Davis Technical College (Davis Tech) graduated 122 students in eight programs today at a ceremony at the Utah Department of Corrections (UDC). These certificates pave the way for career opportunities and brighter futures upon release.
Technical skills—such as welding, machining, business, and culinary—are in demand across many industries. Incarcerated individuals who gain these skills are better equipped to secure stable jobs upon reentry, which is a key factor in reducing recidivism. Over the last three years, Davis Tech students in UDC programs have a 22% recidivism rate compared to 66% nationwide.
Utah State Senator Kathleen Riebe shared, “Research shows that education experience will increase your lifespan, civic engagement, happiness, and advocacy. You have changed the path for your loved ones as well. You have brought stability to their lives by taking these classes. This step you took will provide better futures for generations. Future generations will succeed at a higher rate because you are here today.”
Student speaker Kyle Arcurio graduated from the Business Administration and Automotive Technology. He started his presentation by comparing an F-16 flight simulation free fall from his previous career to what many students may have been feeling when they were out of control and ended up in prison, “Many of us were not afforded educational opportunities, some of us had a hard life by no fault of our own due to our family situations and upbringing, or maybe of our own doing through poor choices. Ironically, prison provided a pathway to opportunity, and we found that education is empowering.”
“All of your life experience does not define you but has refined you—making up who you are today, allowing you to choose who you are to become tomorrow.” Arcurio stated, “If you envision yourself as a member of society, as an automotive mechanic, a CNC operator, a welder, an IT guru, a business administrator, a web designer, a professional chef, or a robotics technician, you’ll begin to believe that you are a member of society…which will reinforce your confidence.”
Student speaker Kaylynn Ramos, graduating with a certificate in Automation and Robotics, states, “To us, these programs are everything. These programs heal and empower. These programs motivate and rehabilitate. These programs humanize and inspire hope.”
During the ceremony, the students provided a standing ovation to the faculty and program facilitators. Ramos continued this sentiment by saying, “I’d like to thank the educators who engage with us and facilitate our classes. Each of you could easily work somewhere else without barbed wires, without layers of security and scrutiny, and without traveling through dozens of locked gates and doors just to get to your desk. You choose not only to show up, but to show compassion and you give us gifts of even more than your time and education–you give us the respect and space to feel like students rather than numbers. To feel like people with bright futures rather than with troubled pasts.”
“What you’ve earned is more than a certificate; it’s a declaration that you are not defined by the past, but by your potential,” said Dan Powers, Davis Tech Director of Rehabilitative Programs. “As you move forward, remember that your education has equipped you with the strength to shape your path. Your journey matters, your voice matters, and the world needs your resilience, insight, and courage.”
Davis Tech and UDC partner to provide valuable skills and knowledge to help individuals transition back into their communities.
The programs offered by Davis Tech at UDC include Automation and Robotics, Automotive Technology, Business Administrative Services, Culinary Arts, CNC Machining, Information Technology, Web and Graphic Design, and Welding Technology.