As we near the conclusion of the year, it’s a good time to reflect on NVC’s accomplishments and challenges that defined our collective effort and will further shape our history moving forward.
In February, NVC celebrated the groundbreaking of the Desert-Willow Welcome Center and the adjacent Texas Ash parking garage with over 334,000 square feet of space. This marked the first time in 10 years since NVC added any new structures to the campus. The 50,000-square-foot Welcome Center is designed to accommodate future enrollment of 20,000 students. Slated for completion by March 2020, Desert-Willow will encompass innovative technologies to increase adaptive learning and student experience.
In April, we held a grand opening of NVC’s Food Pantry. To date, the Food Pantry has served nearly 1,000 students and is now a part of a bevy of holistic student services that include emergency grants, community referrals and a dedicated San Antonio Food Bank liaison who assists students in obtaining federal benefits and other services.
April proved to be a busy month with the unveiling of NVC’s new STEAM Makerspace, a collaborative work space dedicated to making, learning and exploring the use of high-tech to no-tech tools. Housed in Mountain Laurel Hall, this shared space of the Engineering, 3-D Animation, Gaming, Fine Arts and Science departments brings employees, faculty and students together to create innovative projects.
In May, NVC students and their families celebrated their hard-earned achievements at the graduation ceremony at the Freeman Coliseum. Those graduates and others helped NVC see a 13% increase in degrees and certificates to 3,018.
Heading into the fall semester, NVC unveiled the collaborative work of a local artist (NVC alum), Vista students, and the community with the “Changing the World” mural depicting the struggle students face in obtaining a college education.
As we strive to reduce the struggle for our students though our daily collective efforts in and outside the classroom, I’m inspired to see 59% of NVC employees who participated in this year’s Employee Giving Campaign and raised over $50,000 for student scholarships, programs and community organizations. The spirit of giving was also shared by our students, who themselves contributed to the local community by volunteering more than 29,000 hours at various nonprofit organizations. With 3,852 NVC students participating this year, their earned work is valued at $728,502, according to the Independent Sector.
Last month, the Aspen Institute College Excellence Program named NVC along with SAC and PAC to the list of 150 community colleges in the nation eligible to compete for the $1 million Aspen Prize for Community Colleges. Only 15 percent of community colleges nationwide have been invited to apply for the Aspen Prize. In addition, NVC also qualified and applied for the Excellence and Equity in Community College STEM Award.
NVC, along with our sister colleges and district, continues to strive to strengthen the students’ experience. Collectively and individually, each college within our district is currently working on Strategic Enrollment Planning to develop a Strategic Enrollment Plan, establish metrics and assessment tools to evaluate progress and manage enrollment. In 2020, NVC will celebrate our 25thyear history and we will have more opportunities to reflect on the past and plan for the future.
Wear your NVC shirts with pride, knowing that you are making a difference in the lives of students and their families. Thank you for your service throughout the year. Enjoy the holidays and our winter break.