Joshua Sherman

Joshua Sherman had always wanted to be a firefighter. Thanks to concurrent enrollment, the Rogers High School graduate carried almost one full year of college credit into the Fire & Emergency Medical Services program at TCC and got a head start on his ambitions.

“Concurrent enrollment gave me a huge advantage in understanding college expectations,” Sherman said. “I was on par with what TCC expected for its students from the beginning.”

By starting his college education while he was still in high school, Sherman was not only ready for the transition to college, but he understood the value of the Tulsa Achieves program, which provides up to 63 credit hours for Tulsa County High School graduates.

“I chose TCC for Tulsa Achieves,” he said. “I would not have been able to afford college if not for Tulsa Achieves.”

The connections he made at TCC helped bridge his connection to the career he wants. Sherman finished his TCC associate degree in Dec. 2016, and is now an intern at the Broken Arrow Fire Department as part of a new partnership between the College and the city.

“Firefighting is what I’ve always wanted to do,” Sherman said. “Something my father taught me was to be willing to give everything you have to someone you’ve never met.”