GCC Board hears updates on expansion plans for Stafford, Culpeper

The Germanna Community College Board learned Thursday that the college expects a bid proposal next week from Stantec for a master plan study on the proposed permanent Stafford County site near Stafford Hospital.

The existing temporary Germanna Stafford County Center off U.S. 1 at Aquia exceeded its capacity of 1,000 in 2009, the year it opened.  A permanent Stafford site might eventually serve over 5,000 students. Germanna currently serves a total headcount of about 13,000 credit and workforce training students at campuses in Spotsylvania and Locust Grove and centers in Culpeper and Stafford.

The meeting was held at Germanna’s Stafford Automotive Technology site on Blackjack Road.

In other action:

• The board approved a proposed Student Development course requirement change to require all curricular students, except those in career studies certificate programs, to take a student development course in their first semester, effective Fall 2014. The move brings GCC into alignment with a new Virginia Community College System policy. 
• The board was told the college expects to send out for bidding next week detailed drawings for a design for a modular building to house office and meeting space at the Germanna Daniel Technology Center in Culpeper.  The 1,500-square-foot building will house eight to 10 new faculty offices. A very early estimate is that it might cost about $300,000.
• The board was told completion of new signs at the Fredericksburg Area Campus in Spotsylvania, the Locust Grove Campus and the Daniel Technology Center is expected by Summer 2014, pending permit approval. The signs will be 20 feet to 23.5 feet tall and 10 feet wide with an electronic component that will allow the digital display of  messages and alerts to oncoming traffic. “The signs will allow us to do announcements and advertising and post emergency information,” Germanna President David A. Sam explained.