RCCC bond would boost Rowan, as well as college

By Phil Kirk

For the Salisbury Post

Just as our homes age and require repairs and renovations, the same is true at Rowan-Cabarrus Community College, which is nearly 50 years old.

As our families grow, often we have to build additions to our home. The same is certainly true at RCCC with its stunning enrollment increase of 40 percent over the last few years. More than 20,000 individuals are educated at RCCC each year and the number has increased dramatically during a weak economy.

Rowan County voters are being asked to support a modest bond issue for $12 million. If the bond passes, the owner of a house valued at $100,000 will pay an increase of $12.50 per YEAR until the bond is retired. That is less than one pizza delivery per YEAR. The owner of a $200,000 house would pay an increase in taxes which would be less than the cost of one dinner for two at a restaurant — per YEAR.

One of the most remarkable facts I have learned during this campaign is that Rowan County voters have not been asked to pass a local bond issue for the community college in nearly 50 years. The only time the college has gone to the voters was for an initial bond of $500,000 to build the first building on the North Campus in 1961. I do not know of another community college which has not had a local bond issue in nearly 50 years.

Because of tight budgets at the state and local level, there has been little capital or repair and renovation funds available in the past decade so the college has gotten behind on making the necessary improvements to at least partially meet the needs of the rapidly expanding student body. This bond will fund new classroom and lab space for health science programs which are needed to increase the number of healthcare workers in the area. If RCCC cannot provide the space, then students will have to travel to neighboring community colleges, and since the overwhelming majority of students have full-time jobs, this would present a severe hardship for most.

Currently, RCCC offers only three health science programs —nursing, radiography and dental assisting — and each is full to capacity. North Carolina has prided itself on the “open door” policy for admission to our community colleges. Regretfully, that is no longer true, especially in health science programs, because there is often no space for additional students. Passage of the bond will allow the college to develop programs in such areas as physical and occupational therapy and surgery technician. Much of the job growth we need will be found in health sciences, and RCCC needs more space to educate, train and retrain students for these good jobs.

Space for the expansion and relocation of firefighter and emergency first-responder training will be provided. The current space is much too small for adequate training. The training ground will be moved to another location on campus where there is space for future expansion. Existing classroom space will be renovated, the Salisbury campus will be made more accessible for persons with disabilities (a long overdue need) and campus buildings will be made more energy efficient, which is a good deal for the taxpayers and for the environment.

Because of the closing of both large and small industries in traditional job fields, the needs for training and retraining programs have grown tremendously at RCCC in the last decade or so, and funding has not been able to keep up with classroom and programmatic needs. While the state provides much of the operational funding, it is historically up to the counties to provide for capital needs. The exception was the largest bond history in our state in 2000 for UNC campuses and community colleges. I had the opportunity to chair that statewide campaign; however, it is obvious that there will not be another state bond issue for at least five more years, and there is a growing line of interests who will be competing to be in that bond package.

We cannot wait on the state to do what needs to be done locally. Rowan-Cabarrus Community College is recognized as one of the best in North Carolina, a state recognized nationally for effective local colleges. I would urge the readers of the Post to enthusiastically vote for these bonds in order to improve the employment opportunities for Rowan County citizens. In addition, passage would be a boost for RowanWorks and its ability to attract more business and industry to Rowan County.

Our state’s 58 community colleges are not only the best hope for many of our citizens, but they are often the only hope and last hope. It is my prayer that Rowan County voters will remember this when they mark their ballot in early voting or on Tuesday, Nov. 2.

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Phil Kirk is a Rowan native who resides in Raleigh. He is a former vice chair of the State Board of Community Colleges, chairman emeritus of the State Board of Education, and past member of the Rowan-Cabarrus Community College Foundation Board.