Central Virginia Community College
Governor Makes Funding Available to Assist CVCC/U.Va. Engineering Partnership
Lynchburg, VA /Media Release/ -- Governor Tim Kaine recently made available $300,000 of Discretionary Funds for Optional Activities under the Workforce Investment Act for support of the CVCC/U.Va. Engineering Program. The grant award will be used primarily to provide scholarships, supplement sponsor contributions, and renovate laboratory facilities.
The CVCC/U.Va. Engineering Program provides guaranteed admissions into the University of Virginias School of Engineering for students successfully completing the Associate of Engineering Degree with a 3.4 grade point average or better. The students then have the option of completing their four-year degree in Charlottesville or completing their remaining U.Va. coursework at CVCC.
According to Stan Shoun, CVCC Vice President of Workforce Development, the funds will provide two-year scholarships for 16 entering freshmen, fall 2008, and assist corporate work/study sponsors looking to expand their interest in the engineering program.
Corporate sponsors are an integral part of the engineering programs success, Shoun claims. We estimate that within the next five years, 500 new engineering positions will be created inside Region 2000. Without the financial backing of industry, we would fall well short of the monetary demands necessary to succeed, he said.
The CVCC/U.Va. Engineering Program was developed in 2007 by the two schools in collaboration with the local nuclear company AREVA NP. The partnership reached out to area businesses and, currently, 14 companies are sponsoring students in the program.
Shoun explains that all the partners werent sure what to expect when they opened the program to the public. We initially sought to bring 32 students into the program in the fall of 2007, hoping we could find enough sponsors for the entire class. To our surprise we received over 200 applications eventually enrolling 143 students. Corporate sponsors provided funding for 73 of these students.
CVCC will allocate some of the governors funds to update physics lab equipment to meet university standards. Third year engineering instruction will begin in the fall of 2009.
Release Date: 3:00 AM (EST) 05/27/08
Release Number: 080527.govfundsengineer
Media Contact:
Kathy Cudlin
Coordinator, Public Relations and Marketing
Central Virginia Community College
(434) 832-7609