USF Sarasota-Manatee at MCC Venice celebrates growth and expansion of program for area residents

 

SARASOTA, FL (April 20, 2007) – On Monday, April 23 at 10:00 a.m., USF Sarasota-Manatee at MCC Venice will be holding a special event for south Sarasota County residents, students, alumni, and community leaders to celebrate the growth of the now-permanent program.

 

The event, which is free and open to the public, will celebrate increased programs, faculty members, enrollment, expanded facilities, and the permanent state funding of USF Sarasota-Manatee at MCC Venice.  Attendees will gather at the Miller Pavilion on the Manatee Community College Venice (MCC Venice) campus, located at 8000 S. Tamiami Trail.

 

 “South Sarasota County has asked us for classes and programs, and our goal is to respond to the needs of the community,” said Susan Freeman, director of USF Sarasota-Manatee’s south county program.  “We’ve expanded our class offerings from 21 in the Fall of 2006 to 32 this Fall semester, gotten recurring funding, added graduate coursework, and increased faculty.  It is important to us to be able to meet community needs and provide higher education in this area. Our advisory council helps us gauge the needs of the community and helps us answer those needs.”

 

USF President Dr. Judy Genshaft and USF Sarasota-Manatee CEO and Vice President Dr. Arthur Guilford will lead the speakers at the event, which will also feature Dr. Sarah Pappas, President of Manatee Community College; David Dignam, President of Key Agency, Inc. and Community Leadership Council member; Teri Hansen, President/CEO of the Gulf Coast Community Foundation of Venice; Shannon Staub, Sarasota County Commissioner; Cliff Walters, USF Sarasota-Manatee Campus Board Chairman; and Scott Moore, Workforce and Project Manager for the Economic Development Corporation of Sarasota County.

 

The Gulf Coast Community Foundation of Venice, the largest community foundation in Florida, gave an initial two-year grant of $476,137 to establish the south county program in 2003 and another $138,500 grant to sustain the program through October 2006. Since October, new state funding has continued the program.

 

“The Gulf Coast Community Foundation of Venice gave us the legs to stand,” said Freeman.  “We are very grateful to them and also to MCC for allowing us to be on their campus, which has greatly enhanced our ability to grow our academic programs.”

 

With the approval of the state budget in May 2006, USF Sarasota-Manatee’s south county program has now received continuing state funding for its operations on the campus of Manatee Community College in Venice, which is located just north of the growing cities of North Port and Englewood. 

 

The south county program started in the spring of 2004 with 66 student enrollments and has grown to over 300 student enrollments each semester.  The increased growth has fueled the permanent status of the program and Freeman hopes to continue on the same track.

 

“Because of the support we’ve gotten from the community, we have strong momentum to continue growing our coursework for south Sarasota County residents,” she said.  “We’ve got a lot to celebrate.”

 

For more information about the celebration at USF Sarasota-Manatee at MCC Venice contact Pam Gleason at (941) 359-4603 or email pgleason@sar.usf.edu.

 

Located in South Sarasota County at 8000 S. Tamiami Trail, USF Sarasota-Manatee at MCC Venice offers coursework to people in North Port, Port Charlotte, Venice, Englewood and Punta Gorda. The program serves people of all ages who have at least an associate’s degree or 60 transferable credit hours and who want to pursue their bachelor’s degree.