Community impressed with new Sumner Campus Short General Education Center
by Rama Peroo, Cowley College Director of Institutional Communications — With excitement building for the opening of the Sumner Campus Short General Education Center in Wellington, more than 200 people attended an Open House event on Saturday.
Dr. Kim Long, provost and vice president for academic affairs at Newman University, and her husband, Dr. Jim Long, Chair of the division of business and information technology at Friends University, live in Sumner County and were excited to see the new facility.
“It’s an incredible opportunity for economic development, for workforce development, and is great for the county, students and business,” Dr. Kim Long said. “We are very pleased to support it.”
Dr. Jim Long was impressed with the facilities and the sense of community.
“I am kind of in awe at how beautiful the campus is and how technically advanced a lot of the programs are,” Dr. Jim Long said.
Along with an opportunity to tour the Short General Education Center and Sumner Campus Technology and Innovation Center, the Open House featured fun activities for the entire family and provided free hot dogs, chips, and drinks.
The Short General Education Center features numerous classrooms, conference rooms, computer labs, office spaces, tutoring areas, space for adult education, an eatery with full catering capabilities, a bookstore, and a beautiful community room.
Julie Leis, who resides in Wellington and has a daughter currently taking classes at Cowley College, said the town is fortunate to have a facility like the Sumner Campus.
“It’s nice for the community and great for the students. It is a beautiful campus,” Leis said.
The Sumner Campus Short General Education Center will begin offering general education classes in the fall of 2019, while the Sumner Campus Technology and Innovation Center currently offers programs of study in manufacturing, agricultural studies, computer science and information technology, and general educational development.
Ken and Shari Carothers, who live a mile north of South Haven, are excited that they can begin taking their classes through the Golden Tigers’ program in Wellington.
Shari said the couple have had the Open House on their calendar as they were excited to see the Short General Education Center.
“We are impressed with the facility,” Ken said. “We think it’s great to have a campus here in Wellington.”
For more information on the Sumner Campus please call 620-441-6555, and for additional information on the Golden Tigers’ program at Cowley College contact alumni@cowley.edu.
