Making it Happen at GCC - From Tank Driver to Honors Student

Monday, October 26, 2020
Proud Gaucho, Dean Yeager, outside the Veteran Services Center, GCC Main Campus

After 26 years active duty in the U. S. Army, Dean Yeager is finding his future at Glendale Community College.

Originally from the Sacramento California area, Dean joined the Army and spent his first seven years in a M1 A1/A2 Abrams as a driver, gunner and finally commander. He moved into Logistics for a few years and finished out his enlistment in Mortuary Affairs.

A few years after being honorably discharged, he was working with his Vocational Rehab Counselor, and he expressed how much he enjoyed his second job in the Army, logistics. The precision and need for detailed procedures appealed to him. Dean lives in Glendale, Arizona, and based on this and his interests, his counselor suggested that he go to GCC and then transfer to ASU West. Dean agreed and gave Glendale Community College a try. He worked with his advisor in the GCC Veterans Services Center and they mapped out a pathway that will give Dean all the classes he needs to transfer seamlessly over to ASU West.  

Right now he is taking Managerial Accounting, Business Calculus, Macroeconomics and Geology. The last one is just for fun. I’ve always been somewhat of a rock hound.” Dean said, and adding. “I’ve collected rocks from all over the United States and everywhere I’ve been stationed, including Germany, Belgium, Bulgaria, Afghanistan, Iraq and South Korea. I even have a rock that I got from the bottom of Lake Pleasant the first time I went scuba diving.   

Dean has a natural talent for logistics and enjoys math, so a degree in Supply Chain Management seemed a natural fit. His aptitude, drive and knowledge are borne out by his success at GCC. He is a member of the GCC Honors Program the national Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society, plus he recently received an Outstanding Student Achievement award which is given to remarkable students who have been nominated by instructors.   

When asked about his time at GCC, he said, “My instructors have all been great and that has kept me here. I could have transferred to ASU West a while ago but I enjoy GCC so much that I decided to stick around here.”

During his free time, Dean likes riding his modded-out Harley Davidsons, scuba diving and volunteering his time at the GCC Veterans Services Center. Stop by the Veterans Services Center stop by for a chat with Dean. He’ll explain how you can get your future started at GCC or he will tell you what it was like to tour Europe on a Harley.

The Glendale Community College Veterans Services Center is a one-stop shop for veterans and their dependents who want to improve their life through higher education. GCC provides a wide range of academic opportunities, from certificates of completion to degrees and from refresher classes to getting credits as they work towards transferring to a university, starting a career or climbing the ladder at their current workplace.

Glendale Community College has two locations serving the west valley, 6000 West Olive Ave in Glendale and 5727 West Happy Valley Road in Phoenix.