Pioneer Technology Center (PTC) has debuted 12 new staff members during this first semester of the 2008-2009 school year. All of PTC’s new employees can be considered experts in their field.

One of Pioneer Tech’s first additions for this school year is Jamie Sawyer. Sawyer is a Blackwell native and now lives in Ponca City. She holds three degrees from Northern Oklahoma State University (NWOSU). Her bachelor’s degree is in science with a minor in chemistry. Sawyer also holds a master’s degree in education. Her industry experience includes working in a medical lab and at Northern Oklahoma College (NOC) as an adjunct science faculty. In addition to becoming a state certified teacher for biological sciences, Sawyer also holds certification as a Project Lead the Way teacher for biomedical sciences. She currently serves Pioneer Tech as a biomedical sciences instructor in the center’s new advanced program.

Also new to the Pioneer Tech family is Dana Compton. Compton and her family moved from California to Oklahoma two years ago, and have settled in Ponca City for the past several months. She served the Deer Creek School District in Edmond as an administrative assistant and prior to that she worked for three years in a California private school as teacher aide and substitute teacher for K-12 levels. Compton supplies support in the full-time programs office area as that department’s secretary.

Another California native, Matthew Figueroa, is the newest addition to Pioneer Tech’s safety services program. Figueroa has been involved in the refinery industry for about 15 years, 10 of those years he dealt specifically with safety. He was contracted out as a safety supervisor at Shell Oil Refinery; now know as TESORO in Wilmington, California. In 2005, he had the opportunity to move to Ponca City to work at ConocoPhillips, and then ventured into the ethanol industry building ethanol plants with ICM, a company based out of Colwich, Kansas, as site safety coordinator. Figueroa is now a full-time trainer for PTC’s safety program.

PTC’s Adult Basic Education/GED department and Business and Industry Services (BIS) group share one of the center’s newest employees, Kristen Tiger. Tiger is originally from Searcy, Arkansas and currently resides in Newkirk. She earned her associates degree in science for general business from Butler County Community College and is currently pursuing a bachelor degree from Oklahoma State University. She comes to Pioneer Tech with some banking experience and supports the ABE/GED and BIS areas as the departments’ secretary.

Fae Rabb, originally from Newkirk, is employed by Pioneer Tech as a teacher’s aide. She has served Pioneer Tech for the past two years as an AmeriCorps member and now is a part of the center’s full-time permanent staff. Rabb is a former PTC student and student organization officer.

Pioneer Tech’s new pre-engineering instructor, Tony Fath, comes to PTC from ConocoPhillips. Fath is a Tonkawa native. He earned a bachelor’s degree in education from Oklahoma State University. His past teaching experience includes 10 years in middle and high school science instruction. Most recently, Fath spent 17 ½ years working with ConocoPhillips technology, seismic imaging, refinery carpentry, and refinery laboratory areas. He chose to take early retirement from ConocoPhillips to teach at Pioneer Tech.

Scott Pollard is Pioneer Technology Center’s new collision repair technology instructor. He is from the Perry/Stillwater area and a graduate of Meridian Technology Center. Pollard has been involved in the collision industry for over 30 years. He is a certified I-CAR and ASE NATEF instructor. Pollard has also obtained the Master Level Collision/Refinish ASE certification. His bachelor’s degree is from the University of Central Oklahoma. His teaching experience includes night courses at Meridian Technology Center at Stillwater, certified day and night courses at Caddo-Kiowa Technology Center in Fort Cobb and at Tulsa Technology Center. Pollard is also a licensed insurance adjustor and has obtained certifications in the insurance industry including auto, homeowner, and catastrophic claims handling. In addition, he is a licensed special fraud investigator. According to Pollard, "My vocational background has opened a lot of doors for me in my career, so I hope to hand down the same legacy to the students in my classes. They may be the new ‘Pioneers’ of the future."

Lori Sadler moved to Ponca City from Cushing, Oklahoma. She has experience in the sales and customer service industries. According to Sadler, "Cooking has always been a passion of mine. My grandmother taught me at an early age to cook, and I've always loved it! So that's how I ended up here." She decided to apply for the culinary arts kitchen assistant position at Pioneer Tech so she could utilize her customer service skills while doing something she loves.

Ryan Field assists in Pioneer Technology Center’s welding shop. Field is from Ponca City. In 2003, he received two structural welding certifications while attending Pioneer Tech as a student. Field joined the Army in 2004 and was honorably discharged as a Sergeant (E-5) in April 2008. During his military service, he served the United States in South Korea, Ft. Hood, and Iraq. According to Field, "I've been blessed by having this opportunity to give back to this school and faculty what was given to me.

Pioneer Tech’s Children’s Lab and Preschool welcomed Chelsey Sentel as a lab teacher this fall. Sentel comes to PTC from First Lutheran, where she was the lead teacher in the day care. She graduated from Ponca City High School and Pioneer Tech’s child care program in 2004. Sentel has also earned an associate degree in elementary education in 2008 and is pursuing a bachelor degree in elementary education from North Western Oklahoma State University.

The newest addition to Pioneer Tech’s business, management and administration career training group is Terri Stone. Stone was born and raised in Arkansas. She has lived in Ponca City for 23 years and graduated from Oklahoma State University with a bachelor's degree in secondary education-business. Stone has nine years of teaching experience. Before coming to Pioneer Technology Center, she taught video production, image editing, and computer tech II at Ponca City High School. Stone’s current position includes instruction in administrative services, entrepreneurship, and medical assisting.

One of the newest staff members is Melody Beeler. Beeler has been a full-time employee at Pioneer Tech for just over two weeks. She serves the organization in the custodial department and as a bus driver. Beeler worked for McCord Public Schools assisting in the kitchen and driving a school bus for the past 12 years. She is also a Ponca City resident.

According to Pioneer Technology Center’s personnel officer, Allison Christy, "The Pioneer Tech staff is excited to have such a diverse and talented group of individuals joining our PTC family."

For more information about Pioneer Technology Center and its career training programs and services, call 580-762-8336 or visit www.pioneertech.org.