SUNBURY — A new leader is being sought for the Valley's community college initiative.
Lenaire Ahlum, who has volunteered countless hours toward getting a community college established since she helped found the Susquehanna Valley Community Educational Project in 2007, is stepping away from the chair at the head of the table, but remaining on the board.
She thinks it's time for a new president, one who has business and governmental connections.
Board member John Shipman said Ahlum has worked tirelessly over the past three years. "Lenaire has been a tremendous asset," he said.
She contacted the Department of Education in August 2007 for ideas on how to start a community college, believing it could become "the cameo of Sunbury" and an economic boon, and she worked with Joshua Ripple, a Bucknell University student, and Angela Motto, a Susquehanna University financial aid counselor, to incorporate the nonprofit project.
Progress has been made, she said, and more people are speaking up every day in favor of a college. Former Sunbury Mayor Jesse Woodring gave the organization an office in City Hall.
Financial data supports the idea as one that would uplift the general economy, provide better paying jobs for local residents, fulfill employers' needs and be a cultural asset, Ahlum said.
"Now we need a leader who can steer the project through its next level of growth," she said. "Growing organizations go through different stages ... and therefore require leaders with different knowledge, skills and abilities at different times in their evolution."
In the beginning, Ahlum said, she could lay the groundwork, build a relationship with the Department of Education, do research and conduct feasibility and needs assessment studies.
Now, she said, the project will be best served by a president with established contacts in business and government, which are crucial for the effort to obtain the backing and funding it needs.
There are eight active voting members on the Susquehanna Valley Community Educational Project board.
The new president also should be someone who sees the urgency in establishing the college now, said board member Stephen Connolley, of Lewisburg.
The state will charter the college if it has the sponsorship of a local government, such as a county or city, or a consortium of governments. About $1 million a year is needed to start, but after that, the state will pay one third and the federal government another third, Ahlum said. And the established college would attract local philanthropy, and businesses would start to benefit immediately.
As an incentive for local governments to participate, students from jurisdictions that contribute will pay lower tuition than outsiders.
Ahlum, who lives in Danville, said there are many possible locations for the college, but the heart of Sunbury seems the most logical. It's central, it has available buildings and its populace is thirsty for infusion of capital and commerce.
Local governments need to invest in the future, she said, "so we don't lose precious opportunities for businesses to locate and invest here because of an undereducated workforce."
"Investing during a recession can feel especially risky," she said, "but the choice to prioritize the establishment of a community college, an endeavor that is proven to quickly increase tax revenue and jobs, is a reasonable and prudent investment that will accrue benefits in the near future."
A satellite campus of another institution based elsewhere would not offer the same benefits, she said.
"While on the surface it might seem such arrangements serve prospective students, in reality, they siphon off funds that could be benefiting our tax base and bolstering investment in our own college and send them out of the area," she said.
Residents favoring the local initiative can sign a petition at newcommunitycollege.com.
News
New leader needed for college initiative
- News
-
-
Firefighter union may char pacts
LEWISBURG — Paid members of the William Cameron Engine Company have voted to unionize under the International Association of Fire Fighters, a move believed to stem from internal tension between paid and volunteer members of the department, according to various sources.
-
M-W rule on drug testing is area’s boldest
MIDDLEBURG — Midd-West is the only school district in the Central Susquehanna Valley that requires students interested in participating in extra-curricular activities to agree to submit to random drug testing.
-
New shelter exec gets busy
When Cathy Teisher stepped down as executive director of Haven Ministries, in March, Pamela Steffen stepped up.
-
Tax boost could bring $120G pad
The Lewisburg Area School District will seek a 3.2 percent real estate tax increase for the 2012-13 school year, the maximum allowed under the index, under a proposed budget now available for public comment.
-
Fire has burned beneath Centralia for 50 years
CENTRALIA — Fifty years ago on Sunday, a fire at the town dump ignited an exposed coal seam, setting off a chain of events that eventually led to the demolition of nearly every building in Centralia — a whole community of 1,400 simply gone.
-
'To Do': Montandon Community Days
MONTANDON - Montandon Community Days will be held from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. May 26 along Railroad Street.
-
California’s Coronado named nation’s best beach
CORONADO, Calif. (AP) — Like a Hollywood star, Coronado’s 1.5 mile-long beach literally sparkles, thanks to the mineral mica glinting in its sand.
That’s one of the reasons why Coronado — flanked by the iconic hotel featured in Marilyn Monroe’s 1958 film “Some Like It Hot” — has been named the No. 1 beach in the United States in the 2012 survey by “Dr. Beach” professor Stephen P. Leatherman of Florida International University. -
Typical CEO made $9.6M last year, AP study finds
Profits at big U.S. companies broke records last year, and so did pay for CEOs.
-
Barnstorming cattle badger citizens for beer
BOXFORD, Mass. (AP) — Police say a roving group of cows crashed a small gathering in a Massachusetts town and bullied the guests for their beer.
-
'A Day in Towne' tradition draws crowds to Boalsburg
May 25--For the 148th year, Boalsburg will be the gathering place for regional families to remember all ranks of Armed Forces veterans.
-
Fired Pa. president gets more time to clear office
CALIFORNIA, Pa. (AP) — A judge has canceled a hearing to determine whether California University of Pennsylvania president Angelo Armenti can remove his personal property from his former office, because state officials have given him more time to do so.
- Weird crime of the week: Peddler in pickup scams bargain-hunting meat seeker
- More News Headlines
-
Firefighter union may char pacts
