Slow Times

I believe most of the United States is experiencing unseasonably warm weather right now. Here it is the end of February and friends in Chicago are going to the zoo, people are gardening in New Jersey, and here in Georgia folks are running around in shorts and tees. So, what are you doing with all the spare time? The warm February weather is nice, but it is not very good for business! I have a suggestion for your down time. When you get tired of cleaning up the shop and the truck, how about investing some time into education? Now that you have time, invest some time studying those things that you never have time to get to during a busy season. You can take classes or just do some self-study and research. It is very easy to get information now, so take advantage of your time. Studying during slow times is a great way to prepare for the future.

Thanksgiving 2011

Once again, Thanksgiving is here and I have so much to be thankful for its hard to know where to start. My family is doing well, my children are achieving and prospering, and my HVACR program has so many students that we have had to work really hard to meet their needs. All the Air Conditioning instructors at Athens Tech have really stepped up their game. Dennis Payton, Coleman Simmons, Gary Manley, Jack Parsons, Gene Smith, Bill Ely, and Kenneth Harris have done a stellar job this semester. I know that our students are fortunate to have the dedicated and talented instructors that I am fortunate to work with. We are coming to the end of our first semester since our system switched from quarters to semesters, and the transition has been smoother than expected.

I know that there are still far too many people without work and that the hard times have boosted our enrollment as people look to invest in their future. Our job as teachers is to insure that they have made a wise investment. We are preparing our students to answer the call when opportunity knocks. How many stories have you heard about someone being successful because they were in the right place at the right time? There is another part of their success that often goes unmentioned: they were prepared to answer when opportunity knocked. That is what students all across America are doing today – preparing for opportunities to come. Schools are bursting at the seams. We are planting the seeds of tomorrow’s success. I truly believe that a better educated, better trained pool of workers will propel our country into a time of prosperity in the coming years. Times will get better, opportunity will knock, and our students will be thankful that they were prepared to answer the call.