Wallace State Celebrates Community College Month

Hanceville, AL — Wallace State Community College joins community colleges across the country in an annual April Celebration of Community College Month. Each spring during this special month, Wallace State’s campus bustles with a celebration of the Arts in April, student awards events, spring fling, sporting events and so much more.

This year, Wallace State is also joining with the American Association of Community College and the Association of Community College Trustees’ #CCMonth campaign to improve awareness of the economic and academic advantages of attending community colleges.

“Community College Month is an opportunity for us to celebrate student success and the vital relationship our college has with our communities,” said Dr. Vicki Karolewics, president of Wallace State Community College.

A series of Wallace State student and alumni stories from many different program areas, which will be shared on the College’s social media accounts, will add a personal dimension to the celebration. Events on campus this month include Thursday Fundays each Thursday, That 70s Show by the Wallace State Singers April 11-13, Spring Cleanup on April 16, Big Band Dance on April 19, Performing Arts Student Solo Recitals on April 23, Spring Fling in Oneonta on April 23, the Future Foundation’s Scholarship Brunch on April 24, Spring Fling in Hanceville on April 24, Spring Under the Stars on April 26, Congressman Aderholt’s 4^th District Congressional Art Competition Awards on April 29, the Student Honors Ceremony on April 29, the President’s Scholarship Ceremony on April 30, and many athletic events and student activities. View the Wallace State calendar at www.wallacestate.edu/calendar.

Research from New America's annual Varying Degrees study and other sources reveals that the majority of American people hold community colleges in the highest regard among all higher education institutions with respect to being worth the cost of attendance, whether tax dollars should support them, and whether they spend their resources wisely and run efficiently.

Public community colleges are a uniquely American educational model that was designed to guarantee access to affordable, high-quality higher education for all people. They are the primary educators of life-saving nursing and other healthcare professionals among many others. They also serve as an onramp to bachelor’s, master’s and higher-level degrees for many students, and particularly for the most demographically and socioeconomically diverse students. They guarantee fair admissions for all students. They offer supports for adult students who have to work to support their families. And without community colleges, many American students would not be able to access higher education at all.

An Achieving the Dream Leader College, National Center for Excellence in multiple disciplines, and member of the Alabama Community College System, Wallace State is a comprehensive community college offering more than 200 options in academic, health and technical programs of study leading to an associate degree, certificate or transfer, as well as non-credit training and adult education. The college serves more than 6,000 students in credit and non-credit programs each semester at its main campus in Hanceville and at satellite locations in downtown Oneonta, in Cullman at its new Workforce Training Center and at the Cullman Airport in Vinemont. A new center in Arley, which will provide that area with access to adult education and workforce credit classes, will open later this year.

“The new-and-future economy is a skills-based economy,” said ACCT President and CEO Jee Hang Lee. “The nation's community colleges always have specialized in providing practical education and skills that students can use to advance themselves in a competitive economy. They give opportunities to all students, and they support all students throughout their educations, whether they attend to attain an associate degree or certificate, intend to transfer on for a bachelor’s or higher degree, or they take one or a few courses to learn a new skill or expand their horizons. 

This year, Community College Month organizers are encouraging students and other to take the message to their favorite online social platforms to spread the word about the importance of community colleges in cultivating skills for the future, and the unique affordability that community colleges offer to financially challenged generations. The #CCMonth campaign is expected to garner millions of impressions across social media platforms and include prominent support from the White House; U.S. Departments of Education, Energy, Labor, and State; the U.S. Census Bureau. State governors and other elected officials, including Governor of Alabama Kay Ivey, who serves as chair of the Alabama Community College System Board of Trustees, are ardent community college supporters. Celebrities like Mike Rowe and Jeff Bezos are well known community college advocates.

The College invites Wallace State students and alumni to submit their own Wallace State success stories to communications@wallacestate.edu.

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About Wallace State

Wallace State Community College (Ala.), a member of the Alabama Community College System, is a comprehensive community college in north central Alabama offering more than 200 options in academic, health and technical programs of study leading to an associate degree, certificate or transfer, as well as non-credit training and adult education. An Achieving the Dream Leader College, nationally-recognized by the Aspen Institute among the top 10 percent of institutions according to student outcomes, ranked by Southern Business and Development among the Top 3 institutions in the South for workforce development, named a Center of Excellence by the National League for Nursing Center and the National Security Administration, rated the Top Online Community College in Alabama, a Military Friendly Institution and an All-Steinway School, Wallace State is an outstanding place for students to pursue their education and career goals. Classes are offered online and on campus, day, evening and on weekends, with numerous start dates each year. Visit Wallace State’s beautiful main campus located on 300-acres in Hanceville, Ala., our satellite location in downtown Oneonta, Ala., find us online at www.wallacestate.edu, or call 256.352.8000.