Issue date: 9/11/09 Section: News

Media Credit: Bryan Edwards Classes started Tuesday in this new $8.6 million, 30,000 square-foot addition to Ivy Tech Community College's location in Greencastle.

On the first day of classes Tuesday at the new Ivy Tech Community College campus in Greencastle, Executive Director Sharon Bone said it was "amazing watching our students' faces as they walked in the door for the first time."

Bone said the excitement was evident in the big smiles and wowed eyes. The new building - an $8.6 million, 30,000 square-foot facility on Zinc Mill Road - is a major physical upgrade from the Area 30 Career Center, where Ivy Tech had been holding its classes.

"We're just very, very excited," Bone said. "It's been a smooth transition, without a single problem yet - knock on wood."

The new building will allow for the Greencastle campus to expand its course offerings and increase enrollment.

According to an Ivy Tech press release, the facility "will allow Ivy Tech to offer several new programs including those in health, business, liberal arts and in early childhood education."

Among the features of the new building are state-of-the-art science and computer labs, a library, a testing center and a bookstore.

But Bone said the most exciting effect of the new building is how it alters student life and enhances community-building.

"This is going to allow for more of a student life presence," Bone said. "We have student organizations, and now we have gathering places for them. The students I've been talking with, I think they are beginning to feel a sense of community. Now instead of leaving right after classes, we have some hanging out around the building or outside."

While Ivy Tech and DePauw have never had much of a relationship, Bone said that's something she'd like to change. Whether in a tutoring capacity or through working on collaborative community service projects, the opportunities for connections are there.

"An example is we need some math and science tutors, and I have some money to pay part-time," Bone said. "That'd be a great way to start working with DePauw students."

DePauw junior Jerry Fowler, a computer science major, said he also believes tutoring would be a great way to establish a relationship between the two schools.

"I think students would be interested in not only making money on the side, but working with students from other colleges has its own perks," Fowler said. "Working with students outside of DePauw offers some more real world experiences, seeing how others think and learn … I believe it's crucial and will help later down the road."

DePauw President Brian Casey said the addition of a full Ivy Tech campus in Greencastle opens up numerous opportunities for collaboration. Casey said DePauw officials have spoken to Ivy Tech about holding joint professional development programs for staff members, and the possibility a new joint bookstore has also been discussed. The difficulty with a shared bookstore, though, is that DePauw has a contract with Barnes and Noble for books, and Ivy Tech is contracted statewide with Follett, Casey said.

"That's a bit of a challenge, but having a new bookstore location is very much on the campus planners' minds," he said.

Overall, Casey said the addition of Ivy Tech is an exciting step for the commmunity.

"Without any doubt, this is extremely positive for DePauw," Casey said. "It helps Greencastle to find itself as a college town."



- Matt Welch contributed to this story.

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