Displaced factory workers earn degrees from Motlow
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?When life gives you lemons, make lemonade,? said Brenda Fults, who got laid off from A.O. Smith. ?That?s exactly what we did. We needed something positive with all the plants leaving.?
Fults along with Mary Smith, Marlene Campbell, Terry Hendrickson and Ronnie Haley went to Motlow on the Trade Readjustment Allowances (TRA). The program offers income support to people who have exhausted unemployment compensation and whose jobs were affected by foreign imports. The benefits include paid training for a new job.
After entering college years after graduation ? and for some the span was 25 years ? the adjustment wasn?t easy.
?It was scary,? said Fults. ?We helped each other and studied a lot. The teachers and front office staff at Motlow were wonderful. I think the teachers enjoyed having dedicated students that were their own age. It was a lot of hard work.?
That hard work, help and studying paid off. Saturday, during a Motlow graduation ceremony, the five walked across the stage as more than survivors. They walked across as graduates and winners.
? Fults, who lost her job in A.O. Smith?s shutdown, will receive a Top 10 Graduate Award, the President?s Award for 4.0 GPA, and is a member of the Phi Theta Kappa International Honor Society.
? Smith, cut when Mallory closed in Sparta, will receive a Top 10 Graduate Award, the President?s Award for 4.0 GPA, and is a member of the Phi Theta Kappa International Honor Society.
? Campbell, also from A.O. Smith, will receive a Business Information Technology Award, Top 10 Graduate Award, President?s Award for 4.0 GPA, and is a member of the Phi Theta Kappa International Honor Society.
? Haley, who lost his job when Carrier closed, will receive a Leadership Award and is a member of the Phi Theta Kappa International Honor Society.
? Hendrickson, also from Carrier, will receive an Accounting Award.
Off all her experiences in college, algebra and public speaking are two Fults could have lived without and doesn?t want to experience again.
?Algebra was hard,? said Fults. ?Public speaking wasn?t the hardest academically but I was sick for days thinking I was going to get up and give that speech.?
Going to college was something she was glad she had the chance to do even though it took losing a job to get there.
?It was something I didn?t think I would ever do,? said Fults. ?I took classes at night while working but I don?t think I would have finished or had the courage to pursue something else if I hadn?t lost my job. I was scared to death but it was worth it.?
These five are not the only ones who lost their jobs from businesses closing who have graduated from Motlow, but the only ones who will receive awards.
Along with finding a job after graduation, the students are already thinking of ways to stay in touch.
?We are thinking about a reunion next year,? said Fults. ?When you leave any place, you lose touch. We don?t want that to happen to us. We proved two things ? there is life after losing your job and you can teach an old dog new tricks.?