Chattahoochee Technical College honored its outstanding alumni, volunteer, and benefactor of the year at the 2022 Spark Workforce awards event held Thursday, May 5, at the Earl and Rachel Smith Strand Theatre in Marietta.
Chattahoochee Tech graduate Jennifer Chin received the college’s 2022 Spark Workforce Alumni of the Year award, with Board of Trustees member Max Caylor receiving the Spark Workforce Volunteer of the Year award, and the Paulding County Rotary Club receiving the Spark Workforce Benefactor of the Year award.
“These individuals and organizations are all helping to build a thriving workforce in our community thanks to their support of our students,” said Chattahoochee Tech Vice President of Advancement Jennifer Nelson. “They are making a major impact in changing lives for the better and meeting local workforce needs for high-demand career fields.”
Jennifer Chin, the Spark Workforce Alumni of the Year award recipient, is a 2014 graduate of the college’s Clinical Laboratory Technology program. Upon graduation, she worked in the field of laboratory science for several years at a local hospital, where she covered all areas of laboratory science. Chin now serves as an instructor in the college’s Clinical Laboratory Technology program to help prepare students for employment in this high-demand career field.
The Chattahoochee Tech Foundation honored Max Caylor, of Pickens County, as the Spark Workforce Volunteer of the Year. Caylor has served on the college’s Board of Trustees for over a decade, a role in which he advocates on behalf of students to receive life-changing educational opportunities. He has garnered much-needed support from members of the community on behalf of these students, noted Chattahoochee Tech Vice President of Advancement Jennifer Nelson, and has been instrumental in the success of the Foundation’s annual Reverse Raffle fundraiser.
The 2022 Spark Workforce Benefactor of the Year award was presented to the Paulding County Rotary Club, which has donated nearly $50,000 since 2006 to the Chattahoochee Tech Foundation for student scholarships. The Paulding County Rotary Club also helped to create the college’s Golden Eagle Food Panty by collecting food donations at their meetings and within the community.
Included among the Chattahoochee Tech alumni honored at this event were Jeanna Barlow, Steven Lavin, Savita Saldivar, and Mary Stapleton. Barlow is a graduate of the college’s Early Childhood Care and Education program and currently teaches pre-kindergarten at Wood Acres School in Marietta. Lavin graduated from the college’s Electrical and Computer Engineering program and now works as a field service director for Imperial Imaging Technology. Saldivar studied Health Care Science at Chattahoochee Tech, and then earned a bachelor’s degree in Health Care Administration at Reinhardt University. She is now pursuing a master’s degree at Texas A&M. Mary Stapleton received her diploma in Applied Manufacturing Technology as part of the college’s joint venture with Shaw Industries in 2004. She then continued her education, earning an associate degree at Georgia Highlands College and a bachelor’s degree at Shorter University. Stapleton is now an Environmental Health and Safety Manager for Shaw Industries in Cartersville.
