NPC Touts Progress toward Strategic Goals

Hot Springs, Arkansas – National Park College (NPC) Board of Trustees held their regular monthly meeting Wednesday, January 25. Items for report included academic program changes, a new student internship program, and a strategic plan report.

The Board elected new officers for the year. NPC Alumnus, Forrest Spicher was elected chair, Gail Ezelle, vice chair, and Joyce Craft, secretary. They welcomed new hires Eric Covey, maintenance assistant and Jennifer Shaw, health science technology faculty. Student of the month, Rachel Garner was recognized. Garner is a student in the Health Information Technology program.

Dr. Wade Derden, Vice President for Academic Affairs presented changes to the technical certificate in allied health. He asked the board to approve a new technical certificate in pre-nursing that better aligns with nursing program requirements. The technical certificate in allied health will remain active for students who wish to enter other health science related degree programs.

Mary Kay Wurm, Director of Career Services presented information regarding the Great Lakes Career Ready Internship Grant. NPC was awarded a two-year, $174,816 Career Ready Internship Grant from Great Lakes Higher Education Corporation & Affiliates in December. An anticipated 84 new paid internships will be created during the 2017-2018 academic year. The goal of the program is to help students gain career related skills and connections while working toward their degree.

NPC is one of 16 two-year institutions across Arkansas, Iowa, Minnesota, North Dakota, Ohio, and Wisconsin that received a combined $2.1 million to create over 1,000 internships. The College will collaborate with businesses and nonprofit organizations to provide the greatest number of current and future students with an educational opportunity they might not otherwise have. NPC will begin placing students in paid internships this month. The Great Lakes grant period continues through May 2018.

Kelli Albrecht, Vice President for Workforce and Strategic Initiatives provided a mid-year update on the College’s High Priority Objectives and Strategic Plan. Strategic plan updates highlighted the progress toward a number of the College’s strategic goals for the year, such as 15 new transfer degree programs, 13 of which are related to high-demand STEM fields. The report also highlighted enhanced efforts for student engagement and success, including initiatives such as a student mentoring program, diversity programs, streamlined degree pathways, new student orientation, an early alert program, enhanced website, and an intramural sports program.

Hogan concluded the meeting with the president’s report. He congratulated the campus for receiving the Greater Hot Springs Chamber of Commerce award for Organization of the Year. He updated the Board on the legislative session and the ArFutures grant the Governor has proposed. The proposed program will be designed to cover the cost of tuition and fees for students pursuing a degree in a high demand field at a two-year college. He also discussed a number of new initiatives under consideration for the upcoming budget year, including new facilities, a potential honors program, new student activities, and scholarship initiatives.