Terry Defibaugh was laid off from a mill in Northern Michigan at the beginning of the Great Recession in March of 2009. Part of the severance process included a benefits briefing at the Grayling Michigan Works! Northeast Consortium Office. This meeting was attended by State UIA members who were there to announce the creation of a new, expanded TRA/TAA program. Terry started using his TAA training benefits to attend the local community college in 2009 then transferred to Saginaw Valley in the fall of 2010 to finish pursuing a Bachelor Degree in Computer Information Systems. During that time he received mileage, tuition and book assistance through his TAA Grant administered by Michigan Works! Northeast Consortium. He also received TRA benefits which covered his living expenses through most of his training. Terry was committed and dedicated to his training efforts. He earned what he calls an “essentially free degree to use in his new career as an IT manager”. He finished his last class on April 29, 2014 according to his Case Manager/Trainer, Kim Jones. She is proud of Terry who will graduate in May with a 3.33 GPA. Terry is putting his new degree to good use and eagerly job searching with Kims assistance. He will be interviewing for his new career as an IT manager at various State of Michigan Departments such as Education and Natural Resources. He said “this is quite a different occupation than driving a fork lift for the previous decade at the factory”.
Posted on: Tue, 13 May 2014 18:07:16 +0000
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