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Pulaski Tech campus marks grand opening |
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Tuesday, 28 October 2008 |
Pulaski Technical College’s newest campus will help Saline County keep existing industries and recruit new ones, state Sen. Shane Broadway said Monday.
“We’re very excited that this facility is here and part of our community,” Broadway, D-Bryant, said during the grand opening ceremony of Pulaski Tech’s Little Rock-South campus at the Saline-Pulaski county line.
Broadway, who also represents the Saline County Economic Development Corp., said improving education is a key in improving economic development.
Gov. Mike Beebe, who delivered the keynote speech, said he learned at a recent meeting in New York that word is spreading about economic development in Arkansas. That development, he said, requires a good workforce, adetermining factor in whether “you lose or win the deal.”
In turn, a good workforce depends on education, Beebe said in citing accomplishments at Pulaski Tech.
The governor, referring to several Indian and European companies who have decided to land in Arkansas, said those companies wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for educational institutions like Pulaski Tech. “We can’t celebrate that enough,” he said.
About 200 people, including business leaders, attended the grand opening with Pulaski Tech faculty, staff and students.
Other guest speakers included U.S. Rep. Vic Snyder, D-Ark.; U.S. Sen. Mark Pryor, D-Ark.; Little Rock Mayor Mark Stodola; Elizabeth Small, chairwoman of the Little Rock Regional Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors; and Pulaski Tech Student Government Association President Tyrone Sanders.
Dan F. Bakke, Pulaski Tech president, welcomed visitors, most of whom were seeing the college site at 13000 Interstate 30 for the first time.
The Little-Rock South campus officially opened in August in what was previously known as the Little Rock Expo building.
About 900 students reportedly are enrolled in general education courses, developmental education classes or career-oriented programs offered at the Transportation Technology Center and the Pulaski Tech Arkansas Culinary School. Little Rock-South has the capacity to serve 3,300 students.
“We are here to celebrate the potential of the people of Central Arkansas, our students,” said John Suskie, chairman of the college’s Board of Trustees. “Typically, Pulaski Tech students don’t come here from out of state. They are our neighbors, people with roots here who will stay here.
“Their aspirations, their hard work, their sacrifices will make their lives better and more prosperous.”
The colleges Transportation Technology Center provides training for students seeking careers in the transportation industry. Programs are offered in automotive technology, collision repair technology, diesel technology, motorcycle/ATV repair technology, transportation facility management and tractor-trailer technology.
The culinary school trains students for careers in the restaurant and hospitality industries. For Monday’s grand opening ceremony, the students created and prepared food for the reception.
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