Baton Rouge, La -- The Louisiana Chemical Association (LCA) awarded its annual Process Technology Scholarships (PTEC) to four Louisiana students on August 1 to assist with tuition costs for attaining a two-year associate degree at a Louisiana community or technical college.
The winners of the 2018-19 scholarships were: Terrance Moses, SOWELA; Benny Oribio, Baton Rouge Community College; Isaiah Pimpleton, Louisiana Delta Community College; and Don L Woods, Jr., River Parishes Community College, Reserve Campus.
The $1,000 scholarships are given to qualified applicants every year who have completed at least 24 hours of Process Technology (PTEC) curriculum and maintained a minimum 2.75 GPA with a 3.5 in PTEC courses. To apply for the scholarship, the students were asked to write a 300-500 word essay explaining why they should be awarded the scholarship along with a letter of recommendation from an instructor or faculty member. The applications were submitted to the student's respective schools and then sent to LCA for review and selection of winners. LCA began awarding the scholarships in 2009.
"The Louisiana Chemical Association has been a tremendous partner for Louisiana's community and technical colleges for nearly 20 years," said Dr. Monty Sullivan, president of the Louisiana Community and Technical College System. "Their support ranges from curriculum development and implementation to serving on PTEC advisory boards at several of our colleges. I am most appreciative of their financial support of our students through the PTEC scholarship. Today, thanks to LCA's support, there are recipients of the PTEC scholarship working throughout Louisiana providing for their families and contributing to our tax base. As the economy and workforce demands grow, it is critical that we produce more qualified workers. I'm confident that with the continued support of the LCA, we will meet the needs of Louisiana's workforce."
PTEC is designed to give hands-on practice skills and training to men and women interested in pursuing a career in plants, refineries and other industries. The program became a priority for LCA members in the late 1990's when the chemical industry suffered an unprecedented shortage of process technicians that would leave many needed positions vacant. So LCA, the Louisiana Workforce Commission and Louisiana higher education institutions collaborated to develop a standardized curriculum that would contribute to the skill improvement of the workforce pool and develop a skilled workforce ready to fill new jobs created by industry expansion throughout the state.
"First, I'd like to congratulate the winners of this year's scholarship," said Greg Bowser, president of the Louisiana Chemical Association. "The chemical industry in Louisiana is growing at an incredible pace and the need for a highly skilled and well-trained workforce is more important now than it has ever been. LCA has partnered with LCTCS for almost 20 years giving Louisiana students the opportunity to learn trades, crafts and skills to enter a manufacturing workforce where they will have the opportunity to earn a substantial salary and begin a long-lasting career. Our state and our industry needs a strong community and technical college system such as LCTCS and LCA is committed to helping this vital system thrive."
To learn more, visit: http://www.lca.org/workforce/p-tech/.
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About Louisiana's community and technical colleges:
Last year, Louisiana's community and technical colleges served and provided instruction to over 131,000 students, transferred over 15,000 students to four-year institutions across the country, and graduated more than 27,000 students - the largest graduating class in the system's history. Our colleges have earned a national reputation as colleges of excellence and as shining examples of efficiency and productivity. In 2016, Lumina Foundation, one of the nation's most respected educational and philanthropic organizations commissioned that Louisiana has the highest percentage in the nation of working age adults who hold a high-quality post-secondary certificate and that the state's overall degree attainment rate improved from 48th to 26th in the nation.
About the Louisiana Chemical Association:
The Louisiana Chemical Association (LCA) was formed in 1959 to promote a positive business climate for chemical manufacturing that ensures long-term economic growth for its 63 member companies that operate more than 100 sites throughout Louisiana.
LCA, Louisiana Chemical Industry Alliance and related organizations work to protect and expand Louisiana's petrochemical manufacturing base. It is critical for the industry to have a unified voice in state governmental activities because legislative and regulatory actions can affect capital investment and job retention and growth.
LCA is governed by a Board of Directors that consists of 17 member company representatives, primarily plant managers and divisional vice presidents. LCA has an experienced staff with expertise in the chemical industry, environmental, health, safety,security, governmental affairs, communications and association management.