POWERGRAMS

27 "The vast majority of our students finish with a two-year degree, then go to work in a mill," says Shepherd, who came to CACC in 2007 aer retiring as a school superintendent in Mississippi. "Most come here with no desire to go on to further education, because 85 percent of our students are placed in a job immediately. It's not unusual for a student with no experience to start at $22 an hour. Right now, we can't keep up with the demand for our graduates." Shepherd walks from one building to the next showing off facilities that make Thomasville the technology center of all 11 CACC campuses. One lab has wall-to-wall control boards with volt meters, ammeters and other sophisticated devices. Another lab prepares students for maintenance of hydraulic and pneumatic equipment, pullies, belts and gears. Soon students will begin virtual reality training in the classrooms. Another highlight is the Machine Tool Tech Lab, where students create computer programs to cra metal products on fabricating equipment worth millions of dollars. It takes about 5 minutes to make a trailer hitch ball, or 25 minutes to build a pecan cracker similar to what took instructor Gene Tindle more than two weeks to build when he was in school nearly 60 years ago. "This is the most complex place on the campus," says Tindle, a former mayor of Satsuma who contracted with NASA and industries before retiring for three months in 2003 and then started teaching at CACC. He officially retired again on May 31. Tindle says he's proud of the long list of former students who've gone on to much bigger things than making a good starting salary. A 2003 CACC grad who wanted to drop out of school in the 10th grade now makes $250,000 a year. A 2005 graduate of the tool tech program is CEO of a major local industry. "People in Alabama don't know what Thomasville has got in educational opportunities," Tindle says. "We send our graduates all over the world." Kathryn Tucker ndham Museum Fiy-five years ago, a veteran journalist at midlife released a simple book of folklore based on her and others' experiences with ghosts. Kathryn Tucker Windham's "13 Alabama Ghosts and Jeffrey" started a journey she hadn't anticipated but would bring joy and fame the remainder of her days. In May, about 70 fih and sixth grade students flocked to the Windham Museum at CACC The Kathryn Tucker Windham Museum is a popular destination for student groups. CACC students learning electronics.

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