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TERRA SUCCESS
Tammy Calhoun

Sometimes a little education is all it takes to get started. That’s the case for Tammy Calhoun. The Greeley, Colo. native began taking classes at Terra Community College in 2001 with a goal in mind. She’s met that objective even though she is still working on finishing her degree.

“It was not a job I had hoped to gain from my Terra education,” Calhoun said. “My goal was to start my own business in Website Design. I attended my courses and continued to work a full-time job during the day. After I completed the course and felt comfortable enough in my abilities, I began to freelance in the evenings for area businesses. In August of 2003, I left my job and began working for myself full time.”

Now, as the owner/designer of ZI Design, she says she does it all, from design to bookkeeping to sales. And Terra helped her get there.

“The courses were excellent and very thorough,” Calhoun said. “Marty Loughlin is an excellent instructor and I felt that I gained a ton of knowledge from her. She gave me the motivation to continue with my goal. Having been out of school for close to 15 years and then returning was a big challenge for me.”

For those students who are pursuing a similar path, she has some advice.

“Continue to learn,” she said. “Don’t stop learning even when you think you know it all. Technology changes everyday and the best thing you can do is to continue learning. It may seem like a very glamorous career field but it can be very challenging to balance the needs of customers and producing quality designs that you are proud of.”

Calhoun is still working toward a degree in Digital Media Technology at Terra.

“I have truly enjoyed my classes at Terra and am very comfortable in the classroom settings,” she said.

Calhoun lives in Fremont with husband, Rodney, son Brady and daughter Paxton.