Grant Will Help ACTC Students from Lawrence County
A $50,000 grant from the Kentucky Coal County College Completion Program will help Ashland Community and Technical College students from Lawrence, Boyd and Elliott counties.
ACTC was one of eight KCTCS colleges to receive grants this year from the KY Higher Education Assistance Authority to use for services to students from coal producing counties. The grants were provided through the KY Coal County College Completion Students Services Grant program enacted by the Kentucky General Assembly in 2014.
ACTC’s grant will be used to increase student success and degree completion rates for students from the affected counties. This will involve advising and retention services to encourage completion of an associate degree program and transfer for a bachelor’s degree.
A new Retention Specialist will work with approximately 125 students who have completed fewer than thirty credit hours. The Retention Specialist will help students with college policies and procedures, advising, access to student services, and activities that encourage completion of a degree.
A new Transfer Advocate will work with approximately 325 students who have completed thirty-one hours or more, all the way to graduation and / or transfer to a four-year institution. The Transfer Advocate will help students with services and activities that encourage completion, culminating with a Bachelor’s Degree.
The Retention and Transfer Advocates will work together to offer Academic Enhancement Workshops with career planning activities and networking opportunities with other students, faculty and staff. The workshops will also provide linkage to services such as advising, financial aid, student activities, TRiO Student Support Services, and the CREATE Center.
Extended academic and tutoring services will be provided on the College Drive and Technology Drive Campuses, with an emphasis on non-writing and non-math tutoring needs of coal county students. Since tutoring in math and writing is available through other programs, the tutoring from this grant will be offered in other disciplines, such as science and social science, which are required for Associate in Arts and Associate in Science Degrees.
The tutors will also provide peer mentoring services to help students adjust to the college environment, learn about college services and policies, explore program and career choices, and set academic and life goals.
“We are pleased to have received this grant for enhancing student services,” said Steve Woodburn, ACTC Dean of Student Success and Enrollment Services and the Grant Project Director. “This is an opportunity to help more students earn the Associate and Bachelor Degrees they need for a more secure future.”
Ashland Community and Technical College has received two grants that will help the college better serve students and area businesses. A US Department of Agriculture grant will provide workshops and activities in emerging technologies for students and entrepreneurs. A Kentucky Coal County Grant will help students from counties impacted by changes in the coal industry.
“We appreciate the state and federal grants that provide additional opportunities for our students and communities,” said Dr. Kay Adkins, ACTC President and CEO. “Grants are important in supplementing and enhancing our services and programs that are supported by tuition and state funding.”
USDA Grant Will Promote Emerging Technology
A $50,000 USDA grant to ACTC will fund an “Emerging Technology and Entrepreneurial Training” (ET2) project. The Rural Business Enterprise Grant is focused on providing technical information that can support small and emerging business growth as well as workforce development training that can lead to potential employment or job advancement.
Grant activities will include a series of workshops for adult students focused on emerging technologies in Microprocessor Technology, Virtual Reality / Augmented Reality, and Aerial Mapping, Videography, and Infrared Crop Scanning. This specialized training will be designed especially for technology-driven participants who want to create or expand their small businesses.
An Emerging Technologies Conference next spring will highlight rapidly developing new technologies that can have positive impact on the development of new and existing businesses. These new technologies can support job creation for a workforce trained in emerging technical skills.
The grant will also provide new equipment for the college’s Mobile Technology Lab (MTL). The MTL provides youth and adults with hands-on experience in new technologies such as 3D printers and pens, laser engravers, virtual reality goggles, drones, simple computing and programming devices, and augmented reality programs. The additional equipment will allow the MTL to take care of an entire class at one time.
These grant-funded activities are focused on helping meet the changing needs of technology-driven industries and employers. The ET2 project compliments the regional action and collaboration priorities of SOAR (Shaping our Appalachian Region) to identify emerging economic clusters, establish social networks for entrepreneurs, equip our workforce with the skills for a revitalized economy and establish new partnerships for advancement of the region.
Phlebotomy Class Starts November 1
A Phlebotomy class at ACTC will prepare students to collect blood from patients or donors in hospitals, blood banks and clinics for analysis or other purposes.
Those who successfully complete the course are prepared to take the state exam. Job opportunities are available in hospitals, clinical and medical offices.
The course meets Tuesdays and Thursdays, Nov. 1 to Jan. 19 with a two week Christmas break, from 5:00 to 8:00 p.m. at the Technology Drive Campus. The six-credit class fee is $936. For more information on Phlebotomy, contact: as_workforce@kctcs.edu or call Robin Harris, at 606-326-2252.
