Being part of Oklahoma State University Institute of Technology's CAT Dealer Prep Program is more than a career track for Cheyenne Tauss. It’s the fulfillment of skills she learned from her father on the family farm.

Tauss is deep into her CAT education at OSUIT. She’s completing her advanced level classes, learning the ins and outs of Caterpillar engines and other components of CAT machinery, while also completing her internship at Mustang CAT, a dealership in Houston.

“I grew up around diesels, and now I work on them,” Tauss said.

She was raised on a farm in Pearland, Texas, where she learned that the farm equipment that towered over her needed constant love and care.

“My dad was always working on his truck or tractor, and I got to help out,” she said.

Tauss was frequently at her father’s side while he worked on the machines. It was a fascination that her parents encouraged.

“My parents always said that I had it in me, just a natural mechanical brain. My mom always called me Tinkerbell when I was growing up,” Tauss said.

Tauss had many friends growing up, but none shared her passion for mechanical work.

“It was just my dad and me. It was our special thing,” she said.

What she gained at her father’s side was more than mechanical skill.

“I definitely think he was trying to teach me life — how to do oil changes and stuff,” she said. “I've been working on vehicles and ATVs since I was very young, and then it just went to diesels when he did oil changes on his truck or replaced his turbo. It was really cool. I felt really important.”

Tauss’s growing love and passion for diesel repair became a career aspiration. She began preparing for her future career while in high school, working at a Ford dealership and Mustang CAT. She learned about the ThinkBIG program after starting at Mustang CAT.

ThinkBIG is a two-year, accredited associate degree program that combines OSUIT classroom instruction with paid, hands-on internships at Caterpillar.

Tauss said she was surprised to learn that a university offered a diesel technician program.

“I always thought I was going to go to a trade school. I said I'd never go to college, but here I am,” she said.

Tauss has managed to balance her class work and hands-on training at OSUIT with her internship in Houston. She drives eight hours every two months to intern at Mustang CAT.

OSUIT’s CAT instructors create a hands-on learning environment that prepares their students for the conditions and demands they will encounter in their professional careers.

“They understand what goes on with these machines. They teach us just like on the job,” she said.

Through all her work and travel, Tauss remains focused, constantly learning the many intricate nuances of diesel engine repair.

“My goal is to be a sponge, like my dad would say, ‘To be a sponge and absorb all the information I can to become a better technician,’” Tauss said.