By BRENT MARTIN
St. Joseph Post
North Central Missouri College has expanded well beyond its Trenton campus with agreements stretching from St. Joseph to Maryville, including an investment in Savannah.
North Central President Lenny Klaver says the expansion has helped the college grow and better serve its 17-county region in north-central and northwest Missouri.
Klaver sees great potential in the Savannah campus, which recently opened.
“There are already questions over there whether we are going to add more to that facility, which I think we will eventually in terms of more general classroom space,” Klaver tells KFEQ/St. Joseph Post. “Right now, the campus is pretty much a few general education courses, but mainly our nursing which is our very strong program.”
Savannah also is offering classes in high-skilled manufacturing that offer the potential of employment immediately upon completion.
North Central has partnered with Missouri Western State University to build the Convergent Technology Alliance Center on the St. Joseph Campus. It also has signed agreements with Northwest Missouri State University to ease the transfer of students to the Maryville campus.
Klaver says the Convergent Technology Alliance Center is designed to train students for the high-skilled manufacturing jobs in such high demand today.
“So, what we try to do as a community college is to be nimble and flexible, listen to market trends, and talk to our partners in industry and education on how we can meet those needs,” Klaver says.
North Central had an enrollment of approximately 1,500 students when Klaver arrived about seven years ago and was given the task to increase enrollment. It now stands just short of 1,850 with 240 at its new Savannah branch. North Central's nursing program, once split between Bethany and Maryville, has been consolidated in Maryville. North Central operates on a $14.5 million annual budget.
North Central isn’t just a training ground for high-skilled labor. It continues to provide the general studies needed to prepare for a four-year degree.
“So, it’s important that we serve both,” Klaver says. “We’re blessed to have two universities in the area that we’ve worked with very well and we just hope to continue to meet those needs and to keep our ear to the ground to see what the market trends are and how we can meet those.”
In addition to the agreements signed with Northwest, North Central has similar agreements with Missouri Western to smooth the transition from the two-year school to the four-year institution.
This article has been updated since first published.