(Sheldon) (KSOU)– Northwest Iowa Community College in Sheldon has purchased a former hotel in Marcus that will become the future Marcus Regional Center and Career Academy, expanding career training opportunities for students across rural Northwest Iowa. The facility will be renovated and converted into an educational hub designed to serve high school students and workforce training needs across the region.
NCC President Dr. John Hartog says the project began with a grant proposal submitted several years ago through the state’s Career Academy Incentive Fund…
“Northwest Iowa Community College submitted a grant proposal a couple of years ago for putting up a regional center in Marcus, Iowa, and thankfully, we were awarded.”
The center will focus primarily on concurrent enrollment opportunities for high school juniors and seniors. Students
will be able to take courses that count toward both their high school diploma and college credit…
“We have four career academic pathways that we’ll be setting up in the regional center and beyond that, in addition to the concurrently enrolled students from the various partnering high schools in those four career pathways, we will also eventually be able to conduct compliance training, emergency medical technicians will be able to receive their training there, CNA’s, and other kinds of continuing enrollment opportunities.”
Hartog says bringing those opportunities closer to rural communities will help students access career pathways that might otherwise require long commutes…
“By having a regional center in Marcus, we are removing and reducing both financial and geographic barriers for rural students, because what we’re doing is we are projecting college level learning opportunities closer to home.”
Under Iowa’s concurrent enrollment system, many students are able to earn those credits without their families paying tuition…
“If a student were to begin college level coursework in high school and take that optimal number of credits, families may each save up to $8,000 in tuition.”
NCC is currently targeting a Fall 2027 opening for the Marcus Regional Center.
(Courtesy Community First Broadcasting station KSOU/Sioux County Radio in Sioux Center)
