BY: EDWARD THOMAS
CCC Journalism Program
Blackwood-Students attending classes at Camden County College on the Blackwood campus have noticed the construction equipment being used throughout the campus.
Many wonder what is being fixed or built. This construction is part of the 2010 Strategic Plan. The construction is scheduled to be completed by 2015.
As part of the strategic plan, the college will demolish seven buildings.
According to Susan Coulby, media relations manager at CCC, the seven building that are going to be demolished are Washington Hall, the Optical Clinic, Adams Hall, Wilson Center, Wilson Hall East, Wilson Hall West, and Roosevelt Hall.
Washington Hall has been demolished and the Optical Clinic has been vacated.
With seven buildings being demolished, one would think where the college is going to relocate all the classrooms and offices that were located in these seven buildings. The Optical Clinic has been moved to the ground floor in the CIM building, and the classrooms and offices have been relocated throughout the several buildings on campus.
Also as part of the strategic plan, the college will be building two new buildings and renovating two buildings, Madison Hall and Taft Hall. The college has renovated Madison Hall and has successfully completed the Connector Building, which links Madison Hall with the Otto R. Mauke Community Center.
Renovations included upgrading technologies and renovating classrooms and offices to make then look more modern.
The next two projects that the college is working on are the addition of a new science building and the renovation of Taft Hall.
The $30 million science building will have three stories and will be 107,000 square feet in size. Once completed in 2012, the new science building will allow the college to educate more students, increase the number of courses, and expand the curriculum.
According to Coulby, the building will have 10 biology labs, six chemistry labs, labs for the medical laboratory technologies and veterinary technology programs, and 27 additional classrooms and lecture halls. There also will be an expanded dental hygiene clinic, nursing arts center and a student-run café.
“Construction isn’t just about buildings,” Coulby said. “It’s also about people and their futures. Our campus buildings are the venues through which the people of Camden County and beyond acquire the education, training and knowledge they need and want to enhance their lives and advance their careers by making them more competitive in the job market.”
Although current students may see the current construction to be a distraction, some see past this distraction.
New Madison Connector Building