SSCC Closes Its North Campus in Wilmington
Wilmington College is helping fill the void left in the wake of Southern State Community College's announcement that it will not reopen its North Campus in Wilmington.
WC and Southern State entered into a partnership in which Wilmington College will provide instructional space on its campus for students enrolled at the North Campus, most of whom are high school students in the College Credit Plus program.
Southern State President Kevin Boys said the institution was forced to close the North Campus as part of its response to severe cuts in state funding due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Southern State, which, he stressed, desires to continue serving its students in Clinton County, found a solution in collaborating with Wilmington College.
“What makes this plan possible is a partnership with our friends and colleagues at Wilmington College, " Boys said, adding that the move to WC "will further strengthen" Wilmington College's Clinton County Succeeds (CCS) program that was expended in 2018 to be available to graduates of all county high schools. CCS offers as much as $10,000 in forgivable loans to local high school graduates and graduates of Southern State.
"We’ve traditionally had a significant number of Southern State graduates transfer to Wilmington College to complete their bachelor's degrees,” Boys added.
WC President Jim Reynolds noted that, "While we share the sadness related to the closing of the North Campus, we are proud to work with our partners in education at Southern State to provide opportunities for their students to continue their classes on our campus. We look forward to doing our share to help the residents of Clinton County retain access to Southern State's catalog of courses."
Dr. Erika Goodwin, vice president for academic affairs and strategic initiatives, and dean of the faculty, will transition to interim president in June. She believes having Southern State students on WC's campus will provide them with additional layers of knowledge about Wilmington College and enhance their comfort level with interacting there.
"I think their presence on our campus as Southern State students will serve to whet their appetite to many of the advantages of attending Wilmington College when they're ready to make a decision about pursuing their bachelor's degrees," she said. "This will provide them with a better knowledge of the appealing educational opportunities that are available practically in their own backyards."
