ARCHBOLD – Northwest State Community College President Dr. Todd Hernandez gave the State of the College address on Thursday after a complimentary breakfast to staff members, state officials and the board of trustees.
Hernandez highlighted the “Elevate Northwest Ohio” initiative, which was put in order to continue successful economic growth and maintaining the workforce population in Ohio.
He shared that Ohio currently has an educational attainment rate of about 47% people who have completed at least some college, and the initiative aims to achieve the goal of 65%.
He pointed out a few ways the college has been focusing its effort on the initiative, including awarding hundreds of thousands of dollars in scholarships, keeping tuition costs down for students and offering programs in high schools to drive more students in.
Additionally, he noted two construction projects the college is working on, which will contribute to “Elevate Northwest Ohio.” The ‘B’ building will be undergoing first- and second-floor renovations to implement an eSports lab and an agriculture lab, as well as office spaces, executive suites and conference rooms.
The college has also been working on a campus in Van Wert, which Hernandez reported construction should be completed in June.
“What I would like to do is try to create a shared vision that we can all have and all contribute to,” he said.
NSCC alumnus Taylor Moyer spoke of his experience at the college, noting he was the first man in his family to graduate from college. He received his associate of art degree in historical preservation in 2010, and then transferred to Bowling Green State University to obtain a bachelor’s degree of science in adolescent to young adult social studies education in 2014.
The alumnus said he received a job offer three weeks after he graduated to be a teacher at the Toledo School for the Arts. He has been there ever since for 11 years, now working as a senior humanities and psychology teacher.
“I certainly didn’t have the grades to compete at a major university or a college institution, but Northwest State Community College provides opportunities for former students like me,” he said. “... Perhaps they don’t set the bar so unattainably high that somebody like me couldn’t get in. You don’t set the bar to where you take only the best and the greatest, the top of the class.”
He continued professing his appreciation by saying NSCC didn’t portray or view him as a “problem” student during his time there, even though he struggled with some subjects.
According to Moyer, the college continued offering him opportunities to succeed. He received help from the college’s tutoring services and credited the instructors for inspiring, challenging and uplifting students like himself.
“The skills I learned here at Northwest State allowed me to build myself. There were many people who helped construct those pieces along the way and help fit them together,” he said. “Some of them are even in this room right now, and now I take those same skills and use them to build other people.”
President and CEO of the Ohio Association of Community Colleges Avi Zaffini was also in attendance, and he talked about the crucial role community colleges have on Ohio’s workforce population.
“Our community colleges are the gateway to, and the sustaining force for, manufacturing and those new in-demand career fields that I mentioned. Our growing economy, the new employers coming to our state and our industries, need community college graduates and their skills,” Zaffini said.
He added that he believes community colleges have improved in recent years in regards to adhering to workforce needs and administering those skills on students.
“The collaboration of Ohio’s community colleges is essential for our state’s future economic and workforce success,” he continued.
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