Making Dreams Come True

From the spacious, second-floor veranda off Scott Womack’s Caribbean-style den, it’s easy to enjoy his beautiful view of a peaceful inlet of Eagle Mountain Lake in North Fort Worth. The retired insurance-executive-turned-marina-owner loves beautiful horizons, like the ones he sees for Tarrant County College students from the Azle-Eagle Mountain Lake area. Since 2017, Scott has established three scholarship funds through the Tarrant County College Foundation to support local high school graduates to pursue a certificate of completion or an associate degree.

After a brief stint at The University of Texas at Arlington following graduation from Azle High School, Scott ultimately enrolled at TCC Northwest, where he quickly saw the benefits of having senior faculty staff, rather than graduate students, as instructors. He also saw the bigger long-term value that education offers because students gain a wider view of the world around them.

The tall, broad-shouldered sailor credits TCC as the stepping stone to completing his four-year degree from Texas Wesleyan University in 1992. During his TCC period, he said, “I was prepared—because of the partnership between (then) Tarrant County Junior College (TCJC) and Texas Wesleyan—to step into the main courses right away. All of my class credits transferred, so I didn’t have to waste a lot of time, money and effort because class credits wouldn’t transfer to another school.”

That led to a successful, lifelong career as a leading marketing executive for Sentry Insurance Company and an ongoing dedication to learning and discovering. “At TCJC, I had fun and enlightening moments, like in my Introduction to Management class. It introduced me to management theories from proven management theorists that I was able to use in my job. It made it more interesting because I formed ideas about how I could be a good manager, and I had the academic and professional credentials that allowed me to become a leader in my company,” he said, adding that “the accounting classes helped me to understand the financial side of it. I learned things like reading profit-and-loss statements and keeping books. And I still use that knowledge today in managing my marinas.”

Like many of the Foundation’s donors, Scott also supports several local charities and public service groups because he sees the important impact their collective efforts have on students’ ability to make the most of their education to create better lives.

“I am trying to take care of the kids who live around Eagle Mountain Lake,” he said. “I believe strongly that education is the difference between someone working their lives at or near minimum wage or making a better life for themselves and their families.

“And I’m not just talking about academic degrees, that’s why I stress certificates of completion. They can be enough to help someone get their foot in the door to a good job and a good career. If you have some form of education, I think as long as you’re bringing value to a company, you can be successful,” he said. “I hope that if people who take a couple of courses see the value of the knowledge that’s available, they will continue to pursue it to achieve their success.”

To learn how to support TCC students through a Foundation scholarship, please call 817-515-5277.