An Exciting First Year

Bruce Radcliffe Dr. Monica Young-Zook, assistant professor of English, teaches a class in one of the Warner Robins Campus’ “smart” classrooms wired for technology.

John Stewart and Jilian Brosas have never crossed paths at Macon State College’s Warner Robins Campus, but they share an appreciation for the opportunities the school is giving them.

Stewart works full-time at the Warner Robins Air Logistics Center and takes evening and online courses toward his certificate in information technology. He is a program/logistics manager who wants to stay ahead of the curve professionally.

“Technology is continually changing,” he said. “If you don’t keep your knowledge and education current, you run the risk that your skills won’t keep up with the job.”

The Warner Robins Campus is also a boon to Brosas, a lifelong Houston County resident who commuted to Macon’s Mount de
Sales Academy all during high school. She wanted to begin college close to home to save money yet still get a taste of traditional
campus life.

“It was important to me that I get an authentic college experience in Warner Robins,” said Brosas, an 18-year-old freshman. “The
campus is very homey, my classes are enjoyable, and I have many friends here. It’s a great place to learn.”

This fall marked the first anniversary of Macon State’s permanent Warner Robins Campus, located on Watson Boulevard near the main gate of Robins Air Force Base. Today there is a strong consensus that the high expectations initially held for the campus have been met, even exceeded.

From an initial enrollment in 2003 of 1,505, a Warner Robins record for Macon State College, the number of students this fall swelled to about 1,700.

“We are definitely filling a need,” said Mike Hale, the campus’ executive director. “This community has embraced us.”

From the beginning, Macon State leaders planned for the Warner Robins Campus to serve Houston County’s varied interests. Providing degree programs and professional education suited to the needs of the Base, Central Georgia’s economic engine, is obviously one of the College’s highest priorities. With some 44 percent of the Base workforce reaching retirement eligibility over the next seven years, Macon State plans to be a major source of new, incoming talent.

Ken Wallace, education and training functional area chief at the Base, said the proximity of the campus to Robins and his own opportunities to work closely with Hale are big advantages.
“We communicate and share ideas,” he said. “It’s an excellent partnership for the Base.”

Macon State’s Institute for Business & Information Management, headquartered at the Warner Robins Campus, has so far served nearly 500 Base personnel with training in LEAN, an operational streamlining process strongly endorsed by Air Force officials.

The College received $200,000 in funds through the state’s Intellectual Capital Partnership Program to support IT, business and process improvement certificate programs, which are offered at the Warner Robins Campus specifically for Robins employees. Representing 30 academic credit hours each, the certificate programs give Base personnel a chance to get about a year’s worth of college under their belts while enhancing specific professional skills they use at their jobs.

Bruce Radcliffe Macon State students gather outside the Academic Services Building at the Warner Robins Campus.

“I’m already working in the IT field but I wanted to advance my career with specialized training,” said Janet Dowd, a certificate program student and workgroup manager at the Air Logistics Center, where she helps support 600 computer systems. “The campus is so close to the Base it makes it very convenient for me to pursue my education.”

Macon State’s alliances with the Base get a lot of attention, but the opening of the Warner Robins Campus resulted in another positive development: an influx of new high school graduates like Brosas who wanted more than what Macon State could offer Houston County students in the past. The College’s former Warner Robins Center, which operated for 12 years in leased space, offered quality instruction but not much of a traditional campus environment.

“We always had younger students at the former location but there are definitely more now that we have a permanent campus,” said Pella Murphy, the Warner Robins Campus’ assistant director. “We’re able to offer student activities and other opportunities in an attractive campus setting, and it definitely makes a difference, especially for students just out of high school.”

In December 2003, Mayor Donald Walker and the Warner Robins City Council donated 79 acres adjacent to the campus to the Board of Regents for Macon State’s future expansion. Pending funding and approval from the Regents, the College will add additional academic buildings to the campus. Besides housing traditional degree programs, the new buildings will help the College develop more workforce development initiatives related to the Base and other industries.

“It’s almost overwhelming to think that with all that’s been accomplished so far, we have barely scratched the surface of what the Warner Robins Campus can do for Houston County,” Hale said. “It’s been an exciting first year, and it’s only going to get better from here.”

Bruce Radcliffe Kerry Happle, left, and Kristen Lassiter share a light moment during Dr. Linda Cooper’s Business Computer Applications class.

Bruce Radcliffe A night view of Thomas Hall at the Warner Robins Campus.

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