Mississippi County Electric Cooperative, Inc. Donates $25,000 Toward New ANC Center for Allied Technologies

Photo (L to R) Mississippi County Electric Cooperative, Inc. board member Neil Burge, President/CEO Brad Harrison, and board member David Wildy, present ANC President Dr. James Shemwell with a check for $25,000 to be used toward the construction of Arkansas Northeastern College's Center for Allied Technologies.

April 26, 2018 – Arkansas Northeastern College’s Center for Allied Technologies project received another boost from local business as representatives of the Mississippi County Electric Cooperative, Inc. presented a check for $25,000 to ANC President Dr. James Shemwell today.

“As we come to the final stages of construction on our new Center for Allied Technologies, we are so very pleased to have the Mississippi County Electric Cooperative donate toward the project. The fact that the College itself is not a customer of the MCEC utility company, shows how important they view the economic development work we are doing here for the citizens of this area. MCEC recognizes the value of education and has long been a supporter of educational initiatives in this county,” stated Shemwell.

For their donation to the new facility, MCEC will have naming rights to a general classroom.  

Construction of ANC Center for Allied Technologies began this spring and is scheduled to be completed in time for Fall classes in August 2018. The facility will provide students with more opportunities to learn in an atmosphere that will simulate real world work environments, where spaces and equipment are designed with the curriculum in mind. This facility will be a focal point for not only the campus, but the community as the 90,000 square foot building will boast beautiful architectural lines with the highest technological advances incorporated into the plans. 

MCEC has been a longtime supporter of Arkansas Northeastern College. “We are so very appreciative to have the support of companies like the Mississippi County Electric Cooperative,” said Shemwell, citing a long relationship with the company that includes years of support to ANC Foundation events.

The Center for Allied Technologies, to be located on the ANC Main Campus, will actually decrease the College’s overall facilities by 30,000 square feet by consolidating the Burdette Center, Harry L. Crisp Center, and the Aircraft Metals and Engineering (ACME) Center—with an estimated costs savings for the College of approximately $100,000 a year in maintenance.  This new facility will feature a headquarters for the College’s customized training force—The Solutions Group, including general purpose classrooms, electrical classroom & lab, mechanical classroom/lab, safety classroom/lab, heating, ventilation and air conditioning classroom & laboratory, computer classroom, and large multi-purpose room. Additionally, a world-class welding laboratory will be available for students.

Technical-Secondary Center students from area high schools also will be served by this facility through classroom & laboratories for advanced manufacturing, welding, criminal justice, education, and construction/carpentry.  The design incorporates a computer lab for the Technical-Secondary Center. Also featured is an aircraft hangar/lab, combination non-destructive testing (NDT) & composites laboratory, and general purpose classrooms to fully accommodate ANC’s Federal Aviation Administration—certified Aviation Maintenance Program.

ANC at the Arkansas SkillsUSA Competition

(L-R) Justin Lee, Malory Ennis, and David Carney

April 20, 2018 – The Arkansas Northeastern College Technical Center at Burdette took 15 high school competitors to the Arkansas SkillsUSA State Competitions last week in Hot Springs, Arkansas.  ANC Tech Center’s Crime Scene Investigation Team consisting of Justin Lee of Armorel School District, and David Carney and Malory Ennis of Rivercrest School District placed 2nd in the CSI Competition, and Miss Abby Barnett of East Poinsett County High School placed 2nd in the First Aid & CPR Competition.

SkillsUSA is a partnership of students, teachers and industry working together to ensure America has a skilled workforce. SkillsUSA helps each student excel, and is a national nonprofit organization serving teachers and high school and college students who are preparing for careers in trade, technical and skilled service occupations, including health occupations. The ANC Technical Center offers Skills memberships to all of its students, and encourages Club involvement, even sending students to the National competition in years past.

For more information about the ANC Technical Center, please visit www.anc.edu/technicalcenter/ or call 870-763-1468.

(L-R) Justin Lee, David Carney, and Malory Ennis

Abby Barnett

ANC TRiO Goes to Washington

Pictured L to R: Tonya Harris, ANC Director of TRiO Educational Opportunity Center and Educational Talent Search and Brooke Siegler, ETS Advisor, meet in Washington DC to promote the importance of the TRiO programs.

March 12-14, 2018 Arkansas Northeastern College TRIO personnel Tonya Harris, Director ETS/EOC, and Brooke Siegler, ETS Education Advisor, attended the 34^th Annual Seminar on Relations with the U.S. Department of Education (DOED) and the 38^th Annual Policy Seminar with the Council for Opportunity in Education.

On March 12, the DOED Seminar provided informative sessions, panel discussions, and guest speakers from the DOED sessions included meetings with DOED Program Officers, an Insider’s View of the U.S. DOED, Using Data to Improve TRIO Programs, and Creating Policy and Procedure Manuals.  The highlight of the seminar was an update from Linda Byrd-Johnson, Senior Director Student Service U.S. DOED.

TRIO programs were established in the 1960s during President Lyndon B. Johnson’s War on Poverty. TRIO is a set of seven federally-funded college opportunity programs that motivate and support students from disadvantaged backgrounds in their pursuit of a college degree. These programs serve 24,000 students in Arkansas and nearly 800,000 nationwide.

The initial budget proposal to congress put the TRiO programs at risk for elimination. On March 14, TRIO students, alumni, and professionals from all across the country headed to the Capitol to advocate for continued funding of these student focused TRIO service programs. Tonya Harris and Brooke Siegler joined the Arkansas TRIO delegation in Washington and met with all six Congressional offices to discuss concerns with the changes to program funding and shared student stories.

On March 23, President Trump signed the $1.3 trillion omnibus appropriations bill into law. This bill guarantees a $60 million funding increase for TRIO programs for a total appropriation of $1.01 billion – the highest funding in the history of TRIO.

Arkansas Northeastern College (ANC) is home to three TRIO programs that collectively serve a total of 2,340 students and adults. These three programs are: Educational Talent Search, Educational Opportunity Centers, and Student Support Services.  Educational Talent Search (ETS) is a pre-college program that provides academic, career, and financial counseling to its participants, grades 6-12, and encourages them to graduate from high school and to continue on and complete their postsecondary education.  The ANC ETS program serves 14 school districts in Mississippi and Poinsett Counties in Arkansas and Pemiscot County in Missouri. The Educational Opportunity Centers (EOC) program provides counseling and information on college admissions, financial aid, and financial literacy to qualified adult who want to enter or continue their postsecondary education. The ANC EOC program serves adults in Mississippi, Greene, and Poinsett Counties in Arkansas and Dunklin and Pemiscot Counties in Missouri. Student Support Services (SSS) provides opportunities to academic development, assist students with basic college requirement, and motivates students to complete their postsecondary education. The ANC SSS program provides services to students who are enrolled at Arkansas Northeastern College.

Brooke Siegler noted that “It is always interesting working with a new Administration, because you have to figure out where you fit in as a priority for them. These meetings were a great way to raise awareness for TRIO and the great things this program does for our students. We actually brought our Arkansas 2018 annual report to our meetings, so we were able to show each Congressman how many students are served and how much money TRIO brings to their district. We are lucky to have representatives in Washington that see the value in and support these TRIO programs.”