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of forestry and logging. It quickly develops into one of the nation’s best teams, winning more national championships than any other logger sports team in the nation. The FVCC team has won 14 rst-place tro- phies at the Association of Western Forestry Clubs (AWFC) Conclave, the largest logger sports event in the Northwest. FVCC is the only team to win four consecutive Conclave championships (1988 – 1991). It also is the only team to capture the Conclave title ve years in a row (1996 – 2000).
2012
The Broussard Family, in memory of Rebecca Brous- sard, donates $4 million to the college, the largest in the college’s history, for a nursing and health educa- tion center. The FVCC Foundation raised an addition- al $1,360,000 in gifts, pledges and in-kind donations in nine months. The 32,000-square-foot facility, which also houses a new student health clinic, opens in April 2013. The funds designate the building as the rst privately funded building on FVCC’s campus.
FALL 2015
FVCC reports 2,169 enrolled students, eight more than a year ago. The number of full-time equivalent students is 1,319.2, a 3.8 percent decline, or roughly 52 FTEs. FVCC attracts 90 percent of its students from Flathead and Lincoln counties, and this has helped provide a consistent base for the school as the economy has recovered, leading to enrollment dips at colleges across the nation.
DECEMBER 2015
The school board of trustees approves a plan to build the rst student housing on campus.
2015
The FVCC Foundation awards $800,000 to students through scholarships. The funds are raised through community support, as well as the Festival of Fla- vors, a community fundraiser that raised $200,000 in 2015.
SEPT. 12, 2016
The board of trustees approves nancing for the rst student housing facility on campus. The board votes to seek a $9 million loan to build the new facility, which is under construction and expected to be com- pleted next summer. The college is getting the 30- year loan at a 4 percent interest rate, and president Jane Karas says the school may not need to borrow the entire amount as the project is estimated to cost $7.7 million. FVCC’s rst on-campus housing complex will feature 124 beds, including 50 double units and 24 singles, along with kitchen units. There will also be a common areas and laundry facilities. The college plans to rent the rooms to students for the fall 2017 semester.
FALL 2016
Flathead Valley Community College is seeking testi- monials from alumni for possible inclusion in various 50th anniversary electronic and printed publica- tions. Past and current students are encouraged to submit their favorite memories and other informa- tion at www.fvcc.edu/testimonials by Oct. 20.
Flathead Valley Community College graduates. BEACON FILE PHOTO youth of our community.”
The college has followed its mission in numerous ways for students of all ages. The development of the Running Start Program has helped high school students earn college credits for course work and reduced costs for families while improv- ing the chances for student success at the college level. Students in Flathead and Lin- coln counties can receive six free college credits through the program. They can also participate in summer courses to gain an extra three to four credits.
“Flathead Valley Community College has been a cornerstone in our community and school,” Flathead High School Princi- pal Peter Fusaro said. “They have always had the foresight to be able to respond to the needs of our community and the needs of our students. The Running Start program has had the greatest impact ... We have found that students who take Running Start credits are twice as likely to go and be successful in college than those of their counterparts. It is truly an amazing program.”
“These opportunities not only prepare our students for college, but also for the workforce,” Fusaro added. “We congrat- ulate FVCC on 50 great years and we look forward to continuing our partnership for the next 50 years and beyond.”
The growth of programs for non-tra- ditional students, as well as professional certi cations, has also made FVCC stand out in Montana’s educational landscape.
“FVCC is held aloft as a gold standard, certainly for community colleges but also for all colleges, as a school with innova- tive practices,” said Matthew Springer, project director of RevUp Montana, a statewide workforce project supported by federal grant money that partners with colleges to help increase vocational degree and certi cation training.
Springer said FVCC has pushed the envelope in a lot of areas by developing new programs and research that address speci c needs in the Flathead Valley, such as industrial occupational trade sectors.
“They’re constantly seen as one of the entities that are pushing that work in
Montana, and they’re certainly provid- ing leadership in that,” Springer said.
Under the leadership of Karas, who is entering her 16th year as president and was recently named the top community college leader in the Paci c Northwest, FVCC has continued to grow with the community in mind. In recent years, the college has expanded its partnership with the University of Montana and Montana State University for four-year bachelor of arts degrees.
“I think the word about the college is getting out, that it’s a great place to start your education,” Karas said. “We have faculty who could teach anywhere in the world. They could teach at Harvard or Stanford, but because of where we live they’ve chosen to be here. They’re really focused on our students’ learning.”
Karas said the next ve years could see the college expand with a new student center and tness center at the large open campus along U.S. Highway 93.
“We listen — I meet with people in all di erent cities around Lincoln and Flat- head counties,” she said. “We’re always focused on how we can help students be more successful. A lot of students are part-time students and they have a fam- ily and a job, or both. It’s a challenge just to be in school, but especially when you’re balancing work and a family. So for many of our students, it’s nding ways to sup- port them, whether it’s nancial assis- tance or counseling or just some ways to help bridge those challenges when they have them.”
The McLarens, who celebrated their 68th anniversary last week, both still attend the senior courses at the college — every Friday for six weeks in February and March — as they have for over 40 years.
“Bill takes the same course every year: watercolor. I’ve done Audubon, line dancing, computer, history,” Lois said last week, sitting next to her husband in Kalispell and re ecting on their lifetime of “enlightenment” at FVCC.
“I like to learn something di erent every year. There’s no excuse to be bored.” dtabish@ atheadbeacon.com
Flathead Valley Community College moves from downtown to its new 100,000 square-foot campus on the north end of Kalispell o U.S. Highway 93. Stu- dents move into the rst completed building for the fall semester, the business and social sciences build- ing. By November, the school is able to use all four of the new buildings on the new campus.
1997
The student center and administration building is re- named Blake Hall after the college’s rst president. Blake served as president from 1967 to 1974 and passed away in 2003 at age 73.
JULY 2001
Jane Karas is named the new president of FVCC, becoming the 11th president in the college’s history. She previously served as vice president and dean of instruction and student services at the college begin- ning in 1999.
2008
The inaugural Festival of Flavors, a community fund- raiser, raises roughly $30,000 for student scholar- ships.
FALL 2010
A record number of students — 2,800 — enroll in the middle of the economic recession.
MAY 2010
FVCC graduates its largest class ever with 340 students earning a total of 358 degrees and certi - cates. Among the graduates are laid-o workers who ocked to Flathead Valley Community College seek- ing second careers, often after having spent many years in the same profession.
1986
School o cials decide to drop the college basketball program after a one-year revival as part of budget cuts. President Howard Fryett announces the deci- sion as part of trimming amid drops in state funding and an enrollment spike, which put pressure on other areas of the college. Enrollment was up 9 percent over funding by the 1985 Legislature.
FALL 1990
Students eat, study and socialize in the Bird of Pillum cafe in Blake Hall in 1969. COURTESY FVCC SEPTEMBER 21, 2016 // FLATHEADBEACON.COM
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