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When I graduated from high school, I had no idea of what I was going to do. I had no direction and wasn’t a good student in school. Certainly not good enough to go to college. I would have failed.

In 1963, there were no community colleges where I lived. There were technical high schools but I graduated from a regular four-year high school. There were apprenticeship programs available for the trades but I didn’t know about them.

In 1957, the North Carolina Legislature adopted the first Community College Act. Beaufort County Technical Institute was chartered in 1967 and had its first graduating class in 1968. The name was changed to Beaufort County Community College (BCCC) in 1979 and has grown by leaps and bounds since then.

If I had furthered my education, BCCC is the type of place I would have wanted to attend. It has filled a giant void in education.

In 1963, Career Technical Education (CTE) did not exist in high schools. CTE offers a head start on career pathways for students interested in career opportunities following high school. This would have been a great help to me because I found most of school boring.

At my school, I could choose a general or college preparatory curriculum. The list of opportunities at Beaufort County Public Schools is endless compared to the opportunities I had in 1963.

Today and back in 1963, the military is a good way to start your life after high school if you really don’t know what you want to do. I did that in 1963 when I joined the United States Air Force. I got out in four years but it can turn into a career.

Before they accepted me, they required me to take an aptitude test to see where I fit. My highest score was in the electrical and mechanical categories. They told me I would end up in a job in one of the two categories based on their needs at the time.

After I completed basic training, I was reassigned to Keesler Air Force Base in Mississippi for training. I completed electronic and AC & W Radar classroom training in about a year.

Upon completion, I was shipped to Gibbsboro Air Force Station where I received on-the-job training and served as an AC & W Radar Technician. I finished my four years in the Air Force at St. Anthony Air Force Station in Northern Newfoundland.

After being discharged I wondered what I was going to do. The next day, a man knocked on my parent’s house door and offered me a job working as an electro-mechanical technician. My military technical training definitely helped.

Today’s military is less than half the size it was in 1963. It has become a highly technical advanced fighting force and requires many different skills. It is also a totally volunteer force.

If college isn’t for you, I highly recommend the military. The opportunities are endless compared to 1963. It’s a wonderful place to develop a career or skills that will benefit you later in life.

For me, serving my country was an honor.

Al Klemm is a Washington resident and a former Beaufort County Commissioner.