(US and Canada) Dr. Andy Igonor, Associate Dean, College of IT, WGU Ohio, talks with Dr. K.L Allen, Chancellor WGU, Ohio, about how the university changes people’s lives. 

Igonor serves as Associate Dean and Director of Academic Programs at Western Governors University. His areas of responsibility are IT and cloud computing. Before WGU, Igonor shares, he worked for a smaller institution in Columbus, Ohio, as the Dean of the College of Business at Franklin University, where he oversaw business and IT programs. His career spans at least a couple of decades, mainly in the era of IT, cybersecurity, and cloud computing. He feels privileged to have worked in a variety of countries.

He says it’s exciting to be at WGU because it’s a university that’s changing lives. What he has done in the past over so many years, he notes, naturally converges into what he does today at WGU. 

Igonor recalls he recognized his passion for IT when he realized how much he loves solving problems. Problem solving involves critical thinking and it’s innovation driven. And if you look around, there is always something that involves IT, including cell phones and Zoom, used to communicate and collaborate. So, IT is at the center of innovation, and we’re seeing it even in different industries like airlines, manufacturing, banking, and finance. There’s always something new in IT, he shares. 

At WGU, technology provides opportunities for people to learn on their own time and do assessments on their own, Igonor notes. WGU gives them the flexibility and ability to take charge of their lives and manage them. And while WGU supports them throughout that process, it’s still technology-mediated and technology-driven. 

Igonor advises those going into the field of IT to remember success isn’t something tangible. Physical success is a mindset that starts with a conviction that you can do it. So, he encourages people to keep their minds open, open their hearts, and tell themselves they can do it.

Every single person was born with a modicum of knowledge, Igonor continues. People in IT are not more intelligent than you; the people who have done IT they’re not better than you. And it has nothing to do with your skin color. When you tell yourself you can be successful in IT, it means you’ve already broken down that barrier. 

Don’t stand in the way of your own success, Igonor emphasizes. “You can do it! It’s not going to be easy, but you can do it once you decide you can!”