THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, May 11, 1995 TAG: 9505110411
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B4 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY TONYA WOODS, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: NORFOLK LENGTH: Medium: 73 lines
Lots of people don't even know there is a Tidewater Community College center in Norfolk. Just ask Alvin Cherry.
``People ask me all the time what this building is and what am I doing in it,'' said Cherry, 29, who's attending TCC-Norfolk to become a teacher.
Next fall, TCC plans to open a $26.6 million campus with 185,000 square feet in downtown Norfolk. But TCC already has a presence in the city: For the past two years, it has been holding classes in a Monticello Avenue building with only seven classrooms.
Each semester, enrollment has increased by at least 35 percent, said Cheryl Creagar, director of student services at the Norfolk center. The center opened in 1993 with 100 students. Now, nearly 1,300 take classes ranging from accounting and business administration to chemistry and political science.
``We have people here with master's degrees taking art classes and people with Ph.D.'s taking computer classes,'' Creagar said. ``We're here to meet the learning needs of a wide variety of people.''
She added, ``We've been so well received that we really feel needed.''
Classes are offered from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. six days a week. Some classes meet at Granby High School in the evenings. The center also offers free tutoring sessions, and its computer lab is open to students seven days a week.
Students range in age from 18 to 50 and include recent high school graduates, working parents and those just interested in a certain subject.
Robert C. Lewis, a retired Navyman who works as a security guard, used to drive to the Virginia Beach campus. But the Norfolk center is closer to home. And he also likes the laid-back atmosphere there.
``The classes are very relaxed, the teachers are open-minded and the curriculum is really good,'' he said.
``I look forward to the expansion; I think it's definitely for the better,'' he said. ``It'll be good for people in Norfolk who don't have cars because not everybody can get to Virginia Beach or Chesapeake.''
Next year, TCC estimates that it will enroll 5,000 students when it opens the campus, which will include more classrooms, a science and technology building, a library, more computer labs and even a spacious outdoor lounge for students.
``This expansion project will serve two purposes,'' said John Massey, director of campus development. ``Not only will it help build up downtown Norfolk, but it will also meet the education needs of Norfolk residents.''
The old Woolworth building and the Smith & Welton Building, both on Monticello Avenue, and the Loews Theater on Granby Street will be renovated for the project, and a new building will be constructed on Market Street.
Demolition of the old buildings began in October, and construction of the new building is scheduled to begin this month.
In the recent General Assembly session, Gov. George F. Allen unsuccessfully attempted to cut funding for the campus, saying it wasn't needed. TCC has three other campuses - in Chesapeake, Portsmouth and Virginia Beach.
But students at the Norfolk center say it's a convenient plus.
``I used to go to the (Virginia) Beach campus, but it takes an hour and a half to get to there by bus,'' said Cherry, who lives in Norfolk. Now he can walk to the Norfolk center.
Mona Carter, 21, has been a student at the center for almost two years. With plans to study law at the College of William and Mary, she said she's getting the attention from instructors that she may not have received at a four-year college.
``I feel like people here are actually here to learn and are serious about education,'' she said. ``The classes are challenging, and teachers put forth an extra effort to show they care.''
KEYWORDS: TIDEWATER COMMUNITY COLLEGE NORFOLK CAMPUS by CNB