Duct tape covers large rips in the brown carpet outside the cafeteria.
Several classes are taught on Saturdays because of limited space on weekdays.
The proposed $32 million project - slated to go on the campus golf course - is a top priority for UM administrators when the Legislature convenes in January. The university is asking taxpayers to pick up nearly the entire tab.
Several legislators and candidates who attended Tuesday's tour were convinced afterward that the COT had maxed out its space. They salute two-year colleges for the role they play in helping boost Montana's economy. None, however, could place a price on their support. Not yet, anyway.
Early revenue estimates show Montana has a surplus again this biennium. But the national economy has seen better days. Where that leaves major capital projects such as this remains to be seen.
“Fortunately, (the state is) not in an economic deficit, but we don't have the money to pay for the entire cost of that this session,” said Rep. Diane Sands, D-Missoula.
Sen. Jim Shockley, R-Victor agreed.
“I think it's a great idea. We need welders and diesel mechanics, but I don't know where they are going to come up with $32.5 million,” said Shockley, who opposes building on the UM Golf Course. “I'm in support of the concept, but I got to know more.”
Though some are hesitant of the price, with the support of UM President George Dennison and the state Board of Regents, the project may have a better chance when up against other funding proposals, Sands said.
Enrollment at the COT has doubled in eight years. In 2000, there were 800 students. Today, there's more than 1,600, with the majority ranging in age from 22 to 49. Two-year colleges make up about 20 percent of Montana's higher education enrollment, said Sheila Stearns, state commissioner of higher education. The Board of Regents is focused on increasing the number of students attending two-year institutions.
There's little room to expand on the existing campus, Good said Tuesday, standing in the chilly wind pointing to Missoula County Public Schools land to the south and east and the county's land to the west.
The group of state dignitaries stopped by a surgical-tech lab where six radiology students were listening to their instructor. There is no radiology lab on campus, and the surgical-tech room that the students use can't fit everyone enrolled in the tutorial. Six students do lab on Tuesday; the rest attend on Wednesday, said Anne Delaney, chairwoman of the COT health professions department.
The students sat in front of a small screen, lit up to view X-rays. The COT has better X-ray technician equipment, but nowhere to put it, Delaney said.
UM administrators have known for several years that the COT was filling up and received $500,000 from the Legislature in 2005 to “help us better understand our needs,” said Bob Duringer, UM's vice president for administration and finance. Recently, the Legislature has funded new COT projects in Billings, Helena and Great Falls, Stearns said.
Yet, Missoula's COT has the largest enrollment in the state.
“You're not going to shake down the alumni?” replied Shockley when it became clear the university was asking the Legislature to fund almost the entire amount.
The alumni base is not large enough to support these kinds of projects, Stearns replied.
The proposed 105,000-square-foot building will have three floors and a basement and be constructed in two phases. The building was designed for a capacity of about 3,000 students, which according to university estimates, is a number that won't be reached for at least a decade, Duringer said.
Should the 2009 Legislature give approve the entire funding request, Duringer said he suspects the last season of golf on the course will be 2009. What will happen to the buildings located on the current COT campus has not yet been decided.
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goo wrote on Oct 22, 2008 10:11 PM: