U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown, Mansfield native, addresses NCSC graduation Friday

North Central State College graduated 357 area residents Friday night and 73 of those students received their associate's degrees before getting their high school diplomas in the next week or two.

U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, and a Mansfield native, gave the commencement address to graduates who packed the Ohio State University-Mansfield/NCSC Campus Recreation Center at 7 p.m. Friday.

He opened his speech with a humorous story about giving a speech one day and a man in the audience told his wife he hated Brown's raspy voice, not knowing the woman was his wife.

"She said, 'I really like his voice.... I really like it when he wakes me up in the middle of the night and says, "I love you baby,'" he said, referring to his wife Connie Schultz.

A true story, he said, getting laughs.

Brown, who graduated from Mansfield Senior High School, lauded the NCSC class of 2023 graduates including engineers, nurses, computer science, health care workers, business professionals, leaders who will guide the community and the state into the future.

"And I can't imagine Ohio in better hands," he said.

Brown said 200 of the 357 graduates graduated with honors.

"Twenty of you are graduating from the ground-breaking bachelor's in mechanical engineering technology program," Brown said.

He also said he doesn't think there is a better group of people to get a fair shot than community colleges.

"Along the way to today's celebration, some of you have cared for parents, grandparents, you've brought children with you and you're raising children, many times with jobs as you struggle and get your education. Some of you served our country ... as members of the armed forces.

"That's why community colleges and technical colleges are so important. They serve everyone. They meet students where they are no matter what path you take or when you take it," Brown said.

He said all the graduates have so much to be proud of.

"I challenge anyone who's ever called this community or this state the rust belt," Brown said, asking people to visit the NCSC tool and die center, or watch the engineering students race the electric vehicles.

"... Hear from the nursing students preparing to join the front lines of our health care systems," he said.

Brown said the future of the economy is here in the heartland, something their parents and grandparents knew all along.

"You're graduating at an exciting time for our state and for our country," Brown said. "We're putting in place, finally for this country, an industrial policy that recognizes that talent is everywhere. You just have to care enough to look," he said.

Brown said the technology of the future including semiconductors and electrical vehicles will be developed and made in Ohio.

"Everything we do is about giving you the opportunity to put the degrees you earned today to work," he said. "As we do that more and more Ohioans are going to be able to build a life and a future together."

Dorey Diab, president of NCSC, told graduates their completion of a significant goal is recognition of their hard work, commitment and personal sacrifice.

Graduate plans next to get job, get bachelor's degree in forensics

Christina Andreasson, 38, of Mansfield, graduated Friday night with an associate's degree in cyber security. She plans to find a job and continue her education and pursue a bachelor's degree in forensics.

Surrounded by her parents and her children, Gavin Fulk, 7, and Thalia Fulk, 9, said she was so excited to achieve her degree.

Her father John said Christina is the first one in the family to achieve a college degree.

lwhitmir@gannett.com

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Twitter: @LWhitmir

This article originally appeared on Mansfield News Journal: Seventy-three NCSC grads get associate's degrees before h.s. diploma