, “It’s only College of [Technology] students and it’s a very personalized ceremony for them. All of their faculty are there so each graduate gets to shake hands with their instructors that have been teaching them.”
Summers said as a tradition originating in 2009, College of Technology Dean Scott Rasmussen will individually award each graduating student with a solid brass medallion.
The medallion is embossed on one side with two graduating students standing under the Swanson Arch and on the other a Bengal tiger head and the motto of ISU, “Leading in Opportunity and Innovation.”
