San Jacinto College is looking forward to populating its Generation Park campus this year and opening a new classroom building on the central campus in fall 2021, Chancellor Brenda Hellyer said during a State of the College address.
Hellyer’s remarks were delivered via livestream Nov. 5. She also discussed the college’s response to COVID-19 and how officials connected with students in need as the pandemic unfolded.
The Generation Park project remained on schedule and under budget, Hellyer said; the campus opened Aug. 1. Students in Associate of Arts or Associate of Science programs—located at 13455 Lockwood Road, Houston—began taking classes at the campus this fall.
Also new this fall: San Jac welcomed its first RN-to-BSN students, and Hellyer said all 30 spots were filled.
“San Jacinto College is helping to meet the workforce needs of our health care partners [amid COVID-19],” she said.
In less than a year’s time, doors will open at another new facility, this time on the Pasadena central campus. The campus will be home to an additional building with 20 interactive classrooms, and the building will be the largest instructional building of its kind in the country, Hellyer said.
Aside from the resources being invested in instruction, San Jac has also been distributing its $9.6 million in CARES Act funding, Hellyer said. Of the funds, $4.5 million went directly to the students, she said; another portion went toward technology for remote learning; and some funds were used for additional student supports related to the pandemic.
Moreover, the college launched a support program to assist its community members amid the pandemic. Through San Jac Cares, hundreds of staffers worked together to call and check on 51,000 students to date, she said.
“I am so pleased in how we were able to find resources to help our students,” she said.
