Georgia Northwestern Technical College’s (GNTC) Automation Technology program is helping students and graduates energize their careers at Georgia Power.
“Georgia Power values GNTC students for their strong technical training and hands-on experience. Through our partnership with GNTC, we’ve seen students arrive well prepared to contribute from day one,” said Amanda Sowells, spokesperson for Georgia Power. “We also work closely with GNTC’s Electrical Lineworker program, which consistently produces highly skilled candidates for positions across our company.”
Cesar Cornejo Lopez, instructor of Automation Technology at GNTC, and Automation Technology student Lathe Spivey are among several Southern Company employees who are GNTC students or graduates who work at Georgia Power’s Plant Bowen in Euharlee.
“Georgia Power has hired a number of graduates from GNTC over the years, reflecting the strong talent pipeline and successful partnership between the company and the college,” Sowells said.
“I love that my job allows me to do what I enjoy and went to college to learn,” Cornejo Lopez said. “In my job, I am doing exactly what I learned in both degree programs.”
Cornejo Lopez received his associate degree in Automation Technology from GNTC in 2020 and an associate degree in Instrumentation and Controls Technician in 2023. He has also earned certificates at GNTC in Advanced Programmable Logic Controller (PLC) and Human-Machine Interface (HMI) Technician II, Automation and Robotics Technology I, Basic Mechatronics Specialist, Industrial Electrician, Industrial Fluid Power Technician, Industrial Motor Control Technician, Instrumentation and Controls Technician I, Instrumentation and Controls Technician II, Process Control Technician I, Programmable Control Technician I, Programmable Control Technician II and Robotic Technician.
An Instrumentation and Controls Technician 2 at Plant Bowen, Cornejo Lopez moved to the United States from Mexico at age 9 and resides in Rome.
“I had initially wanted to become an electrical engineer, but GNTC was a cost-effective alternative,” he said. “Attending GNTC worked out great, and I would do it again.”
A first-generation college graduate, Cornejo Lopez said his education at GNTC, where he attended the Floyd County Campus in Rome, has better prepared him for his career than he’d anticipated.
Before joining Georgia Power last year to be closer to home, Cornejo Lopez worked about 18 months as an electrician for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
Cornejo Lopez got his first job in the field shortly before graduating from GNTC. He started as an electrician at Mannington Mills in Calhoun, where he eventually became a senior controls technician; he was impressed that GNTC taught him on the same equipment that he used at Mannington Mills.
About two-and-a-half years ago, GNTC hired Cornejo Lopez to teach Automation Technology.
“Cesar is dedicated to teaching and always does an outstanding job for the students at GNTC,” said Wesley Runyon, Automation Technology instructor at GNTC. “He always keeps GNTC updated on the latest technological advancements he sees first-hand in his daily job at the power plant and consistently strives to help GNTC improve our program in many ways.”
Cornejo Lopez says he plans to remain at Georgia Power, learn as much as he can and advance within the company.
Spivey, a Rockmart resident, studies Automation Technology at GNTC’s Floyd County Campus and expects to graduate with his associate degree next year. He has earned certificates at GNTC in Automation and Robotics Technology I, Basic Mechatronics Specialist, Industrial Electrician, Industrial Fluid Power Technician, Industrial Motor Control Technician, Industrial Systems Fundamentals and Process Control Technician I.
Spivey said he always had a passion for electrical work.
“When I was an operator at General Shale, I became interested in Automation Technology to become better acquainted with equipment related to my position,” said Spivey, who grew up in Rome.
General Shale manufactures brick, stone, concrete block and PVC pipe.
Spivey next became an auxiliary equipment operator at Plant Bowen. After three years with Georgia Power, he transitioned into a safety role, which led him to seek additional education; he is completing a bachelor’s degree in Occupational Safety and Health Management, with a concentration on Industrial Hygiene, at Columbia Southern University.
“In my current role as a safety and health specialist, I work closely with all departments and the tasks they perform,” Spivey said. “This allows me to ensure safety measures are being taken seriously and to prevent injury to employees and damage to equipment while upholding the integrity of power generation operations.”
GNTC gave him a head start on his career and was always the top choice among colleges he considered based on his experience at the Floyd County College and Career Academy during high school, Spivey said.
He chose GNTC because it was affordable, offered many different courses in which he was interested and was close to home; his mother received her associate degree in Vascular Sonography at GNTC, he said.
“Wesley Runyon has taught me more about industrial systems than I could have learned through formal training alone,” Spivey said, adding that Runyon helped him hone his skills to communicate better with coworkers.
“In class, Lathe had a laser focus on the task at hand and has a drive to succeed that I have always admired,” Runyon said.
Spivey said he aspires to become a compliance manager with Georgia Power.
“I love my current career path because I have a passion for safety and education,” Spivey said. “Learning the best possible way to assess risks associated with job tasks and help employees stay safe was only made possible through the hands-on experience I gained at GNTC and through electrical programming.” Georgia Northwestern Technical College delivers high-quality workforce education to the citizens of northwest Georgia. Students can pursue associate degrees, diplomas and certificates in a wide range of career pathways, including aviation, business, health, industrial and public service. Over the past year, 14,082 people benefited from GNTC’s credit and noncredit programs. The college has an annual credit enrollment of 9,342 students and achieved a 100 percent placement rate. An additional 4,740 individuals are served through adult education, continuing education, business and industry training and Georgia Quick Start® programs.