She began teaching Web Design (Media 230) for Bellevue Community College this last quarter. She is also a graduate of this program and a skilled and talented person. Sue graduated from the Bellevue Community College Media Communications and Technology (MC&T;) program, with honors, in the summer of 96. She received a degree in Web Authoring and a certificate in Computer Video Interface.

During school Sue worked part-time as an offline digital video editor, and scriptwriter for a small local production company. Immediately after graduation Sue went to work for fine.com, a downtown web development firm. Sue was initially hired to update content for large corporate websites. The company was in a growth spurt, and because of her previous management skills, she was promoted to Project Manager of the Site Enhancement department. One year and four months later, she took a job offer from Wall Data Inc., as an online training specialist. The new position afforded a 30% salary increase, stock options and an excellent benefits package. In addition to her fulltime job, Sue returned to BCC Winter Quarter 98 to teach an online class in Web Design. Sue says:

"So you see there is a light at the end of the tunnel, it's brightness limited only by your efforts. I won't kid you, the competition is stiff. My best advice is to build on skills you already have."

Trella Hastings

The multimedia artist stretched and twisted images across the screen. Colors were adjusted with the click of a mouse. Trella Hastings watched intently as digital works of art came to life on the computer.

Captivated by the combination of on-screen art and technology, Trella was hooked. At age 60, Trella Hastings of Mercer Island headed back to the classroom at Bellevue Community College to prepare for a second career in the multimedia field.

At a time when many people choose to retire, she'll be hunting for her first job in a dynamic, high-tech field. Breaking her generation's trend of staying in one profession for a lifetime, she is starting over at sixty.

After receiving a bachelor's degree in biology from San Francisco State University in 1961, Trella worked as a medical technician for nearly 25 years while raising three children. A lay off at Group Health three years ago prompted her to consider a new career. After years in the science field, she was ready for change.

Trella was always drawn to artistic hobbies like photography and writing, and wanted to pursue more creative work. She found her niche while working on a volunteer music project. With a lifelong interest in Scandinavian culture, Trella has been an active volunteer with local Scandinavian organizations for many years. While compiling a compact disc of Swedish folk songs for the Skandia Music Foundation, she worked with an Issaquah multi-media studio to produce cover art for the CD.

"It was magical. It's like an artist creating with canvas and paints, but you do it on a computer. The computer is your canvas," she says.

The experience sparked her to attend a career search class at BCC and enroll in Worker Retraining, a state program that funds educational training for displaced workers. Now in her second quarter as a multi-media student at BCC, Trella is pursuing a certificate in digital imaging or website design. Returning to the classroom after a full professional career and a nearly 40 year absence has been an enlightening experience for Trella. She was intimidated at the thought of being a student again and adjusting to a new world of technology. Trella never touched a personal computer until six months ago.

She wasn't used to surfing the Internet, communicating with e-mail, or using computers as a part of everyday classroom learning. With diligence and a passion for her program, she quickly caught up. "I was going into a field with computers, and I felt ignorant," she said. "I didn't have any experience. It was a big challenge, but I stuck with it. Now I can do a lot of things on my own."

Another adjustment was getting used to student life again - handing in homework, taking tests and being treated like everyone else. Trella recalls sitting in a mixed-age classroom at BCC and listening to an instructor warn students about keeping their eyes on their own paper.

"Some of us can't see far enough to cheat by looking at someone else's paper - our eyesight isn't that good," she says. "I couldn't cheat if I wanted to!"

While re-entering the workforce in her early sixties, Trella will face competition for multimedia jobs from much younger students. She is entering a field that changes by the day - one inhabited by tech-friendly whiz kids who grew up on a steady diet of Apple computers and MTV videos. She may not be familiar with the latest video games, but Trella's perserverance and dedication will make her a valuable employee.

An avid learner, Trella brings a great enthusiasm to her multimedia projects and studies. Years of professional experience will also benefit Trella's media career. Chris James, chair of the BCC media program, feels older students bring great value to the workplace. "Older students come in with an understanding of the workforce. They understand deadlines and responsibility," he says. "That makes them different employees than someone just out of high school or in their early twenties."

