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| Students at Great Bay Community College are excited to get back to school (courtesy photo) |
Plans underway to open academic center in Rochester
PORTSMOUTH –
At the start of classes this week, Great Bay Community
College is again reporting an increase in enrollment for the start of the
academic year. According to Dr.
Bruce Baker, vice president for enrollment management and student services,
enrollment numbers are expected to be up 5 percent, in keeping with the growth
trend in recent years. Lower
tuition rates, strong academically relevant programs and an environment that
supports academic success have helped to foster growing interest in the
college. Currently, GBCC offers more than thirty associate and certificate
degree programs in addition to non-credit courses and customized training
offered through their Business & Training Center.
“New students alone are up 24 percent” said Baker, “and we
continue to see an increase in our Liberal Arts programs, traditionally filled
by students looking to complete their associates degree and transfer on to a
four year program. This fall, the
Liberal Arts Engineering Science Program, Liberal Arts Biological Sciences,
Biological Sciences Transfer and Chemistry programs, as well as our new Liberal
Arts Environmental Studies program are particularly strong. Each provides a
transfer pathway program developed specifically with the University of New
Hampshire. This is particularly encouraging given our focus on increasing graduates
and transfer students in science, technology, engineering and math
(STEM).” Baker also reports that
the college’s cohorts for technical allied health programs - capped programs
that include nursing, veterinary technology and surgical technology - are all
at full capacity.
“I am excited to start the year,” said Jessie Schanck of
Dover, a first year student enrolled in the liberal arts Pre-Nursing program. A
licensed Practitioner Nurse in the Army Reserves, Schanck was encouraged to
apply for the program by her squad leader who is also at Great Bay. “After high school, my vision of
college was not well established.
Seven years later, I am so glad to be at this point. I can see my goals and I know it can be
done. The people at Great Bay that I have met don’t just love the school, they
are passionate about it!”
Twenty-three year old Marketing major Ashleigh Cronshaw of
Dover was also excited about the new semester. “I was ready to start, be with people my own age and learn
something. Getting started has
been really easy. They never made me feel rushed or pressured into doing
something that I didn’t want to do,” she said.
In addition to Liberal Arts Environmental Studies, Great Bay
has also added other new programs and initiatives this fall, including a new
Health Information Technology (HIT) Associate degree program. According to Nancy Withee, program
coordinator for the HIT program at Great Bay, HIT graduates will be able to
choose from a variety of career opportunities, including Health information
Technician, Health Information Analyst, Coding Technician, and Utilization
Review Coordinator. They can also work in a multitude of settings throughout
the healthcare industry, and graduates are also eligible to sit for the CCA
(Certified Coding Associate) or CCS (Certified Coding Specialist) exam through
the American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA).
In terms of non-credit offerings, the college continues to
offer programs designed specifically to enhance workplace preparedness. Since
starting last October, WorkReadyNH , a program funded by a grant from the New
Hampshire Job Training Fund, has seen a steady increase in enrollment. The
program is designed to provide unemployed or underemployed individuals who work
thirty hours per week or less, the training to build competitive job entry
skills. In addition to focusing on developing skills in communication and
teamwork, participants also prepare for the interview process as well.
Graduates receive a National Career Readiness Certificate.
Plans this fall are also underway for Great Bay Community
College to open an academic center in Rochester early in 2013. Last year, the Community College System
of New Hampshire was awarded a $19 million grant through the US Department of
Labor to develop training programs for advanced manufacturing. The grant involves all of the state
community colleges with Great Bay being the lead on the project. To start, the new Rochester site will
enable the college to offer a range of programs linked to industry partners
Albany Engineered Composites, Inc. and Safran Aerospace Composites - global
leaders in advanced composite manufacturing for the aerospace industry.
“This partnership will significantly impact the local
economy by providing our workforce training and education for middle skill
career opportunities in advanced manufacturing,” said Dr. Will Arvelo,
president of GBCC. “These are the jobs of the future. They will require strong
communication, analytical, math, technical and team building skills, and they are
the jobs that will advance the economy in New Hampshire and keep us competitive
on both a regional and global stage.”
For more information on Great Bay Community College, visit
www.greatbay.edu
