ANC Board Approves Construction of Center for Allied Technologies

ANC BOARD APPROVES CONSTRUCTION OF CENTER FOR ALLIED TECHNOLOGIES

Members of the Arkansas Northeastern College Board of Trustees gathered for their regularly scheduled meeting on Wednesday, April 15, 2015, where they approved the financing plan and construction of the new Center for Allied Technologies. The Board’s action follows commitments made by the ANC Foundation Board of Governors at their Spring meeting on April 9 of $325,000 toward construction and $250,000 toward equipment. The College anticipates an annual cost savings of $100,000 through consolidating the Harry L. Crisp, Aircraft & Metals Engineering (ACME), and Burdette Centers which the new facility will replace.

The proposed facility will be located on the ANC Main Campus just south of the Angela Wren Nursing & Allied Health Building. The new center will feature the headquarters for The Solutions Group, including general purpose classrooms, electrical classroom & lab, mechanical classroom/lab, safety classroom/lab, HVAC classroom & lab, computer classroom, and large multi-purpose room. A world-class welding laboratory will serve secondary, post-secondary, and customized training needs. Also featured will be an aircraft hangar/lab, combination non-destructive testing (NDT) & composites laboratory, and general purpose classrooms to fully accommodate the aviation maintenance program, both secondary and post-secondary. In addition to welding and aviation maintenance, Secondary/Technical Center students from our area high schools also will be served on the Main Campus by classroom & lab facilities for advanced manufacturing, criminal justice, education, and construction/carpentry. Medical professions secondary training will be delivered at the existing Wren building to co-locate with the other allied health professions.

According to ANC President Dr. James Shemwell, the location of the center is strategic in that it represents a plan to rebrand professions, as well as college education for high-demand, well-paying professions, in the minds of young people, parents, teachers, and the general public by locating the facilities where most people associate as “college.” Additionally, the center would be located within walking distance from the Department of Workforce Services, more commonly referred to as the “unemployment office.” Architectural & engineering work, including a comprehensive campus drainage plan, is anticipated to require one year, followed by a two-year construction timetable. The projected grand opening for the new Center is August 2018.