Congratulations to our Spring 2023 Chancellor’s List, Dean’s List and Provost’s List recipients! Students who complete 12 or more credit hours in a fall or spring semester are eligible for the Chancellor’s List and Dean’s List. Recognition is based on the grade point average during that semester. The Chancellor’s List requires a GPA of 3.85…
A shortage of quality, affordable childcare is well-documented as a barrier for many parents, especially women, to have a job. Either they cannot find childcare, or it’s too expensive. However, workforce participation is just one of the societal benefits of excellent childcare. The young students experience benefits decades later. A study published in 2021 found…
Ozarks Technical Community College received two grants from the Jeanette L. Musgrave Foundation totaling nearly $86,000. The two grants will benefit the college’s nursery at Study Elementary and a student group focused on civic engagement. As part of the Musgrave Foundation’s “Change for Children” program, OTC received a $50,000 grant for the college’s Study Nursery…
Nearly 800 graduates attended Ozarks Technical Community College’s commencement ceremony on May 18. Most of OTC’s graduates were from Missouri, with some from other, mainly neighboring, states. But a few graduates were international — eight to be exact. Every year, a handful of international students find their way to OTC. Unlike four-year schools with international…
*This essay by OTC Chancellor Hal Higdon first appeared in the Springfield News-Leader on Sunday, June 4. The headlines can be staggering: “Lack of skilled applicants hinders job growth in Missouri.” “Top barrier to more jobs in Missouri is lack of skilled workers, state survey finds.” “No end in sight to the worker shortage.” …
When Keisha Dean spoke to the hundreds of students and donors gathered at the Ozarks Technical Community College donor reception in April, she discussed what her OTC education would mean for her family. “I know there is a well-paved path of livelihood for my children and my husband because of what I have gained at…
Growing up in Climax Springs, Samantha Patton would watch cooking shows with her grandmother. Television programs like “Martha Bakes” and “The Great British Baking Show” sparked her passion for baking and cooking. Samantha’s passion flourished when she enrolled in the Lake Career and Technical Center in Camdenton to pursue culinary arts. “I love making bread,…
Growing up, 2023 Macks Creek High School graduate Chase Whitworth knew which doctor’s offices had the best toys in the waiting room. Unfortunately, being a connoisseur of waiting room toys means he spent a lot of time in hospitals and doctor’s offices. Chase and his family even visited the famed Mayo Clinic in Minnesota to…
More than 750 Ozarks Technical Community College graduates walked in the 2023 Commencement ceremony, held Thursday, May 18, at Great Southern Bank Arena on the Missouri State University campus. OTC conferred 2,243 degrees and certificates to graduates this year, including students who have completed or are pending completion of their coursework from the summer 2022 semester through…
Walking the halls at Ozarks Technical Community College’s Richwood Valley Campus, visitors will see what they expect to find on a college campus. There are classrooms with desks and whiteboards and laboratories with microscopes and Bunsen burners, but one room stands out. Inside that lab, students work with weights, exercise balls and other fitness equipment…
Ozarks Technical Community College will offer two no-cost, short-term training courses at its Springfield campus in the summer of 2023. Students can choose from an information technology boot camp or an entry-level computer numerical control (CNC) machine class. The Information Technology Boot Camp prepares students to complete the A+ Certification exam. The A+ Core 1…
After more than three decades of teaching students, multiple generations of families have walked the halls at Ozarks Technical Community College and earned degrees. But, parents and their children rarely graduate simultaneously. Three members of the Thomas family, Kelli, Wayne, and daughter Lauryn, will all receive their associate degrees this Thursday, May 18, at OTC’s…
For many teenagers, the path from high school and directly into college is relatively smooth. An 18-year-old with supportive high school counselors and help from parents can find their way to a college or university with a little effort. However, for someone who delays college for just a few years and accumulates responsibilities like a…
Missouri Governor, Commissioner of Education Among Those Gathered to Recognize Graduates, Encourage All Students to Create Strong Plans for Life After High School Bolivar High School today hosted its inaugural “Decision Day,” an event at which 201 high school seniors announced their plans to enroll in college, seek career training, or enlist in the military…
The Ozarks Technical Community College commencement ceremony will be on May 18, at 5 p.m., at Great Southern Bank Arena on the Missouri State University campus. Michael Parson, the 57th Governor of Missouri, will give the commencement address. Before joining the executive branch, Mr. Parson held office in the Missouri House and Senate and was…
The SkillsUSA State Leadership & Skills Conference was held Mar. 30 at State Technical College in Linn, Missouri. The conference allows students to put their technical abilities to the test in skilled and written competitions — and once again, OTC students shined. The college had 54 students place in different contest areas, resulting in 34…
Ozarks Technical Community College graduate Bryanna Shaffner never thought of herself as a trailblazer for women in the workplace — she was just looking for a good job. But when Springfield’s Stainless Fabrication Inc. (SFI) hired Bryanna as a welder in 2019, she was the company’s first female welder. “It was a little nerve-wracking at…
High school students can train as Emergency Medical Technicians (EMTs) while still in high school through the Ozarks Technical Community College Career Center. The OTC Career Center allows students from 18 different school districts to attend OTC for half their school day and their sending school for half the day. The EMT program for high…
Michael Parson, the 57th Governor of Missouri, will give the commencement address at Ozarks Technical Community College’s graduation ceremony on Thursday, May 18, at 5 p.m. Great Southern Bank Arena on the Missouri State University campus is the site for the commencement ceremony. “Governor Parson is no stranger to OTC. We’ve had the pleasure to host him…
OTC recognizes how harmful domestic and dating violence, stalking and sexual assault can be ─ and how they can create barriers for OTC students to succeed academically and personally. Our students don’t have to face these barriers alone. April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month, which makes it the right time to review the help available…
The Ozarks Technical Community College Lebanon Center will host its second annual Lineworker Rodeo on Tuesday, May 2, beginning at 10 a.m. The OTC Lebanon Center is located at 22360 Highway MM in Lebanon. The event is free, and the public is invited to watch. Spectators are encouraged to bring lawn chairs. First-year students from…
The Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society (PTK) honored Ozarks Technical Community College Provost Dr. Tracy McGrady with its Distinguished College Administrator Award. Dr. McGrady received the award during PTK Catalyst 2023, held April 20-22 in Columbus, Ohio. Catalyst is the society’s annual convention. Dr. McGrady is one of just 30 college administrators nationwide to receive…
Ten Ozarks Technical Community College students were honored today, Thursday, April 13, at the Missouri Community College Association (MCCA) Student Leadership and Phi Theta Kappa (PTK) Awards Luncheon at Stephens College in Columbia. The PTK All USA Team recognizes high-achieving two-year college students who demonstrate academic excellence, intellectual rigor, leadership, and service that extends their education beyond the classroom to benefit…
While attending Ozarks Technical Community College, Dr. Kyle Cottrell met his future wife in his Spanish class. That is the best of the positive things that happened to Kyle while attending OTC, but it wasn’t the only good thing. “OTC was a chance for me to rewrite my academic history,” Kyle said. Kyle says he…
The last time the Ozarks Technical Community College choir was scheduled to perform in New York City was in March 2020. “We were on our way to the airport, and the college called me and said, ‘Things are shutting down. You can’t go to New York,” said Alberta Smith, OTC choir director. A little more…