Pro-tech department has 97 new students
Connor DeVries
Issue date: 2/8/10 Section: News
For the last couple of years, the college has seen huge increases in enrollment. This semester was no exception, with enrollment jumping more than 20 percent. The Professional-technical department, in particular, welcomed 97 new students this semester.
The Pro-tech instructors and their new director, Mike Mires, have been working on creative ways to accommodate new students.
"Each has a slightly different approach," said Mires, head of the Pro-tech department.
The business-oriented classes have increased in size, to allow more students per class.
"In the business area, they are taking an overload of students," Mires said. "If they 20 people scheduled for a class, they bumped that up to 24 or even 25."
This approach to solving enrollment issues has some drawbacks however. Larger classes mean that the instructor has less time to spend with individual students. Mires pointed out that in some programs, taking on additional students could even pose safety problems.
"If the shop can accommodate 20 people, you hate to take 25," Mires said. "You get into safety issues."
To avoid crowding shops and overloading facilities, some instructors have suggested improving facilities so that they can handle more students. One proposal calls for nine new welding stations. The additional stations would allow instructors to fit more students into lab classes.
For the Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning (HVAC) program though, increasing class sizes may not resolve the issue. A proposal from that department suggests changing the schedule and perhaps adding classes on Fridays or Saturdays. Under the new schedule, students would be divided into larger groups for lectures, but lab classes would be smaller. This would make things easier on the instructor by allowing him to consolidate lecture time, without crowding the shop where the labs classes take place.
The Outdoor Power and Recreational Vehicle program (OPRV) might be expanded in a different way.
The Pro-tech instructors and their new director, Mike Mires, have been working on creative ways to accommodate new students.
"Each has a slightly different approach," said Mires, head of the Pro-tech department.
The business-oriented classes have increased in size, to allow more students per class.
"In the business area, they are taking an overload of students," Mires said. "If they 20 people scheduled for a class, they bumped that up to 24 or even 25."
This approach to solving enrollment issues has some drawbacks however. Larger classes mean that the instructor has less time to spend with individual students. Mires pointed out that in some programs, taking on additional students could even pose safety problems.
"If the shop can accommodate 20 people, you hate to take 25," Mires said. "You get into safety issues."
To avoid crowding shops and overloading facilities, some instructors have suggested improving facilities so that they can handle more students. One proposal calls for nine new welding stations. The additional stations would allow instructors to fit more students into lab classes.
For the Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning (HVAC) program though, increasing class sizes may not resolve the issue. A proposal from that department suggests changing the schedule and perhaps adding classes on Fridays or Saturdays. Under the new schedule, students would be divided into larger groups for lectures, but lab classes would be smaller. This would make things easier on the instructor by allowing him to consolidate lecture time, without crowding the shop where the labs classes take place.
The Outdoor Power and Recreational Vehicle program (OPRV) might be expanded in a different way.
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