Dr. Jon Tomlinson, dean of the Van Wert campus of Northwest State Community College, on Thursday welcomed invited guests to tour the college’s newest facility under construction in Van Wert. The site is expected to be open by January.
J Swygart | The Lima News
VAN WERT — Members of the board of Northwest State Community College, along with media representatives and other invited guests, got their first glimpse Thursday at what will be the future home of a NSCC branch campus in Van Wert.
Officials from the college expect the under-renovation site at 520 E. Sycamore St. to open its doors to students for the college in January 2025.
The pre-arranged open house was buoyed Thursday by a surprise announcement from Todd Hernandez, NSCC president, that $3.4 million in state capital budget funding has been approved by the Ohio legislature for use in completing the Van Wert facility.
“I got a call just last night from state Rep. Roy Klopfenstein, who said our application for funds from the state’s One Time Strategic Community Improvement Fund had been approved,” Hernandez said.
Klopfenstein, R-Haviland, represents the 82nd House District. Hernandez said the board submitted an application for $3.4 million in funding, not expecting to receive the full amount. The NSCC president said the state funding will pay for a bigger share of the project than anticipated.
Dr. Jon Tomlinson, dean of the Van Wert campus, said Thursday’s event highlighted an effort that started five years ago when the college acquired a vacant building, which once housed Kennedy Manufacturing. The coronavirus caused unexpected delays in transforming the vacant factory into a space for higher education, but a representative from Alexander & Bebout, the project’s general contractor, told the gathered crowd that “bids are going out today” and should be awarded sometime in July for the remaining work.
Board members and other guests were invited by Tomlinson to sign their names and inspiring messages to students on a wall inside the new building.
While the site will not be ready for students by the start of fall classes, Tomlinson said a partnership with the OhioHealth Van Wert Hospital will allow up to 25 students to attend classes there during the fall quarter. Many of those students could receive financial aid through a First Course Free program offered by the college.
Scholarships are good for Fall 2024 semester for one class (three credit hours). Recipients must be newly admitted to Northwest State Community College for the Fall 2024 semester and cannot be a current student, and they must live within Paulding, Van Wert or Putnam counties or surrounding counties. For more information, see the college’s website, NorthwestState.edu.
Hernandez said once the renovations at the new location are complete, Van Wert will become NSCC’s second full-service campus and will offer two-year degrees in fields such as accounting, IT, skilled trades, banking and finance, electrical engineering and others. Credits earned will be transferable to four-year degree programs at partnering colleges.
Tomlinson said NSCC is holding a job fair for people interested in part-time teaching positions with the college. One-hour online sessions will be held via Zoom at 10 a.m. and 5 p.m. Wednesday, June 26. One-hour in -person sessions will be 10 a.m. and 5 p.m. Thursday, June 27 at the NSCC atrium, 22600 state Route 34, Archbold. For more information or to register, go to careers.northweststate.edu.
