May 1, 2007

Community Members Gather for State of the College Update



HANCEVILLE, Ala.-More than 75 guests from the community were present at
a luncheon meeting at Wallace State Community College in Hanceville on
Monday for a state of the college report and discussion of presidential
priorities.

At the luncheon. Pictured (L-R): Doris Hinkle, Mayor of Cullman
Don Green, Faith Hammock, Evelyn Burrow, and Gracie Grissom.

"We have really worked on transparency and accountability," said Wallace
State President Vicki Hawsey to the group as she shared the progress of
the college over the past three years.



Wallace State has continued to grow despite an unemployment in Cullman
County of just 2.7 percent. "That's unheard of," Hawsey said. "In
periods of low unemployment, enrollments usually decline, but we have
continued to grow and thrive."



Hawsey complimented her leadership team-Dr. Jenny Folsom, Dean of
Academic Affairs; Dr. Nancy Corser, Dean of Health Sciences; Ron Moon,
Dean of Workforce Education; Dr. Tomesa Smith, Dean of Students; and
Melinda Edwards, Dean of Institutional Advancement-on their roles in
elevating Wallace State to a nationally-recognized learning college.



"We have achieved the goals of our five year plan in three years," she
said.



Among the goals established in 2003, advance the integration of
technology throughout the campus was one of the top priorities. Today,
the college has 115 Smart classrooms (80 percent of all classrooms),
1,121 computers and 35 computer labs which provide a student to computer
ratio of approximately 4.8:1, Wi-fi hotspots, a voiceover internet
protocol (VOIP) phone system that allows for instant email and emergency
alerts to every phone on campus, and a fiber optic infrastructure.



The college has enhanced teaching and learning and strengthened student
services resulting in greater student success. The English 101 success
rate, for example, has increased from 62.4 percent in the Spring 2004 to
84.4 percent in Fall 2006. In developmental education classes, the
success of Wallace State students is above the system average.



Hawsey credits an intense focus on teaching and learning for these
successes and points to the new Transitional Learning Division and
incorporation of technologically advanced learning environments and
distance education as ways the college has improved its service to
students.



Wallace State has also increased its partnerships with educational
institutions and with business and industry. The college now maintains
off-campus centers at Hayden, Pennington, Brewer, and Meek high schools,
and offers dual enrollment opportunities at Locust Fork, Cullman,
Fairview, Good Hope, Holly Pond, St. Bernard, Brewer, Falkville, Meek,
and Addison. It has added the Fast Track Academy, an on campus program
for high school students, and continues to be a model University Center
for Athens State sites around the state. A national leader in health
education, Wallace State also has partnerships with Calhoun, Northeast,
Alabama Southern, Faulkner and Northwest Shoals to offer health care
programs on those campuses. The CARCAM five-college partnership provides
training for current and future employees of the automotive
manufacturing industry. Most recently, the college has partnered with
other community agencies to form Cullman Area Workforce Solutions
(CAWS). As a result of its aggressive leadership and partnerships,
grants-based funding awarded to the college has doubled since 2003.



Because funding has remained level from the state in recent years,
colleges rely increasingly on enrollment and outside funding in the form
of grants to meet budgetary demands.


Dr. Hawsey addresses the group of community members at Monday's luncheon.

Hawsey also explained how funding inequities that were built into the
system years ago mean that Wallace State must do more with less than
other institutions of similar size. Still, she said, Wallace State's
fund balance today is more than double its 2003 number.



"It is a testimony to the quality of the work ethic of the people we
have here that we are able to accomplish so much with so little. Not
only are we frugal, but we work until the job is done," she said.



Looking toward the future, a voluntary group of faculty and staff
members called the Visioning Team met recently to work on goals for the
next three to five years. This group focused on four themes:



* Resource Development

- The college will seek and expand human, financial, and
technological resources through entrepreneurial opportunities.

* Marketing

- The college will promote local and global awareness of
educational opportunities through partnerships, e-presence, and
innovative marketing strategies.

* Entrepreneurial Learning College

- The college will develop dynamic and diverse solutions that
promote learning excellence.

* Virtual Learning Environment

- The college will embrace emerging technologies to transform the
learning environment.



Other issues the college will address over the next several years
include facilities renovations, signage on campus, paving and parking,
and funding.



Hawsey asked for input from the community in shaping additional goals
and priorities.



"It's time for us to set new goals, and as leaders in the community, I
want your input on what we need to be doing as your community college,"
she said.



She provided survey forms to those in attendance and encouraged guests
to fill them out and send them back to her. The survey provides for a
community evaluation of the president with regard to the achievement of
presidential priorities.



The luncheon was the final event in a month of activities celebrating
Community College Month.

  Kristen Holmes
  Director, Communications and Marketing
  Wallace State Community College
  P.O. Box 2000
  Hanceville, AL 35077
  256/352-8118
  E-mail: Kristen.Holmes@WallaceState.edu