Auto-Diesel student Steven Zedemont (AD-306) comes from a family of diesel technicians. Both his dad and brother are working in the industry so Zedemont knew what he signed up for when he started his training at OTC. “The big draw for me was the Power Generation program. I know the doors that additional training can open.” Zedemont is excelling in his technical classes and is also taking advantage of the opportunity to earn his Associate Degree. “I figured I may as well get it while I’m here,” he says. One of the best benefits of taking the Associate program for Zedemont has been meeting more students from other programs. “The Associate classes are a combination of students from all programs, so you really do meet more people to network with and form additional friendships.” Zedemont is a physical learner, and enjoys that OTC’s Associate instructors take subjects such as math, science, psychology and English and makes them engaging enough to keep his attention. “It is a different part of my brain that I have to use for these classes and what they are doing keeps me active.” Zedemont is taking all of his training seriously – he’s only missed 30 minutes of training and is keeping both his technical and academic GPA’s above 90%. “I don’t believe in wasting my time or money. I’m paying to be here and to learn. It’s up to me to be here and pay attention.”