“We as a system believe that there is a real opportunity for us to take advantage of this excess revenue,” OCtech President Dr. Walt Tobin told members of the college’s Area Commission last week.
The president said later that along with seeking $50 million for recurring funds, the college has also requested $60 million for equipment, $160 million for maintenance and repair, along with $12 million to $15 million for a new advanced manufacturing facility.
“We have some plans to add some additional programs: HVAC, pharm, pharmacy tech. Surgical technology has been a program requested by the hospital. So the problem with creating these programs is that you have to hire the faculty, build up the curriculum, renovate the space before you can generate the first dollar in tuition,” Tobin said.
“This would be some start-up money for us to get these programs off the ground, and then some portion of recurring funds to be able to continue those programs,” he said.
Tobin said the college has doubled the amount of money requested for maintenance and repair.
“Also, we doubled the amount for equipment for primarily advanced manufacturing. ... I think it’s a must-have at some point down the road: a new advanced manufacturing building that we estimate somewhere between $12 and $15 million. So that’s the one big-ticket item that I’ll talk with our delegation about going into this legislative session,” Tobin said.
The college already has a professional advisor who is assigned to its Early College students, but would use some funds, for example, to expand that advisor position to other divisions of the college.
Tobin also reported the college is switching to eight-week terms beginning in the spring of next year. Under the move, students would take two courses per eight-week term, which would be equal to four classes each traditional 16-week semester.
“We surveyed our faculty and our students. ... The response we got from both the faculty and the students was overwhelmingly positive, somewhere around 75 percent thought it was a good idea,” the president said.
“We’ve got some programs that are already in that format. So rather than take, say, four classes over a 16-week term, they’ll take two for eight weeks and focus on just those two. Then they’ll pick up the second two the second eight weeks. So in the course of a semester, they could complete the same number of courses, but they’re only focusing on a smaller number at one time,” he said.
Tobin said, “We couldn’t modify the calendar for fall, but as we transition into spring, we’re going to work towards full-scale adoption. That calendar will look a little bit different. There will be two seven-week terms. We’ll have to increase the number of minutes per class period, but what we’re able to build is a one-week break in between those terms. So somewhere around October, both the faculty and students will get a one-week break.”
He said the change has been successful at Trident Technical College and York Technical College.
“We think it’s a good idea for our students as well. As a student, you’re not having to juggle four things at one time. You’re juggling two things at one time. We have this phrase that life gets in the way of a lot of our students,” he said.
Tobin also stated a proviso is being crafted in the state House of Representatives that would guarantee the transfer of students who’ve completed their associate degree to a four-year college or university.
Tobin said, “So if they complete that degree, they can transition seamlessly to all of the public colleges and universities without losing any credits or time. We have these agreements with roughly every institution in South Carolina, but this would just standardize that and set some guidelines. ...
“Serving a large number of low- to moderate-income students and first-generation and minority, I think it’s an opportunity for us to provide that pathway to that baccalaureate degree at a fraction of a cost of them enrolling as just a freshman,” Tobin said.
He also stated that the college’s Fifth-Year Interim Report was received with no recommendations. As a member of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges, OCtech is required to submit the report as part of its reaffirmation cycle.
“Our Fifth-Year Interim Report was received with no recommendations or findings, or follow up, and our QEP (Quality Enhancement Plan). So there’s a lot of folks that really went above and beyond to put that report together,” he said.
He said the OCtech Foundation was only $5,000 short of its $370,000 fundraising goal as of Jan. 18.
“We’re at a half-way point and have another six months to meet that goal. So thanks for you all’s support of the foundation this year and previous years. We are planning right now to move forward with the garden event. I think time will tell whether or not that makes sense. Stay tuned,” he said.
The president also introduced Tresa Milligan-Muller as the college’s newly appointed Faculty Council chairperson and Donna Bennett as Staff Council chairperson during the meeting.
©2022 The Times and Democrat (Orangeburg, S.C.). Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
