CHRISTINA: I'm Christina Michelle Smith.
I'm 32 years old, and I grew up in Orange, Texas.
You know, I thought for years I was an abstract artist.
I had no interest in math and science growing up.
I love to write, I love to paint, I love to doodle.
I always throw in a red circle.
I was 29 when I got pregnant.
It's been the biggest blessing in my life.
My daughter's name is Samantha.
We call her Sam for short.
She really kind of put my life on course.
I kind of always been happy just getting by.
When I had her, it's like all of a sudden,
I had all these new goals.
SAMANTHA: Like what?
CHRISTINA: I needed to provide this and do that and be
this example.
I got laid off and right before that,
my daughter had brain surgery and I lost my health insurance.
And it was kind of a very scary time
because I didn't have anything to fall back on.
It went from from good money, insurance, to nothing.
And one day it just really hit me here.
You know, it never mattered.
It didn't.
And then one day it mattered and I wanted to go back to school.
I just decided it's something I needed to do.
I needed my own career.
I needed a college degree.
So that I never had to worry about health insurance
or worry about her in any kind of way and I kind of just
sat down on a computer, looked at the programs they offered.
I like to use my hands.
I like to learn, and the PTEC program
does seem like it'd be the greatest thing for that.
I was curious.
Could you tell me what ATE is?
PTEC DIRECTOR: ATE is advanced technological education.
I work for the Center for the Advancement
of process Technology.
We started with the National Science Foundation grant.
And we are an ATE incentive, and what we are tasked with
is promoting process technology as a career
field across the country.
We've created a set of standardized curriculum
that we encourage our colleges to use.
ATE is a very integral part of that.
CHRISTINA: I decided to go to College of the Mainland--
community college.
They're very pro-PTEC and involved.
They talk the bigger picture, you know,
what this career could actually do for me down the road.
My initial interest in looking at the PTEC program
was basically saying that it's a hands-on type job.
The machines, the concepts behind it, it's fascinating.
I mean, who doesn't want to make jet fuel?
You know?
DEPARTMENT CHAIR: We teach students how
to work in process industry.
We give a very broad education about the type of equipment
that they are going to be working with.
CHRISTINA: As an intern for Shell,
I went to the plant.
That allowed us to get an overview
of what we've been studying in school for two years.
SHELL ADVISOR: Students coming out of the PTEC program
have more knowledge about the equipment
that they are seeing out in the field.
PTEC DIRECTOR: I think it's going to help fill that workforce
gap that we've all been so worried about when the baby
boomers retire.
They're going to come in, ready to hit the ground running.
CHRISTINA: It's just an opportunity, not only
for Shell to kind of see you and your habits,
but it was also an opportunity for me to go, OK,
do I really want to do this?
DEPARTMENT CHAIR: These jobs are relatively high-tech.
Lots of computerization, and so it
takes a pretty broad depth of knowledge
in order to work in these.
CHRISTINA: Plants make everything.
They make energy, they make your oil, your gas,
the plastic on your credit card that you can't put down,
your nail polish remover.
I mean everything.
It's mind blowing and amazing.
But process technology teaches you everything
to kind of prepare you to get you a job out at one
of these plants.
MOM: When she took hold of this, she really took off
and it's been amazing to watch.
She's made me very proud.
Very proud.
CHRISTINA: I definitely encourage
people that didn't go to college go back.
You can do it.
There are people ready to support you.
I've managed to make it and graduate college.
Everything's making sense now.
I went from being down here to up here.
And it's an amazing feeling.
I walk across the stage the next Wednesday.
ANNOUNCER: Christina--
Thi Beta Kappa, highest honor.
[CHEERING]
CHRISTINA: It's going to be a good feeling.
My kid's going to see me do that.
SHELL ADVISOR: Christina did so well
in the internship we hired her as an employee.
CHRISTINA: It's just been amazing how
it's kind of all come together.
Anybody who is interested in going back to college,
you can do it and you can do it well.
Better than you ever thought you could.
I know that I can do anything that I put my mind to,
that I have every opportunity that anybody else does,
and that's a good feeling.
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