Overcoming Fear to Distribute Hope

Tamra Elliott's educational journey took her from drawing blood in Arizona to researching and creating a global COVID vaccine distribution plan through her supply chain degree program here at Blackhawk.

During her time in Arizona, she was still exploring career paths and opted to begin an Associate of Science Degree. In 2012, she and her two children moved to Wisconsin to be closer to family. The job market was challenging for her to navigate, and she finally landed a position at Miniature Precision Components in Walworth. For the next 3 ½ years, she signed up for every overtime shift she could to make ends meet. Putting her educational journey on hold, she poured everything into providing for her family.

Within a few months of starting her new position, she was offered a job in a supply chain role with no formal education or experience. "It was the most terrifying and interesting place," Tamra said of that time with the company. Unfortunately, a few years later, the position was eliminated.

"I knew right away that I wanted to stay in the supply chain field," she explained. "I also knew that it might be difficult to find a similar position with my limited experience and without an advanced education in the field. So, that is when I set out to find a school that would help me pursue my newfound aspirations."

Blackhawk Tech was just the place with a specific degree in supply chain management.

In her fourth part-time semester in the Supply Chain Management Degree Program, Tamra is taking her time through the program in an attempt to balance a full-time job, her daughter's senior year of high school, and her academic workload. Unlike many students striving to be done with college as quickly as possible, Tamra is savoring every class.

She noted, "The MyEdChoice flexible learning option is one of my favorite things about BTC. This made the goal of putting myself back into school at this stage of my life attainable."

MyEdChoice is a class delivery option at BTC that allows students to choose how they attend each class, not locking them into one delivery format. In a MyEdChoice class, students have the option to attend in the classroom at a set class time, live during class time using video conferencing, or online at any time. Students can mix and match how they attend class, picking the option (on any given class date) that works best for them.

Not long after starting her degree at BTC, Tamra accepted a position at a non-profit organization called SourceOne Alliance as the Senior Supply Chain Coordinator. "I can see myself staying with this organization for many years," she said. "But who knows what opportunities will arise in the future! I know that wherever the world takes me, I will have a quality education in a high-demand field to take with me, and there will be plenty of opportunities to apply my skills."

Her instructor, Jeff Kropp, called Tamra "a shining star among SCM students," and her final project demonstrates just that. In what is currently one of the most significant logistical challenges of modern history, Tamra explored the challenges and solutions needed to distribute a supercooled vaccine to all corners of the world.

"There is nothing fortunate about the global pandemic our world is facing," she said. "But I am thankful that my path to higher education coincidentally landed me in this course when it did, providing the opportunity to study the area of distribution and logistics in the light of this current event."

While having to keep it cold is a significant challenge, it is even more so in the world's poorest countries and remote populations of the world. Tamra researched and discussed how new technologies "like drones and solar freezers are helping solve the last mile problem in remote areas and those with significant logistical barriers."

Her advice to prospective students is that "It's O.K. to be afraid. I was terrified to go back to school in my late thirties. But I was determined because I had a motive. When you find your passion and the opportunity arises to pursue your ambitions, take action despite your fears because on the other side of those fears is where you will find the strongest version of yourself."

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