Internet Technologies program attracts variety of students

SYLVA - The Internet Technologies program at Southwestern Community College has attracted students from all walks of life. By providing a diverse set of computer and web skills, this program seems to be the perfect balance for these computer enthusiasts.

Scott Cline, SCC Coordinator for Internet Technologies, said students learn programming languages, graphic design, web design and development, database development and management and more. Almost as diverse as the topics covered in the program are the students.

"I have students ranging from high school to retirees," said Cline, "One student cut a computer on for the first time in December. He is doing excellent in the class."

The student Cline refers to is Peter Gallo, a 27 year-old kayaker-turned-student. Gallo entered the program in January, only one month after having ever turned on a computer. Today, four-and-a-half months later, Gallo says he can design web and active server pages (ASPs) and work on Access databases.

Having spent the past three years as a kayaking instructor for the Nantahala Outdoor Center, Gallo says he entered the program to challenge himself.

"This was a sink-or-swim situation to me," said Gallo, "those are the kinds of challenges I look forward to in life."

The Internet Technologies program has also attracted return students such as Charlie Jackson, who is in his mid-thirties and holds a B.A. and M.S. in American History.

Jackson, who has spent the past several years working as a carpenter, free-lance writer and organic farmer, was looking for a way to support himself and his family at home. Currently employed by a not-for-profit organization as a web designer, Jackson has already found work in this field and feels certain that numerous other local opportunities exist.

"Here in western North Carolina, we have the opportunity to work at home and have clients from anywhere in the world," said Jackson.

Another unique student is Sara Brown, who holds a B.A. in English from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She chose to enter the Internet Technologies program because: "it integrates creative and technical skills, and for me, this seemed to be the perfect marriage."

Brown added that the program was not only very technical but challenging, as well.

Finally, there is Hoyt Ponder, a retiree from working with young children with handicaps, who made the choice to return to school after being retired for a couple of years.

"I was ready to return to work, and I found that I was very interested in the Internet, so I talked to some people at SCC," said Ponder. "At the time I wasn't sure if I wanted to enter the Network Administration, Internet Technology or Computer Information Systems program, so I took classes that were neutral to all of them. I realized that I preferred the classes in Internet programming and databases, so I chose the Internet Technologies program."

Upon graduating from the program, Hoyt aspires to work for non-profits or state-maintained programs. He feels this would allow him to do meaningful, as well as profitable work.

Graduates of the Internet Technologies program can expect to earn wages ranging from $20 an hour to more than $60 an hour. Cline places his students in a co-op program to help them achieve success in the job market.

"I feel that our co-op program will give our students a taste of what the workforce is like. It will also give employers a chance to evaluate potential employees," said Cline.

Internet Technologies students stand to gain even more beginning this fall. In addition to the Access database, the program will soon be offering training in Oracle. Oracle Corporation, through its Oracle Academic Initiative program (OAI), has designated Southwestern Community College as an OAI Campus and granted academic software licenses valued at more than $120,000 to SCC's Career Technologies Division.

"The donation from Oracle through OAI represents a tremendous enhancement in our ability to expose students to high-end database software that has previously been out of reach," said Thom Brooks, division chair for Career Technologies. "Our Information Systems, Internet Technologies, and E-commerce programs are identifying pathways to incorporate this technology in their programs."