Patti Williams, Tyler Junior College surveying and geomatics professor, has been named Educator of the Year by the Surveying and Geomatic Educators Society (SaGES).
Williams was presented with the award during the group’s bi-annual conference held at the University of Calgary in Alberta, Canada.
“I have been a member of SaGES since 1989, and it has been a rewarding experience,” Williams said. “The society is an international community where we share everything, including the best programmed calculators, textbooks, lecture videos and ideas.”
In 1973, Williams was the first female student to be enrolled in the TJC surveying program; and in 1982, she was only the second female in the state to obtain her surveying license.
She joined the TJC surveying faculty in 1985, after working as a surveyor for Exxon Mobil in Houston.
“I started off in surveying because of my aptitude for research and mathematics,” she said. “I also love boundary surveying, which is what we have earned a reputation for in our department. It is as if I am being paid to solve puzzles for a living — what fun!”
About the TJC program
The TJC Surveying and Geomatics program is the longest-running program in the state, with graduates going immediately into high-paying jobs in a variety of industries.
Students learn the basic elements of surveying required of a land surveyor as well as part of the formal training required for a professional license.
The program emphasizes boundary surveying and includes history, legal principles of boundary location, evaluating property corners, describing the land, calculating land areas, and using the Texas Coordinate System, computer mapping and geographic information systems.
Students also learn mapping, route surveying, control surveying, the Global Positioning System (GPS), electronic data collection and get an introduction to 3D laser scanning.
For more information, go to TJC.edu/Surveying.