The new Buddy and Betty Ledwell Workforce Training Center opened on the campus of Texarkana College in November as the site where students can earn certificates and degrees in high-demand industrial jobs.
The 20,000-square-foot facility will house the college's construction technology, electrical technology, industrial maintenance and electronics and instrumentation programs, all aimed at producing a job-ready workforce.
During the opening dedication, the Ledwells' son, Steve Ledwell, spoke about his father, who started the Ledwell and Son lumber yard with his father in Texarkana after World War II.
"He was the most positive person I'd ever known," he said. "He thought if you survived World War II, God was bound to have a plan for you. So he came back, he knew he had to do something. He was the hardest worker I'd ever known. He never had a day he didn't want to go to work."
The business expanded and evolved over the years to its present form, a 400-employee, 82-acre manufacturing site that produces custom truck bodies, trailers and related equipment. After Buddy's and Betty's deaths, Steve and other family members have owned and run the business.
Then-TC President James Henry Russell thanked the Ledwells for their contribution to the community and said the building had been built on a budget.
"We built this building the Ledwell way, with a lot of sweat, a lot of hard work, and did a lot of it in-house," he said. "Twenty thousand square feet, and I believe we're in this building for a little less than a million dollars. That's around $50 a square foot and that's really impressive."
Enrollment in TC's workforce program has increased by 26 percent over the past year, said Brandon Washington, dean of workforce and continuing education. Some industrial maintenance classes offered in the center have proven so popular that TC had to add night classes. As a result, the 75 adults and 15 high school students who study in the building will have access to it from 7 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. every day.
Washington stressed that the curriculum has been developed with local businesses-such as Cooper Tire and Rubber Co.-to ensure it is relevant to the real world.
"Every piece of equipment you see in this facility is something that's endorsed by the local industry partners that come to us and tell us, 'This is what the students need. This is the skill set they're going to need to be successful.' We want our students to be an asset day one they walk on the job site," he said.
Spring registration at TC is currently under way. For more information, visit texarkanacollege.edu or call the admissions office at 903-823-3012.