With over 25 years of experience in IT, Torry Crass always wanted to earn a bachelor’s degree, but his demanding jobs in cybersecurity made it difficult to make room for courses. Between his career, military service, and volunteer activities, he needed a program that would work with his schedule rather than against it.
Torry found it in the UW-Milwaukee Bachelor of Science in Information Science and Technology (IST) offered through UW Flexible Option and completed his degree in spring 2023 using credits from an earlier try at college. Right before his graduation, the Wisconsin native was hired to work in an executive-level position for the state of North Carolina, where he now oversees cybersecurity initiatives throughout the state.
Whenever he faced challenges in the 100 percent online program, Torry received plenty of support and guidance from Jenna Swartz and the Success Coaching team.
“They made a huge difference in both the value I came away with from the program as well as navigating the sometimes complex policies and options that can exist,” he said. “I can’t express enough the positive impact they’ve had on my experience and success in the program.”
Torry’s dedication led him to finishing the IST program with a 3.5 GPA. By completing his bachelor’s degree, he opened new doors for his education and hopes to one day earn a master’s degree. Not only this, but the program’s affordability allowed him to graduate completely debt-free.
Learn more about Torry’s experience in the IST program below:
“Look Mom, I finally did it: I graduated with a 4-year degree thanks to the UW Flexible Option! I chose UWM and the Information Science and Technology program through UW Flex for a few important reasons.
First and most important—flexibility. When I began the program as a nontraditional student, I was already tackling demanding jobs. These jobs meant that the ability to work on coursework at my own pace rather than on a rigid schedule was essential. Without this, I likely would have had to discontinue the program long ago or quite possibly have failed completely.
I’ve been extremely fortunate to advance as far as I have prior to receiving a 4-year degree, but the need to continue—and complete—what I had started in the fall of 1997 was both a personal goal and one that I knew would help with future opportunities.
Today, I have the amazing opportunity to serve as the State Chief Risk Officer for the state of North Carolina with responsibility for overseeing cybersecurity initiatives across the state—a job I started just days before heading to graduation in Milwaukee.
Being able to finally list a completed 4-year degree on my job application was the result of a great program and great experience through UW Flexible Option and the IST program. You might say, ‘Sure, that’s what degrees do, right?’ This isn’t always the case, and many times in the program, I was on the edge of failure. But perseverance and support from Success Coaches always came through, and as a team we made it to this finish line.
The major challenge was balancing a busy career in cybersecurity with classes. Technology jobs often come with long hours and unpredictable scheduling—mine were no exception. In addition, any ‘free’ time I had already competed with more than its share of volunteer activities that were personally important to me. To point out just a few:
- Military service in the South Carolina State Guard, which includes helping put on the largest unclassified cybersecurity exercise called Cyber Shield
- Serving on the board of directors for a community-focused cybersecurity conference known as BSides Charlotte
- Leading the InfraGard National Members Alliance Cyber Camp Program, which works with chapters around the country to put on week-long cybersecurity camps designed to promote interest in STEM careers for high school students
- Teaching cybersecurity at The Citadel for two weeks during the summer for National Guard training
All while also attending school.
These activities provided me experience that helped with a variety of coursework tasks, and that same coursework also provided refinement of my existing skills, things I was able to bring back to these various activities. Who would have thought it possible to both be taking a class and using real-life experience to complete the coursework while using bits of the course to enhance those out-of-school activities?
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“The flexibility, quality, and affordability of what UW Flexible Option has to offer made this an incredible opportunity for me to finally complete my 4-year degree and begin to look forward to master’s programs in the future.”
Ironically, while I was engaged in public speaking activities outside of school—including for a Carter Center initiative on fair, safe, and secure elections where I was sharing cybersecurity expertise—I was also on my third attempt after appeal to complete the Introduction to Public Speaking course, the very thing I was doing as part of my career.
Retakes saved the day, and even with my experience it was extremely beneficial to have such flexibility for when school and other priorities collided in ways that ended up with my coursework temporarily losing out, and I just couldn’t get the material across the finish line.
Through all these efforts, I was also looking for a school that was more than just a proverbial ‘piece of paper’ accomplishment. A degree and program with a reputation that I could be proud to be a part of throughout my attendance and subsequent graduation was important to me.
Having grown up in northern Wisconsin where the graduating class size at Phelps High School is almost never beyond 20 students in a year, I had always been aware of the Universities of Wisconsin and knew there were great schools and programs that were a part of it.
The UW Flexible Option program offered me an opportunity to return to my roots in Wisconsin and attend UW-Milwaukee in pursuit of an IST degree. While I initially chose to start my college career at the University of Kansas for a degree in Astronomy, life’s twists and turns simply weren’t seeing fit to allow me to finish that pursuit. In contrast, the UW Flexible Option degree program—with its structured All-You-Can-Learn [tuition model]—was a windfall a few times, allowing for focused bursts of effort that helped get me to the goal of finishing an IST degree.
Let’s face it: college costs are significant and certainly something I was looking at as well. The program’s cost was so affordable in comparison to other programs that I was able to cover tuition costs out-of-pocket without a need to take out potentially expensive student loans. Instead, I was able to budget enough money term over term to graduate with absolutely no student debt!
The flexibility, quality, and affordability of what UW Flexible Option has to offer made this an incredible opportunity for me to finally complete my 4-year degree and begin to look forward to master’s programs in the future. I can, without a doubt, recommend this program to anyone looking to pursue and complete their degree. I’m honored and excited to finally be a UW- Milwaukee alumni!”
Want to learn more about the Information Science and Technology degree? Call an enrollment adviser at 608-800-6762 or send an email to flex@uwex.wisconsin.edu for more information.
