subscribesubscriber servicescontact usabout ussite mapBuy a Classified
Sun, Jul 05 2009 

Resources

print this story   Print this story
  Post to del.icio.us

Photos


Alabama’s two-year college chancellor Bradley Byrne, left, visits with Wallace State Community College President Vicki Hawsey prior to WSCC commencement Friday evening.
Brittany Woodby / The Cullman Times


Published May 10, 2008 07:09 pm - By Brittany Woodby
BWOODBY@CULLMANTIMES.COM
Hanceville — Alabama’s two-year college chancellor Bradley Byrne said Friday despite financial and legal challenges against the two-year system, he expects Wallace State Community College in Hanceville to remain one of the top schools in the state.


Byrne weighs in on issues


The Cullman Times

By Brittany Woodby

BWOODBY@CULLMANTIMES.COM

Hanceville — Alabama’s two-year college chancellor Bradley Byrne said Friday despite financial and legal challenges against the two-year system, he expects Wallace State Community College in Hanceville to remain one of the top schools in the state.

“This is an excellent college,” he said. “They don’t need me to tell them what to do, they know what to do.”

Byrne, who gave the commencement address at WSCC’s graduation, said he hopes to see the school’s programs, as well as infrastructure, grow this year.

“I can’t say I would want to change any programs here,” he said. “I think that we need to grow our programs, which is part of (WSCC President Dr. Vicki) Hawsey’s plan anyway. That’s going to require us to do more building. We’re going to have to do some changes to some of the older buildings because of some structural problems, and at the same time have the building’s program continue to expand.”

One possible expansion is a multi-million dollar robotics training center Governor Bob Riley proposed last year. The center, which would contain three campuses devoted to teaching students how to operate and build robotics equipment, will be built as part of the two-year college system and housed under either Wallace State or Calhoun Community College in Decatur.

Byrne said adding the training center to the two-year system will benefit both entities, as well as the state’s economy.

“I am thrilled it (robotics center) will be connected to our system,” he said. “It’s a campus and it’s going to have three different structures on it, one of which will be an R and D (research and development) structure. To have one of our colleges essentially housing the campus with both our training facility and R & D structure on it is just amazing. It should have an incredible rippling effect on North Alabama because of where it’s located and everything that’s going into it.”

Byrne and Riley visited the Wallace State campus in March to review three potential sites for the robotics center. Byrne said he and the governor agreed a site at Wallace adjacent to the campus would be an optimal location for the three buildings, but no decision has been announced whether or not the center will be built in Hanceville. However, Byrne said he feels confident Wallace would provide the leadership and quality necessary for the center to succeed.

“I think it’d be great,” he said. “Because of the leadership here and the quality of the program here, a robotics center would be a great fit.”

Byrne said he has already been working to coordinate the facility’s curriculum, enlisting the University of Alabama Huntsville to lead the R & D center.

“We’re excited about it, and now we’re waiting on the governor to get some more information about it and to make a decision about where it’s going to be,” he said. “I think we’re ready to move with it.”

Last week the state board of education passed new graduation requirements for high school students, cutting elective hours and replacing them with mandatory foreign language credits. While many students used their elective credits for technical programs, such as those offered by Wallace State and potentially by the robotics center, Byrne said exceptions could be made for technical students and the changes will ultimately benefit the two-year system.

“We think it will make high school students that graduate more prepared for college in general,” he said. “One thing we were concerned about is that it not get in the way of our dual-enrollment technical program, because of reduction in the number of elective hours. But we’ve worked it out with the department of education where we can do our dual enrollment technical program with the two-year colleges and our high schools, and still fit within the new graduation requirements, and we feel really good about that.”



print this story    email this story   




Zillow
monster
autoconx
Premier Guide
Find a business

Walking Fingers
Maps, Menus, Store hours, Coupons, and more...
Premier Guide
Premier Guide







Premium Jobs

Foster Parents Needed
Help Wanted Christian Foster Parents. The United Methodist Children’s Home is looking for families to provide a stable ...>MORE

Help Wanted
OWNER OPERATOR - New Dedicated Lanes our of Madison, AL. Rapidly growing retail-trucking company is seeking tractor-tra...>MORE

