University of Arkansas Community College at Hope Chancellor Chris Thomason again addressed the issue of the overcrowding at the UACCH graduation ceremony with the Board of Visitors at the Thursday afternoon meeting.
Thomason said he was proud of the faculty and staff for working hard to squeeze as many chairs as possible into the coliseum and to set up the television viewing room.
“ However there was a couple who drove in from North Carolina and could not get in to get a seat,” he said.
Thomason said the numbers are still not official, but currently they show 287 graduates, with 466 degrees and certificates being awarded.
“That is an indication of how much support we get and how many graduates we are turning out,” Thomason said.
He said Hempstead Hall should be completed by September or October of next year.
“ There has been talk of completing it in a shorter time, but we have waited long enough and we want to get this right,” Thomason said.
He then touched on current enrollment for the first summer session at UACCH with 468 enrolled to begin June 1. He said last year the record was 409 students for summer one.
Approximatelyy 800-1,000 students will be attending for both summer sessions, according to Thomason.
He said 721 students are already registered for the fall.
“ Last year we had 541 at this same time,” he added.
He, again, expressed thanks to the voters who made it possible for Hempstead Hall to be funded and built on the UACCH campus. He said the project has been started and a webcam has been set up to keep up with the construction that can be viewed on the UACCH website.
“One hundred percent of that first million of benefit provided by local tax payers is going straight back into the community,” Thomason said. He said the first major projects of the $10 million project went to local businesses.
“ It gave an immediate positive impact,” Thomason said.
He said $294,000 in dirt and $272,000 in structural steel was used.
