Official SLCC Blog

“Paige” Chomplearn Richchouyrod Last year, Paige Chomplearn, who worked for many years in food service at the University of Utah Hospital, became a ‘scrub tech,” which is industry slang that differentiates medical workers into patient and non-patient care by who wears scrubs.   As a surgical technologist with the orthopedics team, Paige reflects on the past year since graduating from the Surgical Technology program at SLCC. She admits that she was initially scared when she started her new position at the hospital. She says the quality of the education she received at SLCC helped give her the skills to do her job and cope with the stress in the profession.    “This is a hard profession and won’t get any easier, but I found that taking control by breaking things down into steps helped me not to get overwhelmed,” said Paige.   Paige is among the many skilled workers in the surgical technology field that are in high demand nationwide, with an expected 8,600 job openings ...

Metallica’s foundation supports SLCC’s Surgical Technology program with financial support for faculty, equipment, administrative costs and student scholarships.  Salt Lake City, Utah, September 19, 2023—Metallica’s foundation, All Within My Hands, has invited Salt Lake Community College (SLCC) to return for another year of grant funding that will support SLCC’s  Surgical Technology Program . Nationwide, the demand for skilled workers in this career field is high, with 8,600 openings for surgical technologists projected over the next decade.   “With the help of community colleges across the country, we are helping people fill these essential jobs,” said Metallica drummer Lars Ulrich.    The Metallica Scholars Initiative (MSI) was launched in 2019 by Metallica’s foundation, All Within My Hands (AWMH), in partnership with the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC). MSI supports 42 community colleges across 33 states, and by the end of this year, it will ...