Success in the business world revolves around opportunity. Thaddeus Stevens College of Technology (TSCT) not only seeks to provide opportunities for students, but also assists them with skills that will make the most out of those opportunities.

They are opportunities that have the potential to be life altering.

"We are always looking at workforce data to align our majors to the needs of the workforce," said Pedro Rivera, who's been TSCT's president for four years. "We want our students to have careers. Everyone who graduates from here is employable for a lifetime. When someone can earn a living wage with one or two years of education and with little or no debt, they have more time to be mothers and fathers, to be civically minded and to engage with their churches."

Located at 750 E. King St., Lancaster, TSCT offers 24 two-year associate degrees and four one-year certificate degrees in pursuits like electrical technology, architecture, welding, carpentry, auto mechanics and masonry.

"We have offerings for anyone at any stage of life," said Rivera. "We're preparing you to be a learner and preparing you to be skilled in your workforce, and we're preparing you to be a leader. We want you to grow and be prosperous and have a career."

There are 1,470 students enrolled at TSCT for the fall semester, and they are all Pennsylvania residents. About half live in dorms on campus while the other half commute.

"Our students are about as dynamic and diverse as the commonwealth is," said Rivera. "They come here with their eyes wide open. The students who come here know what they want to do with their lives. Most of them have done their research. They come here, and they're focused. When we bring all of these students from different backgrounds together, it's amazing to see how quickly they begin to work together. To be successful, you have to be able to work in small groups."

Nearly 95% of TSCT students stay in Pennsylvania after they graduate. Almost 97% of TSCT graduates are placed in jobs before or right after they leave the institution.

Many students receive financial aid in the form of grants and scholarships.

"Most of these kids are just like me, first-generation college students," said Rivera. "They are looking to change their own trajectory and the trajectories of their whole families. I see them walk into this college for their first days, I see them develop confidence and I see them graduate. When you get to see firsthand how you're changing lives, that's incredible."

TSCT is named for the Lancaster resident who bequested the funds to start it in his will. It opened in 1905 to provide an education in academics and trades for orphaned youths, and it became an accredited college in 1991. In additions to academics, TSCT offers its students extracurricular activities like clubs and intercollegiate athletics and operates a campus clothing bank, a food bank and a toiletry bank.

Thaddeus Stevens was a congressman and champion of freedom and equality who lived in the 18th and 19th centuries.

"Our namesake is very important to us," said Rivera. "Everything we do revolves around our values. Over the years, our majors have changed, our campus has changed and it's become a much more inclusive campus. We take our responsibilities to the community very seriously. We want our students to be prosperous. We want to give every single person who walks through that door an opportunity to be successful."

For additional information about Thaddeus Stevens College of Technology, go to http://www.stevenscollege.edu.