ITTA BENA, Miss.—When Demontra Ewing enrolled at Mississippi Valley State University in 2014, he felt his career opportunities in Engineering Technology would be limited.
Fast forward four years later and the West Point High School graduate is now a college graduate and working for one of the largest tool manufacturers in the world— Milwaukee Electric Tool Corporation.
Ewing serves as a production engineer for Milwaukee Tool in Greenwood.
“Initially, I figured I would land a job as a maintenance tech or engineering tech. The job I have now is more than I could ever expect. Coming from MVSU only made me appreciate this opportunity more,” said Ewing.
The course work at MVSU is something Ewing is appreciative of along with the flexibility offered by his professors.
“Several of my departmental courses tied directly into the work I’ve been doing,” Ewing said. “MVSU worked with me so that I could continue to work at Milwaukee Tool as an intern and finish classes.”
“The internship allowed me to apply what I learned in school in a real-world situation,” he added.
Ewing said that the learning culture in MVSU’s Department of Engineering Technology, coupled with the support from the faculty, is what helped to build a strong foundation for him.
“The professors in the engineering technology department always encouraged us to excel academically. Mr. (Antonio) Brownlow specifically was passionate about his students and what he did as an academic advisor,” said Ewing.
“He would take time to meet with students individually and discuss career opportunities and life goals. He took the time to develop relationships with students, and that is what set him apart from everyone else, in my opinion,” he added.
Brownlow, who is the acting chair of Engineering Technology, said Ewing was a student who never slacked on his work.
“Demontra came to us because he had a cousin who came through the department and something I noticed about both of them was their work ethic,” said Brownlow. “They worked hard and listened to the advice that was shared.”
Looking back on his journey through MVSU, Ewing said that if he had to advise younger students about one thing, he would encourage them to stay focused.
“I would tell any freshman coming into MVSU to stay focused and don’t get caught up in any distractions,” he said. “MVSU is a great institution that can help you to start a great career. You can only get out what you put in, so put your all in so you can get everything out,” he said.