Wider Horizons

The Scotney family’s presence at Lethbridge College cannot be underestimated. “It’s always been a practical environment as far as the education, hands-on learning, and equipping people with real-world skills for real-world problems,” said Shawn Scotney – one of 11 in his family to have either worked at or attended the college.

The Scotney list includes Shawn (Carpentry 1995 and currently an instructor in the Carpentry apprenticeship program); his wife, Isabel (Fashion Design and Merchandising 1988 and a past member of the program advisory committee); his daughter, Victoria (Psychology student 2015); his son, Matthew (Civil Engineering Technology 2014); his brother, Steven (Business Administration 1991); his mother, Sharon (a sessional nursing instructor); his step-mother, Shirley, (an employee in the Continuing Education program); and his father, Doug, who acted as VPA and in various director and advisory roles over three decades at the college, beginning in 1975. Shawn Scotney also has a cousin, Troy (Business Administration 2007 and a past staff representative to the Board of Governors) who currently works in Accounting Services, and two nieces – Amanda Lenz-Zmurchyk (Nursing 2016) and Sarah Lenz-Koch (Business Administration – Accounting 2012) – who graduated from the college.

Shawn attributes part of his family’s sizeable presence at the college to convenience, but also explains that the college is a community that provides a solid foundation for career goals and professional aspirations. “My kids could stay at home and go to school,” Shawn says. “I have always known the college. We moved to Lethbridge when I was four because my dad got a job in the Continuing Education department.”

Shawn says he chose the college because he knew he wanted to be a carpenter, and it was an easy choice to make. “First and foremost, I think the atmosphere here makes us different. It’s a community, and the instructors make the student experience a priority. You get a more grounded education,” he says. “It’s as close to a real-world experience as you’re going to get. You walk around the college and there are students in and out of the offices all the time. With our students, they’re all part of a family.”

Shawn Scotney

(Carpentry 1995)

Instructor in Lethbridge College’s Carpentry apprenticeship program

 


Isabel Scotney

(Fashion Design student and Alumni Advisory Committee 1988)

Owner of Isabel’s Designs, custom sewing and alterations

 


Matthew Scotney

(Civil Engineering Technology 2014)

Assistant project manager with Alberta Infrastructure

 


Victoria Scotney

(General Studies – Psychology and Sociology student 2015)

Currently completing a psychology degree at University of British

Columbia – Okanagan

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Wider Horizons
Story by Mel Lefebvre | Photos Meagan Rachelle Photography
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