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Sul Ross University
Sul Ross Industrial Technology Program
Rebuilding Firm Foundation
BY steveLANG
22
“Who is going to build the machine that builds your
computers or the desk the computer sits on? People
are starting to value this type of work again.”
“The students have been out recruiting and
bringing in their friends. They love this
place.”
An IT Club was organized shortly before
Homecoming 2014, and the club won the
parade float competition, finished second in
the cupcake challenge, third overall in Spirit
Week activities and sponsored a Queen
candidate, freshman Bailey Walker of Marfa.
Junior Catano, Marfa, switched his major
from Agricultural Education to IT as soon as
the program was reinstated last spring.
“I have a career plan,” he said. “After
graduation (May 2016), I plan to go to
Houston to the Ocean Corporation and get
my commercial diving license for underwater
welding.”
“When I first came in (to Sul Ross), I
didn’t know what I wanted to do,” Catano
said. “I thought I would get my teacher
certification to teach welding down the road.
But when the IT major returned and I found
out about it, I saw it’s what I do (he works as
a welder and also does carpentry for El
Cosmico in Marfa).”
“I enjoy the machine tool technology and I
want to do some (metal) casting,” he added.
When IT was closed in March 2011, the
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program had dwindled to 11 majors. Former
IT professor Dr. Roy Smith was named
interim director to succeed Dr. Dan Vrudny,
who died unexpectedly earlier in the
semester.
Wasserman was hired to teach the required
classes to enable the remaining majors to
complete the program, in addition to
teaching Agricultural Education classes,
including welding, metal working,
construction and small engines.
The program would have been phased out
by Spring 2015, but Wasserman and Smith
had other ideas.
“We were talking one day and instead of
just finishing the program, we made a
decision to try and rebuild,” Wassermann
said. He added that as discussion and
proposals for new and revamped curriculum
developed, administrative support grew.
Dr. Larry Guerrero, Dean of the College of
Professional Studies, also saw possibilities
when he assumed his duties in Fall Semester
2012.
“In 2013, Representative Nevarez led the
efforts to overturn the Coordinating Board
decision and we were able to reinstate IT.
From that point on, we were able to give
Magaly DeLeon
Zero to 24 majors in two semesters.
Those numbers mark the rebuilding speed
of Sul Ross State University’s Industrial
Technology (IT) program since it was
reinstated a year ago.
New courses, renewed enthusiasm, energy
and commitment have retooled a program
that was being phased out four years earlier.
The program was designated as lowproducing (fewer than 25 graduates in five
years) under Texas Higher Education
Coordinating Board standards.
Subsequent legislative action, led by State
Rep. Pancho Nevarez, Eagle Pass, overturned
the Coordinating Board action, leading to
reinstatement of the program last spring.
Department chair Scott Wassermann,
himself an IT graduate (B.S. 2009, M.Ed.
2014), said there were several reasons for the
resurgence.
“Part of it is that Industrial Technology is
something tangible that appeals to a broad
spectrum of learners,” he said. “Students can
get hands-on education and have finished
products at the end of the semester.”
In addition, new courses have been
developed in response to interest expressed
by public schools. “Technical education
shifted (from manual components) to
computers, but in recent years, public
schools have indicated that we need this type
of education,” Wassermann said.
“Who is going to build the machine that
builds your computers or the desk the
computer sits on? People are starting to value
this type of work again.”
“Finally, the success we have had is a lot of
people working, from administration to
faculty and staff to the students,” he said.