Running head: COMMUNITY COLLEGE VISIT REPORT 1

Community College Visit Report

Donna Roy
AET/555
July 7, 2014
Chandra Shepherd
COMMUNITY COLLEGE VISIT REPORT 2


Community College Visit Report
The community college visit was conducted at Mountwest Community and Technical
College in Huntington, WV. Mountwest (MCTC) is fully accredited by the North Central
Association of Colleges and Schools. When MCTC was founded in 1975 the college was then
called Marshall Community College and was a community college within Marshall University.
Marshall Community College provided Associate Degrees, continuing education courses for
local employees, and community interest classes. The first classes were taught in the Fall
semester of 1975.
The main campus is located at 1 Mountwest Way in Huntington, WV with two training
centers that are located within 10 minutes of the main campus. The main campus is handicap
accessible and has elevators that go from the basement to the fourth floor. All the rooms are
clearly marked and there is an information booth by the entrance to the building to help
students know where to go. The Culinary Center allows students in the Culinary Arts program to
get hands on training from chefs and other culinary professionals. The Inland Waterways
Academy also allows students to get hands on training and knowledge given by professionals in
the field.
MCTC has an open admission policy which means that students are not required to take
ACT/SAT exams. However, all new incoming freshman or transfer student college placement
exams in order for the student to be placed in the proper math, science, and English classes.
Students can apply for admission online by answering questions that is then used to auto fill the
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application. If at any time students have a question there is a help link that emails the helpdesk
in the admissions office and someone will email the student within forty- eight hours.
The student body size is currently 3,111 students. The student population is a
multicultural mix of the tri-state area and ages range from recent high school graduates to
adults in their 60s and handicap students. Most of the traditional students are enrolled fulltime
and many of the nontraditional older students are enrolled part-time due to work and family
responsibilities.
The following student services are available at MCTC:
1. Recruitment and admissions has an open enrollment policy and has recruiters that go
to local high schools and speaks about the college.
2. CAP Assessment is required for all incoming freshman and the scores are used to
place the students in appropriate classes.
3. Academic Advising helps the student identify career and life goals and is the students
first contact if they have an academic problem.
4. Career Services helps the students select a major, resume writing, and how to dress
and behave during a job interview.
5. Counseling Center helps students deal with life problems and decisions that can
interfere with the students educational goals. Counselors can also refer students to
professionals
6. Financial Aid office works with the student to make their education affordable by
finding grants and scholarships.
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7. Records and Registration helps student get their records from previous schools and
aid in the registration process.
8. Student Activities has just started and hope to more clubs and the first student
government elections will be in the fall of 2014.
9. Student Disability helps to coordinate services for qualified students with disabilities
10. Campus Cafe serves the students and staff hot and cold breakfasts and lunches.
. There are several different associates degree programs as well as certificate programs.
In the Liberal Arts department there are eight Associate degree programs one is General
Studies which is for students planning to transfer to a four year college. The others are
Advertising, Internet Journalism, Public Relations, and Radio/Television Production
Management and can be used to get a job after graduation or apply to four year degree
programs in those fields. The other three are education related American Sign Language, Early
Childhood Education, and Public Library Technology. In the Allied Health Department there are
eleven Associate Degree programs that students will be able to get a job with after graduation.
The Allied Health Degrees are: Dental Laboratory Technology, Health Information Technology,
Massage Therapy, Medical Assistant, Paramedic Science, Pharmacy Technician, Physical
Therapy Assistant, Radiologic Technology, Respiratory Therapy, and Veterinary Technology. The
following are the Associate's Degree programs in Applied Science: Biomedical Instrumentation
Technology, Electronics Technology, Engineering Design Technology, MT/CNC Technology, and
Welding Technology. There are three degree concentrations in both Business Technology and
Administrative Technology and they are Executive, Legal, and Medical. There is also degrees in
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Banking and Finance and Interior Design. In The Management Technology Department the
degrees are in Accounting, Business Administration, Call Center Supervision, and Industrial
Management. Culinary Arts and Hotel/Motel Management are degrees in the Hospitality
Management Department. The following are degrees in Information Technology: Animation
and Game Developer, Geospatial Studies, Network Systems Administration, Network Systems
Development, Network Systems Security, Web Designer, and Graphic Design. In Legal Studies
there are degrees in Criminal Justice and Paralegal Studies. Aviation, Intelligent Transportation
Systems, Maritime, Railway, and Roadway Concentration degrees in Transportation
Technology. There are some non-traditional degrees that students already in those fields use to
get a better position these are Board of Governors Adult Degree Programs in Allied Health,
Business, Criminal Justice, Information Technology, Maintenance Technology and
Transportation. There also Associates Degree programs in Occupational Development with
concentrations in either Child Development Specialist and Surgical Technologist. The One Year
Certificate Programs are Aviation Pilot, Account/Bookkeeping, Allied Health Occupations,
Certified Coding Specialist, CISCO Certified Network Associate, Culinary Arts, Deaf Studies,
Dental Laboratory Technology, Exercise Science, Machinist, Maritime, Microsoft Certified IT
Professional, Teacher Assistant, Technical Studies, and Transportation. All of the classes that
are offered at MCTC whether they are on campus or online have a Blackboard Shell to make it
easier for the students and teachers to communicate about class work and has class
information on it. According to "Mountwest Community And Technical
College" (2014), "Mountwest offers over 100 classes every semester in a variety of subjects.
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These online classes allow Mountwest students an affordable and convenient way to take
classes (Online Learning). The classes on campus begin at 8am and the last class ends at 9pm.
Mountwest has community partnerships with Cabell County Planning commission to give
students real-world experience in the Geospatial Science Program. Students in the medical
assistant program will get their clinical experience at either ST. Mary's Medical Center or Cabell
Huntington Hospital. Mountwest plans on adding a new degree program in the Allied Health
Department called Patient Care Specialist in which students will learn phlebotomy, waived
laboratory testing, and EKGs. MCTC has a plan to become an educational leader in the local
community by 2016. At the Main campus there is free parking for both the staff and students and
the college only has classes on Monday through Thursday. MCTC moved to its new campus two
years ago so that there would be room for expansion and to have all of the classes at one campus.
MCTC has many different degree and certification options for students and has plans for
expansion.