Former steelworker charts new beginning, earns OHIO degree after job loss
Marty Conley worked in factories for two decades before a devastating layoff left his future uncertain. Two years later, Conley is a graduate of Ohio University Southern, employed with the Lawrence County Convention and Visitor’s Bureau, and photographing well-known musical acts and one of the top teams in collegiate basketball. Photo by Angy Ross
Marty Conley, BSAM ’19, still remembers how it felt to leave the AK Steel factory on his last day. Granted, it wasn’t the first time he had been laid off in his 20 years of factory work, but this one felt different.
“When I walked out for the last time, I thought, Wow, I’m stepping out of history,” Conley said. “I was 43 and I didn’t know what I was going to do. What am I going to be when I grow up?”
Conley worked at AK Steel for more than 10 years in the operations sector of its Ashland, Kentucky plant. There, he maintained the consistency of the molten zinc bath that coated the steel. In his time there, he saw firsthand what the company and those jobs meant to the tight-knit community.
“In this area, you probably know someone in your family who was working or had worked at AK Steel,” Conley said. “You can imagine how many meals that place put on dinner tables.”
Conley knew that he was going to be laid off before it happened, but that did little to ease his mind. The days that followed were filled with plenty of uncertainty, and Conley was worried for his family.
“I’m a parent; I have children. I had to remain positive for them and continue to move on,” Conley said. “I didn’t want them to think, what’s dad going to do for work?”
As Conley thought more about his future, he started to contemplate a change. His son, Jake, had earned an associate degree in electronic media from Ohio University Southern, and Conley already knew some of the faculty there. Naturally curious, Conley had logged a few college credit hours over the years but had never earned his degree.
“My wife had gone back to school later in life to be an elementary school teacher, so I thought, maybe I need a new direction,” he said.
Marty Conley, BSAM ’19, is pictured at the University of Kentucky’s Kroger Field. When Conley isn’t working at the Lawrence County Convention and Visitor’s Bureau and tending to family obligations, he’s photographing area high school, college and professional sports events, as well as local concerts.
On Conley’s first day of classes at Ohio University Southern, a fellow student asked him for directions thinking he was an instructor.
“It was my first day, too,” Conley recalled with a laugh. “I was just a freshman.”
In some ways, Conley was fighting a battle for his education on two fronts; not only did he have to learn the material, but he also had to get comfortable using the technology that was ingrained into the curriculum. He had always kept up with computers but, as he explained, certain elements posed a bigger challenge.
“Learning the technology itself is a whole different thing, especially when you’re trying to get acclimated to the coursework on top of that,” Conley said.
As a non-traditional student, Conley also had to juggle his education and his obligations to his family.
Through it all, he said, the staff at Ohio University Southern went above and beyond to answer his questions and work with his schedule. When the opportunity came for Conley to pay that kindness forward, he jumped at the chance. For almost a year, he worked as a student ambassador on the campus, acting as a peer mentor to incoming Bobcats.
“That’s something I wanted to do to give back,” Conley said. “If there was a student coming in for a tour or maybe even a parent coming in with a student, I was able to answer those questions from both perspectives.”
Conley graduated this summer with a bachelor degree in applied management and since February has been working at the Lawrence County Convention and Visitor’s Bureau. Over the summer, he took 18 credit hours to finish up his degree while also learning all about the Lawrence County region in his new position.
“When it opened up, I thought to myself, this is the kind of position you’ve been wanting to work in,” he said. “It’s a great opportunity to help people and network. When that door opened, I couldn’t pass it up.”
Though the last few years have been a whirlwind for Conley, he’s still found time to pursue one of his passions: photography. He’s taken concert pictures of country superstars like Luke Combs and Old Dominion as a freelance photographer for local media outlets, and sits courtside capturing photos at basketball games for the University of Kentucky. He’s even been invited to watch the March Madness Selection Show at UK basketball coach John Calipari’s house.
“Being a sports guy and a music guy, I saw the opportunity to combine and document those two interests,” he said. “It follows me everywhere I go.”
A strong work ethic and lots of resilience have helped Conley navigate shifting terrain, and he thinks his journey since being laid off has made him a better man.
“I hope that I’ve shown my kids to never let hardships get you down,” he said. “Life throws you curveballs, but you’ve got to readjust and get back in the box.”