Lon Haught

From Uncertain to Unstoppable

In high school, Lon Haught was on a vocational training path, but as graduation neared, he questioned his future plans to become a machinist. Becoming a registered nurse appealed to him more, and he knew he needed to pursue his education at a place where he could make the transition. Cuyahoga Community College (Tri-C^®) seemed like the right fit.

"Because I'd never taken any kind of college preparatory courses, I needed a place to start, pretty much from zero, so I chose Tri-C," Haught said. "My family didn't have a lot of money, so I had to put myself through college. I was brought up not to go into debt any more than you had to, so Tri-C allowed me to start my profession relatively inexpensively, and later, the hospital I worked for paid for most of my continued education."

Haught earned an associate degree in nursing at Tri-C, received his registered nurse license, and got a bachelor's degree from Cleveland State University. He built a career in critical care settings, currently as an intensive care unit nurse at the Cleveland Clinic.

"I passed the boards on the first try, and the foundations for learning I obtained at Tri-C prepared me for my bachelor's degree," he said. "I learned above all that you get out of an education what you put into it. I studied hard and got good grades, and I tried to choose courses that would be practical in the long run."

Haught strongly encourages students to connect with the Tri-C Transfer Center early if they intend to advance their education — especially if they know where they might pursue a bachelor's degree.
And, even as he excelled in nursing, he was thinking ahead toward what he might do next.

"I had thoughts about possibly opening a business or something later, so I chose economics for some of my courses rather than more traditional social studies courses," he said.

Haught also returned to Tri-C for real estate courses.

"The real estate and economic courses I took put me in good standing for investing, and I've acquired several rental properties," he said. "I've built a respectable retirement account for myself."
Haught urges others to think about Tri-C as a foundation for a later academic career or profession — especially for individuals like him who want to explore multiple educational paths.