Otter Changes Role at Northwest Tech

Otter Changes Role at Northwest Tech Goodland, KS. (01/05/23) - Frank Otter has been a part of the Northwest Tech board since the days of high school kids tight rolling their jeans and Boys II Men producing Billboard Top hits. For the past three decades, Otter has made the monthly trip from his home in Clayton, KS, to participate in the Northwest Tech board meetings in Goodland. He recently stepped down from the college board and is now welcomed as the newest member of the Endowment Association Board of Directors.

Northwest Tech President, Ben Schears, is excited to see Mr. Otter's service to the college continue through the new endowment role. "Frank is an incredible guy and has given decades of service to the college in several different ways," said Schears. "We miss him on the college board, but excited that he was willing to stay on and help the college through the Endowment Association."

Even before his service on the board, Otter had ties to the college dating back to 1979 when he graduated from the Electronics program.

His father, Marion Otter, served on the Area Board of Control during Frank's time as a student at the college. Years later, he would follow in his father's footsteps when he returned to Northwest Tech and began his time on the Area Board of Control in 1992. During his tenure on the board, his son Josh graduated from the Electronics program in 2004. Frank began working his way up, contributing to meetings as the secretary, before becoming board president from 2010-2017.

Throughout his time on the board, Otter was a part of the reconstruction of the Communications Technology program as technology advanced and the program needed to be updated. He also positively promoted the addition of athletics to the campus of Northwest Tech in 2010. This led to the successful diversification of the campus, inviting students from all over the country and world to pursue higher education at Northwest Tech. A few years later, he was chairman of the board when the Apple Ipad initiative was launched, which enabled access to a wide range of educational resources and tools anytime, anywhere.

"I would tell people if they want to be involved with anything going on in the world right now, they need to step up and get involved in your community." said Otter, "It is very well worth your time. You will learn a lot about yourself and the organization."

Otter served at his last Area Board of Control meeting in the fall of 2022. His new role with the Endowment Association board began in January of 2023. Moving forward, Otter remains committed to Northwest Tech through his service on the Welding Advisory committee and Endowment board.