An expansion of the Regional Center for Advanced Manufacturing (RCAM) is nearing completion as Northeast State Community College enlarges both its technical training capabilities and dual enrollment opportunities for high school students around the region.
The new facility known as the RCAM Academy at Northeast State prepares to open its door and welcome students in the Spring 2018 semester. The two-story, 15,000-square-foot facility stands behind the current RCAM building. The expansion was made possible the collective efforts of the Advanced Manufacturing Partnership (AMP).
Northeast State sought to expand RCAM’s existing space to accommodate growing dual enrollment opportunities. Area high school students can now take advantage of these new dual enrollment options to earn college credit hours during their junior and senior years.
The Academy’s first floor includes a large Machine Tool/CNC laboratory with new machining technology foundational for world class instruction. This allows RCAM to support advanced manufacturing at a whole new level. The second floor includes six classrooms and additional staff offices.
Currently, RCAM courses fulfill the requirements for associate of applied science degrees and/or technical certificate programs offered in Chemical Process Operations, Electromechanical Technology, Electrical Technology, and Welding/Metal Fabrication. Expanding the RCAM’s current footprint creates the opportunity to offer Machine Tool/CNC training and increases both operational efficiencies and long-term sustainability of this nationally recognized facility. Northeast State, AMP, and regional elected officials broke ground on the new facility approximately one year ago.
The first RCAM facility opened in 2009 to serve as the College’s primary off-campus facility for training a qualified workforce for the region’s manufacturing sector. The facility was also established via the collective efforts of the Advanced Manufacturing Partnership.
RCAM’s academic program-related enrollment has grown over 3.5 times since the facility opened. Since 2010-2011, cumulative completions for students taking at least 12 credit hours at RCAM have grown 25 times. For the programs offered at RCAM, student job placement averages approximately 200 placements across 40 different regional employers per year.
