About 300 men and women will go from being students at OSU Institute of Technology to alumni of the university following two graduation ceremonies on Friday, Aug. 24 in Covelle Hall on the Okmulgee campus.

Students from the Schools of Arts & Sciences, Construction Technologies, Culinary Arts, Engineering Technologies, Information Technologies, Nursing & Health Sciences and Visual Communications will graduate during the 2 p.m. ceremony.

Students from the Schools of Automotive Technologies, Diesel & Heavy Equipment and Energy Technologies will graduate during the 7 p.m. event.

Robert Gleichman, director of innovation for Flint Hills Resources and OSUIT alumnus, will serve as the commencement speaker at both ceremonies.

“I am excited to reconnect with OSUIT and to meet this year’s graduates,” said Gleichman, who recalled his own graduation from OSUIT. “I remember the friends I made. We all shared the desire to learn a trade, had a good time doing it, and then found gainful employment post-graduation.”

It was also the first step in his career that led him to Flint Hills Resources, which produces a range of fuels as well as ingredients used in a variety of household products used every day.

“The education I received at OSUIT has benefited me throughout my career from my time at OSU Stillwater earning my bachelor’s in Electrical Engineering to my current role as director of innovation at Flint Hills Resources,” he said. “OSUIT gave me the practical side, which is a comparative advantage for sure.”

Dallas Pickle, who is earning an Associate in Science in Pre-Professional Studies with an emphasis on Pre-Nursing Concentration, will serve as student respondent at the 2 p.m. ceremony.

“I chose to attend OSUIT after hearing about the wonderful nursing opportunities that were available. I had no idea that a college that had such a wide variety of opportunities and programs was so close to my hometown of Morris,” Pickle said.

After she graduates, Pickle plans to continue at OSUIT in the Nursing program, with the eventual goal being to return to her alma mater after working in the industry to become a nursing instructor.

“My experience at OSUIT has been a long and wonderful journey. I started participating in concurrent classes here during high school and fell in love with the campus and the environment,” she said. “As a small town girl, this institution is perfect for me. I enjoy the one-on-one time with instructors, the small class sizes, the countless degree programs and the diversity of my peers.”

Those traits are some of the same reasons Aileen Collins chose OSUIT. Collins, who will earn an Associate in Applied Science in the Komatsu Advanced Career Training program, will serve as the student respondent at the 7 p.m. graduation ceremony.

“I came to OSUIT to further my knowledge and career in the diesel and heavy equipment repair. For me personally, the best part was the internships, which helped me not only with hands-on learning, but also financially. Had it not been for the internships, I probably wouldn’t have been able to afford school,” she said. “The instructors and small class sizes allowed for a greater quality of learning, and to me, that is very important especially when I am paying for my schooling.”

Gleichman said he hopes to impart to the students just exactly what they have now that they are graduating.

“Realize what you have earned at OSUIT and leverage it to your full advantage. Seek out the ‘why’ behind what you do, never settling for only the ‘what to do,’ he said. “Take the time necessary to build a firm foundation you can continuously build upon as you step through your career.”