Trella finds a unique benefit to being an older student. Unlike many younger students, she appreciates the opportunity to work for personal pleasure. With three grown children, she doesn't feel the pressure of being the family bread winner. "I'm lucky - I don't have to struggle with worrying about a lifetime career. I'm doing this because I really love it."

Trella hopes to pursue freelance media work when she finishes her studies at BCC. She wants to design calendars and more CD artwork, stating a preference for "anything but hard rock." She also considers teaching computer and media classes at a community center or in specialized classes for high school students. With her great passion for the field and a willingness to start over, she is an inspiring role model for all students.

One year after she first learned about the multimedia field and first worked on a computer, Trella sits in front of the keyboard and makes her own adjustments to digital images on the screen. As she whizzes through the features of a multi-media program, she demonstrates the power of learning at any age.

Asha Nelson

Four years ago, Asha Nelson was just learning about multimedia as a student at BCC. Today, as the Instructional Technical Specialist in the Faculty Resource Center, she teaches faculty members about developing web sites, putting courses online, and learning HTML and a variety of other multimedia applications. Her passion for learning and education have quickly made her very proficient in the field.

Asha graduated with a certificate in multimedia authoring from BCC two years ago. She likes the field, and her position in the FRC, because it's "challenging, never boring, and you're never sure what you'll discover next."

Prior to studying multimedia, Asha worked as a computer programmer and software test engineer for many years. She left her home in Northern California 11 years ago after being recruited to work for Microsoft, where she stayed for five years.

Computer programming was quite a switch from her previous career in social work. Impending lay offs in her social service organization prompted her to try computers, and she was instantly hooked. She has three computers at home and is searching for a fourth. Always ready for a new educational challenge, she wants to tackle computer networking next.

"I love being in education, and I love being around other people that enjoy learning," she says. With her enthusiasm for learning, Asha is a perfect fit at BCC.

Joanne Miller

Joanne Miller is a Bellevue Community College Technical Support student who organized the volunteers for the international SIM conference held in Seattle in the fall of 1998. During that time, she met the CIO (Chief Information Officer) of Perkins Coie, the largest law firm in the Pacific Northwest. She now works as a technical trainer for this company.

Joanne is one of only three Technical Trainers and she is in the middle of introducing several upgrades and brand new applications. She is currently learning a new relational database program that will be in place shortly.

Invigorated and challenged by her new job, Joanne is excited to be using her skills and working with a diverse set of colleagues. She says:

"The CIO, the Director of Technology, the Director of Applications and Training and the Legal Technology Analyst are all women. It's wonderful to be working with women who are so accomplished in the technology field."

Morgan Davis

Before he came to Bellevue Community College (BCC) and the NorthWest Center for Emerging Technologies (NWCET), computers were foreign to Morgan Davis and his job prospects were limited.

Morgan chose BCC and NWCET because of the high quality, industry skill standards based Information Technology (IT) programs they offered and because he wanted an Associate Degree rather than simply a certificate at a vocational training center. BCC offered the attractive combination of job readiness that incorporates college credits that transfer to a major university, modern equipment with T1 connections to the Internet, and a Helpdesk Internship on-site.

Morgan, who had to give up his career in retail management because of a hip injury, says "the Federally funded Department of Vocational Rehabilitation and Federal Financial Aid paid for my education. Without these educational and vocational programs, I would be a handicapped, displaced worker, not able to contribute to society. Social Security would be my only source of income."

Today, the job market offers Morgan a wide range of opportunities. He manages two websites. He has just licensed his own small business building and selling computers, and he has been approached to teach at Bellevue Community College. His education at BCC using NWCET developed curriculum has prepared him for a number of careers including Technical Analyst, Technical Support Engineer, Information System Analyst, Developer Support Engineer, and Software Support Engineer. Morgan plans to combine the best of all possible worlds and pursue a Bachelor Degree at the University of Washington while working in the computer industry.

In January 1999, Morgan Davis represented Bellevue Community College at Vice President Al Gore's National Summit on 21st Century Skills for 21st Century Jobs. Before a national audience, Morgan described his experiences as an IT student gaining the skills necessary to meet the shortage in the IT workforce. He also had the chance to meet and speak with the Vice President and Mrs. Gore. Today, Morgan can say:

"I feel confident that my skills will keep me a valued commodity in the marketplace on into the next century."