OTC and Fort Leonard Wood officials at the fort

Fort Leonard Wood military personnel and their families will soon have access to more educational opportunities thanks to a new agreement with Ozarks Technical Community College. OTC and Fort Leonard Wood officials signed a memorandum of understanding today, Thursday, Jan. 24, which gives the college approval to teach courses at the Fort Leonard Wood military base.

OTC plans to offer Emergency Medical Technician training on base this spring. Ultimately, college officials plan to expand these offerings to include computer information science, early childhood development, hearing instrument science and more.

“We’ve served military personnel for a long time at the OTC Waynesville Center, and we look forward to providing our service men and women with more accessible educational opportunities on base,” said OTC Chancellor Hal Higdon.

With its close proximity to Fort Leonard Wood, a majority of Waynesville center students are active-duty military, veterans or dependents. Much like the center, OTC courses at Fort Leonard Wood will be open to all students, including civilians.

OTC began offering courses in Waynesville through a new 10,300 square-foot facility located in the Townfield Plaza Center in 2008. In 2013, the OTC Waynesville Center moved to its current location along Interstate 44.