Tanker Truck Drivers
Petroleum South Transport, a Huntsville Al based tanker trucking company, has an immediate opening for a driver in the C...>MORE

Counselor
Substance Abuse Treatment Center has positions open with competitive pay & benefits. Mental Health Related Fields. • Co...>MORE

HVAC INSTALLERS & SERVICE TECHS
Johnson Mechanical Services HVAC INSTALLERS & SERVICE TECHS NEEDED Seeking “Experienced” HVAC Installers and Service Tec...>MORE

Foxy's Lounge
Dancers - Bartenders - & Waitresses Wanted - No Experience Necessary! Foxy’s Lounge, Walnut Grove, AL (205)589-2357 or...>MORE

Help Wanted
DRIVERS - “No Touch Freight” $875 Minimum for the first 12 weeks Premier Transportation is seeking tractor-trailer drive...>MORE

Customer Engineering Manager - Automotive
Customer Engineering Manager - Automotive Want a solid roof over your head? Try a Japanese one. We are Topre America...>MORE

See all ads

Premium Autos

HAMMERHEAD DUNEBUGGY FOR SALE
HAMMERHEAD DUNEBUGGY 250 CC, 2 SPEED, WATER COOLED ENGINE, ONLY 250 MILES, 2 NEW HELMENTS, 8FT BY 5 FT TRAILER, VERY SAF...>MORE

Bass Boat
Bass Boat - 15 foot, 80 HP Mariner engine, many extras. $2000 firm. Call 256-796-7230....>MORE

Do you Want to Sell your automobile?
Would you like to run your automobile for sale in this space? If so call The Cullman Times Classified Department today ...>MORE

See all ads

Premium Homes/Rentals

Want to sell your home?
If you would like to run your home for sale in this Premium space, call The Cullman Times Classified Department to find ...>MORE

Payments under $300/month
Gov't Bailout!! Payments under $300/month (WAC). Call 866-896-8300 for FREE pre-approval...>MORE

Home for Rent
2br, 1ba, home - $475 mo, dep req. (803)600-8352...>MORE

1 BR. Apartment for rent
1 BR. Apartment, quiet in town location. $325 mo. rent plus dep. Call (256)734-9485....>MORE

Pre-Approval on Homes
Don't waste gas! Call today for pre-approval on homes under $300 per month (wac) 256-878-4451...>MORE

Blountsville Home for Sale
Blountsville - Beautiful 9000 sq. ft., 2 story brick home w/6 +- ac., 6 BR., 6 1/2 BA., full basement w/kit. Hardwood, c...>MORE

Water Front Property
Smith Lake - water front lot. $42,700. In Emerald Lake Estates. 256-880-2495 or 256-348-6832...>MORE

Vinemont/Fairview
3br., 2BA., 121 Co. Rd. 1520. Vinemont/Fairview school district. Owner fin. avail. $139, 000. Call Tara Yarbrough at Ris...>MORE

In City Limits 3 BR. for rent
Nice 3 Br., 2 BA. home in city limits. $750 mo. 2107 Adelsheim Circle. Call 256-734-6668....>MORE

2 BR Duplex for Rent
NIce 2 BR duplex, stove, ref., DW, furn., W/D conn. No pets. Call 734-2594 or 708-2855. ...>MORE

See all ads

Premium Extras

2008 Kawasaki KX-100
Like new! Call for pricing (256)990-8855...>MORE

3 Family Yard Sale 2nd & 3rd
3 family Yard Sale. Larry Ave. (behind Wal-Mart). Furniture, handbags, shoes, etc. July 2nd and 3rd....>MORE

CKC Registered Maltese
CKC Registered Male Maltese, ten months old, $400. Call (256) 590-9337....>MORE

See all ads


 

Community Newspaper Holdings, Inc.CNHI Classified Advertising NetworkCNHI News Service
Associated Press content © 2009. All rights reserved. AP content may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Our site is powered by Zope and our Internet Yellow Pages site is powered by PremierGuide.
Some parts of our site may require you to download the Flash Player Plugin.
View our Privacy Policy
Advertiser index