Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, September 1, 1993 TAG: 9309010134
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-3 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE:
DATELINE: WYTHEVILLE LENGTH: Medium
It eventually will include manufacturing equipment with computer hardware and software that will allow students to get hands-on training and experience.
The Tennessee Valley Authority committed $400,000 as partial funding to buy the state-of-the-art equipment and will require $3 million in matching funds from other sources. Total investment in the center is expected to be $8 million.
William Snyder, the community college president, approached Boucher's office several years ago about the possibility of such a center. Last year, Boucher obtained $50,000 from TVA and the Appalachian Regional Commission for a feasibility study.
Snyder said the center will be housed in existing buildings at first but eventually will need its own building. It will be a cooperative project of all five community colleges in Southwest Virginia.
Boucher said the center will make Southwest Virginia more attractive to new industry.
"The 1990s will be an age of major industrial automation," he said. "To be competitive in that environment, industries must place an even greater emphasis on employee training to improve manufacturing performance.
"When Wytheville becomes home to an advanced technology manufacturing center, the fact that our educational institutions can offer advanced training in manufacturing technologies will give our localities a significant advantage in industrial recruitment and business retention."
- Southwest bureau
by CNB