New Curry County college campus opens Monday

Faculty, staff say it exceeds expectations

BROOKINGS, Ore. — A year and a half after construction began, Southwestern Oregon Community College’s new Curry Campus is ready to open the doors to students starting Monday.

“Everyone is just excited,” Curry County Dean Janet Pretti said. “It’s more than they expected. Universally, that’s the most common comment I get.

“It feels like a campus. A real college campus,” she said.

The campus, located off Highway 101 north of Brookings at 96082 Lone Ranch Parkway, opened Tuesday for staff training. Classes start Monday, and a dedication ceremony is set for Jan. 27.

The Curry Campus is a two-story, 26,785-square-foot building with a $6 million construction cost. Fundraising campaigns, large donations and $6 million in bonds were used to finance the facility. Construction began in July 2010.

The building is designed to offer a variety of community college programs, including nursing, medical assistance and emergency medical technician training.

There are 11 classrooms, a science laboratory, a computer lab, support areas for tutoring and study, a commons and student lounge. The building can serve as a community hub for short-term training and conferences.

“It will be really nice to have a state-of-the art facility,” Pretti said

The previous location was three classrooms in the old Brookings library; the nearby Brookings-Harbor High School housed science classes. Students often had to make do with study rooms without doors, Pretti said.

The new location has an art room conducive to teaching art,  said Associate Faculty Art Instructor Sara Broderick.

“The art room is fabulous,” Broderick said. “I think you have everything you could want in an art room.”

There is plenty of room, storage, racks for big canvasses, art supplies and good light. By comparison, the old building had no place to store supplies and had carpet on the floor, which is not good for an art room, Broderick said.

Broderick, who has been with SWOCC for nearly 10 years, teaches drawing, painting, art appreciation, color and design.

Writing instructor Marta Wozniak praised the new facility.

“I think it’s wonderful,” Wozniak said. “It’s a wonderful facility that offers great opportunities for our students. All of the classrooms have state of the art technology.”

Faculty member Mary Whitaker is “excited to be working in there,” she said. “I think we’re going to be able to better serve our students.”

Enrollment numbers may not have increased yet, but should soon, Pretti said.

“It certainly feels like there’s going to be more students,” she said. “There’s certainly a lot more buzz ... a lot more interest at the high school. I think we’ll see it translated into more students.”

As student numbers increase, programs will be expanded, Pretti added.

 “It’s a gorgeous building,” Broderick said. “It’s just a beautiful building.”